Conspicuous consumption of socially excluded consumers: the roles of self-esteem and face concern

Purpose Social exclusion is hypothesized to motivate conspicuous consumption. However, prior evidence has remained unreconciled. Under the sociometer theory, this study proposes a model to clarify the effects of social exclusion on conspicuous consumption, with negative self-esteem as a mediating factor and consumers' concern about their social face (or face concern) as a moderating factor. We expected that consumers with strong social face concern, when experiencing social exclusion, would be more likely to have negative self-esteem, which, in turn, would motivate their conspicuous consumption as a defensive mechanism to restore self-esteem. Design/methodology/approach This study used survey data from 368 Vietnamese consumers and multiple regressions using the PROCESS macro Models for SPSS, developed by Hayes, to test the hypotheses. Findings The analysis results show a significant positive relationship between social exclusion and negative self-esteem. Negative self-esteem significantly and fully mediates the relationship between social exclusion and conspicuous consumption. Face concern also moderates the indirect influence of social exclusion on conspicuous consumption via negative self-esteem, as we expected. Originality/value Our study findings highlight the moderating role of face concern, as an extension of the sociometer theory, in explaining the mechanism by which social exclusion affects conspicuous consumption. The findings also offer practical implications for policymakers and practitioners to design interventions to reduce materialism and conspicuous consumption for more sustainable happiness and well-being in human society.