Consumer Guilt and Shame Scale

What it measures

Measures two distinct moral emotions in consumer contexts: guilt (feeling bad about a specific behaviour — e.g., overspending, unhealthy eating, impulse buying) and shame (feeling bad about oneself as a consumer — e.g., feeling like a bad person for one's consumption choices). Guilt and shame have different consequences — guilt motivates corrective behaviour while shame motivates avoidance and disengagement.

Representative items

• I feel guilty when I buy things I don't really need. (Guilt)
• I feel bad about myself when I make an indulgent purchase. (Shame)
• I feel remorseful when I spend more than I should. (Guilt)
• I am ashamed of some of my consumption choices. (Shame)
• Buying unhealthy food makes me feel like a bad person. (Shame)

Citation

Quimby, J.L., & Rapp, J.M. (2018). Consumer guilt: Scale development and preliminary findings. Journal of Business Research, 107, 236–247.