Luxury in silence: the divergent mechanisms of luxury preference influenced by status anxiety and symbolic self-completion

Purpose This study examines how socioeconomic status (SES) shapes quiet versus loud luxury preferences through status anxiety and the moderating role of symbolic self-completion. Design/methodology/approach Three-hundred and fifty-eight Chinese consumers were randomly assigned to quiet or loud luxury conditions differentiated by logo prominence. SES was measured as a composite of objective and subjective SES. Status anxiety captured individuals’ anxiety over social standing, and symbolic self-completion captured identity incompleteness and self-repair motivation, all measured via scales. Partial least squares structural equation modeling assessed measurement and structural models; PROCESS Model 14 examined the conditional indirect effects at different levels of symbolic self-completion. Findings SES negatively predicted status anxiety, and status anxiety positively influenced luxury purchase preferences. Symbolic self-completion exhibited a divergent moderation pattern on this indirect effect: at low levels, status anxiety primarily drove consumers to prefer quiet luxury; at high levels, it drove consumers to prefer loud luxury. Originality/value This study disentangles two psychological routes to luxury preference: an expressive path grounded in cultural capital and identity theory, whereby individuals with relatively intact identities prefer quiet luxury; and a compensatory path driven by symbolic self-completion theory and signaling theory, whereby individuals with identity deficits prefer loud luxury to restore identity under status threat. These findings offer practical implications for luxury brand positioning and marketing in the emerging-market context of China. However, the findings are context-specific, and income volatility and cultural values have not yet been incorporated.