I want that life: flex culture, frustration-based envy and online impulse buying among young social media users

Abstract

This study aims to examine how four flex-related characteristics, namely, opulence, visibility, self-praise and need for popularity, are associated with frustration-based envy, social validation and online impulse buying among young social media users. Drawing on cognitive appraisal theory, it explains why these characteristics may carry different emotional significance. A quantitative research design was employed using survey data collected from Generation Z social media users. Structural equation modelling was used to examine the proposed relationships among the constructs. Visibility, self-praise and need for popularity were positively associated with frustration-based envy, whereas opulence demonstrated a negative association. Frustration-based envy was positively associated with both social validation and online impulse buying, while self-praise also had a direct positive relationship with social validation. The negative opulence finding is consistent with the possibility that socially closer or more attainable status displays are more emotionally consequential than extreme luxury. This study offers a theory-driven account of flex culture within consumer behaviour, extending understanding of how its different characteristics relate to envy, social validation and online impulse buying in social media environments.