Yogyakarta — Emotions are becoming the central force behind impulsive buying in the digital age, surpassing rational needs and planned decisions. This is the key finding of a 2026 study by Annisa Findarty, Tony Wijaya, and Penny Rahmawati from Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta, published in the East Asian Journal of Multidisciplinary Research (EAJMR). The study maps the global evolution of research on emotions and impulsive buying over the past two decades and highlights how digital platforms like TikTok Shop and e-commerce ecosystems are reshaping consumer behavior.
As e-commerce and social commerce continue to grow, consumers are making more spontaneous purchasing decisions. These decisions are increasingly driven by emotional triggers such as excitement, curiosity, urgency, and fear of missing out.
This trend is especially visible on platforms like TikTok Shop, where entertainment and shopping merge into one experience. Short videos, product reviews, and limited-time promotions create emotional arousal that often leads to unplanned purchases.
To understand this phenomenon, the researchers conducted a bibliometric analysis of 84 Scopus-indexed publications from 2002 to 2025 using the keywords “Emotion” and “Impulsive Buying.” With VOSviewer software, they mapped publication trends, thematic clusters, and the intellectual structure of this growing research field.
The results reveal a sharp increase in academic interest since 2019, peaking in 2023 with 18 publications. This growth signals a major shift in how scholars understand consumer decision-making in digital environments.
The study identified three major research clusters.
The first shows emotions as the direct trigger of spontaneous buying decisions. Feelings such as pleasure, excitement, and arousal accelerate purchases without extensive rational thinking.
The second highlights digital environments as emotional stimulators. Flash sales, gamification, live-stream shopping, and social interactions intensify emotional responses and create urgency.
The third focuses on post-purchase cognitive conflict. Many consumers experience regret or cognitive dissonance after making impulsive purchases.
According to Findarty and her team, emotions are no longer secondary elements in digital marketing. They are now at the center of modern selling strategies.
The study also found that Asia has become the global hub for impulsive buying research. China leads with 19 publications, followed by Indonesia with 10, then South Korea and Taiwan. This reflects Asia’s rapid digital economy growth and its role as a key testing ground for understanding modern consumer behavior.
For businesses, the findings offer practical insights. Digital marketing strategies are no longer just about pricing or product features. Emotional engagement, visual design, and urgency tactics have become essential for driving fast consumer action.
At the same time, the study warns of the risks of excessive impulsive buying, including unhealthy spending habits and financial regret.
Ultimately, this research shows that the future of digital commerce will increasingly depend on emotional psychology. In a world filled with instant digital stimuli, human buying decisions are becoming more emotional than rational.
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