A few months ago, we wrote a post on How To Read Design Blogs and Resist the Urge to Buy. In the post, we mentioned that researching and writing about design gives us a buzz that cuts down on our need to actually consume, and fellow bloggers commented that they've had similar experiences. Turns out our blogging buzz might be due, in part, to a dopamine release in the brain...
While reading Rob Walker's Buying In: The Secret Dialogue Between What We Buy and Who We Are, we came across a chapter on consumer behavior patterns that discusses dopamine: a chemical in the brain that triggers sensations of pleasure when you buy something new. Emory professor Gregory Berns has argued that the potential of novelty is central to a dopamine release. When you actually buy something, that pleasure is modulated by "the pain of paying." (According to a Carnegie Mellon study, credit cards help to circumvent this, sustaining the dopamine rush by putting off the payment process.)
Although Walker doesn't mention blogging directly, we're speculating that the buzz we get from blogging new things might replicate the rush we'd get from consuming (minus the pain of paying). As commenters stated on our "How to Read Design Blogs" post, you don't have to actually blog to get that buzz. Other methods people mentioned include window shopping without buying, consuming trends through reading and surfing the net, and keeping clip files from magazines. One of the best tricks commenters suggested for avoiding consumption was, of course, focusing on the pain of how much you'd have to pay for your new purchase.
For more information on Rob Walker's book, Buying In, click here.
© 2009 Apartment Therapy
Ah, the Houston Galleria. I knew it without even looking at the photo caption!
view Kathryn's profile
great post!
one trick i've found that gives me "the buzz" without actually spending the bucks is to windowshop online and actually put the desired items into my shopping cart. there seems to be something hot about selecting and laying claim to an object of desire. once i have the pieces in my cart, however, they lose a lot of their thrill value.
go figure.
view arlis's profile
i agree with arlis. i like to shop online and put things in the cart and then when i'm all done, i just close the window and poof no money spent. some places actually let you store your shopping cart, so i leave it there and the next time i go, either the stuff i like is gone or i don't like it so much. but this technique really keeps my real shopping at bay.
view shessocrafty's profile
arlis,
I do the same exact thing. The "Shopping Cart" really allows you to release the item from your view and then you almost always let it go completely.
HA!
view ginkgojoe's profile
I suspect that the 'shopping cart' idea was intended to have the exact opposite affect! It seems retailers thought one would be much MORE likely to purchase more items (than in store) because they couldn't constantly see the accumulation or total and were more likey to overlook a high total after all the 'effort' of finding the items. Sort of a "oh what the hell" reaction.
view Enamorada's profile
I like to look in shops as if they are museums of contemporary objects. Just for looking and appreciating the beauty, not for taking home.
view Lizzy's profile
Not only do blogs introduce me to new stuff, but they also inspire me to use what I already own in new ways. That must release some dopamine!
view madampince's profile
I bookmark webpages. I have a folder labeled "DOOR" for "Design Out Of Reach"!
view kushkush's profile