The hedonic shopping and impulse buying:
understanding customer motivation in the e-commerce era Dika Argian Syah1.
Anisah Istiqomah1.
Hanip Munib Al Haqqi1.
Cut Farah Selene Aurelia1.
Masran Tamin2 Faculty of Economics and Business Universitas Pelita Bangsa.
Indonesia 2Faculty of Business.
Economics and Accountancy Universiti Malaysia Sabah.
Malaysia Article info Article history:
Received: 15 August 2025 Accepted: 21 September Published: 29 September Keywords:
hedonic shopping.
shopping lifestyle.
shopping motivation.
impulse buying Abstract This study examines the influence of hedonic shopping, shopping lifestyle, and shopping motivation on impulse purchases among ecommerce consumers in Indonesia.
With the rapid growth of Indonesia's e-commerce market, it is important to understand the psychological factors that drive consumer behavior.
This study uses a descriptive quantitative approach by distributing questionnaires to 112 respondents who are e-commerce users.
Independent variables are hedonic shopping and shopping lifestyle, the dependent variable is impulse buying, and the moderating variable is shopping motivation.
The results show that hedonic shopping and shopping motivation significantly and positively affect impulse purchases, while shopping lifestyle does not.
Furthermore, shopping motivation cannot moderate the relationship between hedonic shopping and shopping lifestyle on impulse purchases.
These findings underscore the importance of emotional experience and internal motivation in driving impulse purchases in e-commerce environments.
JEL classifications: M30.
M31.
M37 Citation:
Syah.
Istiqomah.
Al Haqqi.
Aurelia.
& Tamin, .
The hedonic shopping and impulse buying: understanding customer motivation in the e-commerce era.
Global Advances in Business Studies, 4.
, 82-92, https://doi.
org/10.
55584/Gabs.
*Corresponding author: Dika Argian Syah 14211014@mhs.
E-ISSN: 2828-8394
org/10.
55584/Gabs.
Introduction In recent years, the rapid growth of e-commerce in Indonesia has transformed how consumers shop.
With increasing Internet accessibility and the proliferation of smartphones, online shopping has become a prevalent activity among Indonesian consumers.
According to a report by Statista .
, the e-commerce market in Indonesia is projected to reach USD53 billion by 2025, making it one of the largest e-commerce markets in Southeast Asia.
This growth presents a unique opportunity to explore the psychological factors that drive consumer behavior in online shopping, particularly the concepts of hedonic shopping and impulse buying.
Impulse buying, also known as unplanned purchasing, is a common consumer behavior characterized by spontaneous and immediate purchase decisions without prior planning or consideration of the consequences (Mathur & Bhakar, 2.
In e-commerce, impulse buying can be triggered by various factors, including promotional offers, product recommendations, and the overall shopping environment.
The convenience of online shopping can further exacerbate impulse buying tendencies, as consumers can make purchases with just a few clicks (Moser, 2.
Several studies have highlighted the relationship between hedonic shopping and impulse For example.
Wandira et al.
found that consumers who engage in hedonic shopping are more likely to exhibit impulse buying behavior.
This relationship is particularly relevant in the e-commerce era, where the online shopping environment can create a sense of urgency and excitement that encourages spontaneous purchases (Sebayang et al.
, 2.
Hedonic shopping refers to the pursuit of pleasure and enjoyment derived from the shopping experience itself, rather than the functional benefits of the products purchased (Coelho et al.
Emotional responses, sensory experiences, and the desire for self-indulgence characterize this type of shopping (Yahya, 2.
In e-commerce, hedonic shopping can manifest through various online experiences, such as browsing visually appealing websites, engaging with interactive content, and enjoying the convenience of shopping from home (Hashmi et al.
, 2.
Hedonic shopping motivations have a direct and multiple mediation effect on online impulse buying.
Factors such as website credibility, visual appeal, and the need for touch positively influence hedonic shopping motivation, affecting impulse buying (Chatterjee et al.
Hedonic shopping motivations lead to impulse buying through the formation of positive emotions (Liang & Yu, 2.
Its motivation can lead to impulse buying, which may result in post-purchase regret.
Consumers may prepare to cope with this regret even before making impulse purchases (Do & Chan, 2.
Research has shown that hedonic shopping motivations significantly influence consumer behavior.
In Indonesia, where cultural values emphasize social interactions and community, the hedonic aspects of shopping may play a crucial role in shaping consumer preferences and behaviors (Sebayang et al.
, 2.
Demographic factors such as age and gender can moderate the relationship between hedonic shopping and impulse For instance, younger consumers and those with higher levels of fashion involvement are more likely to engage in impulse buying driven by hedonic motives.
Addressing these issues requires a deeper understanding of the research landscape in smart Therefore, this study conducts a bibliometric analysis to examine the subject area, current publication trends, highly cited documents, leading authors, and author keywords Understanding customer motivation is essential for e-commerce businesses aiming to enhance customer engagement and drive sales.
Motivation can be categorized into two primary types: utilitarian and hedonic.
Utilitarian motivation refers to the practical and functional reasons for shopping, such as the need for specific products or services.
In contrast, hedonic motivation is driven by the desire for pleasure, enjoyment, and emotional fulfillment.
Syah et al.
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In the Indonesian e-commerce landscape, utilitarian and hedonic motivations coexist.
However, the increasing emphasis on hedonic shopping experiences suggests that consumers seek more than just functional benefits from online purchases.
According to Kumaran et al.
, the regulatory influence of hedonic motivation on customer purchase intentions in social commerce involves its ability to enhance emotional and sensory experiences, thereby affecting consumers' buying decisions.
The advancement of technology has revolutionized the e-commerce landscape, providing consumers with new ways to engage in hedonic shopping and impulse buying.
Features such as personalized recommendations, social media integration, and gamification have enhanced the online shopping experience, making it more interactive and enjoyable.
For instance, using artificial intelligence (AI) in e-commerce platforms allows for personalized shopping experiences that cater to individual preferences and behaviors (Bawack et al.
, 2.
A study found that personalized recommendations significantly increase the likelihood of impulse buying among consumers.
In Indonesia, where social media plays a significant role in shaping consumer behavior, integrating social media marketing strategies can further enhance hedonic shopping experiences and drive impulse purchases.
Many studies have consistently shown a significant positive relationship between consumers' shopping lifestyles and their propensity to engage in impulse buying.
This relationship is often direct and mediated by emotional factors experienced during shopping (Eldon et al.
, 2.
Shopping lifestyle significantly influences impulse purchases (Loo et al.
For example, time and money availability allow consumers to fulfil their shopping desires, increasing their purchasing power and potential for impulse purchases (Zaki & Simon.
Empirical evidence suggests that different demographic cohorts, especially younger generations, exhibit varying tendencies and vulnerabilities to impulse buying, especially in digital shopping environments.
Live streaming platforms significantly stimulate impulse buying tendencies, "especially among Generation Y (Millennial.
and Generation Z" (Amalia & Firmialy, 2.
Shopping motivation is the driving force within consumers that encourages them to shop, arising from their needs or wants (Caber & Albayrak, 2.
Hedonic shopping motivation is consistently found to positively and significantly influence impulse buying (Savitri et al.
Consumers who seek fun, excitement, and experience from shopping are more likely to make unplanned purchases (Mashilo et al.
, 2.
Positive emotions, such as joy and fulfilment, often mediate this relationship, where hedonic motivations trigger positive emotions that drive impulse purchases (Widiyanto & Rachmawati, 2.
The role of utilitarian motivation in impulse buying is more nuanced.
A few studies show that utilitarian motivation has an insignificant direct influence on impulse buying (Budiman et al.
, 2.
Hedonic shopping motivation does not affect impulse purchases (Dewi & Adi, 2.
Although the literature has identified a clear relationship between hedonic shopping, shopping lifestyle, and shopping motivation on impulse buying, there are research gaps that encourage researchers to explore further.
This study aims to analyze the effect of hedonic shopping, shopping lifestyle, and shopping motivation on impulse purchases for e-commerce Literature review Impulse buying Chen et al.
revealed as a pioneer in categorizing impulse buying, identifying four distinct types: "Pure impulse buying," characterized by an entirely unplanned, emotionallydriven desire for a novel item upon sight.
"Reminder impulse buying," where a product prompts a consumer to recall a pre-existing, though unlisted, need.
"Suggestion impulse buying," involving the realization of a new need upon encountering a product, often through in-store Syah et al.
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and "Planned impulse buying," a seemingly paradoxical category where consumers have a general purchase intention but make the final item or brand decision impulsively in the store, often swayed by promotions or appealing displays (Sajeetha & Tay, 2.
Rizal et al.
stated that impulse buying is primarily an unconscious behavior influenced by emotional factors beyond the individual's control.
Impulse buying can be defined as the tendency of individuals to buy spontaneously, reflectively, or less thoughtfully, immediately, and kinetically (Karim et al.
, 2.
Highly impulsive individuals are more likely to continue to get spontaneous purchase stimuli, shopping lists are more open, and receive unplanned purchase ideas suddenly (Donovan & Mowen, 2016.
Sarkar & Adhikary, 2.
Hedonic shopping Babin et al.
found that consumers who engage in hedonic shopping are more likely to experience positive emotions, leading to increased satisfaction and loyalty to online retailers.
Hedonic shopping value, which includes the enjoyment and pleasure derived from shopping, positively and significantly impacts impulse buying (Kholis et al.
, 2.
Psychological factors, including the hedonic lifestyle greatly influence impulse buying.
Hedonic shopping is for pleasure, enjoyment, and emotional satisfaction rather than for practical or utilitarian reasons (Soelton et al.
, 2.
Positive emotions play a crucial mediating role in hedonic shopping and impulse buying.
When consumers experience positive emotions during shopping, they are more likely to make impulsive purchases (Wandira et al.
, 2.
Certain hedonic motivations .
, shopping for relaxation, social connection, novelty, and good valu.
are identified as influencing Generation Y students' online impulse buying behavior (Mashilo et , 2.
H1: Hedonic shopping has a positive effect on impulse buying Shopping lifestyle Bhakat and Muruganantham .
introduced a basic framework for categorizing buying behavior into planned, unplanned, or impulsive.
The shopping lifestyle has a significant impact on impulse buying.
Eldon et al.
found that the higher a person's shopping lifestyle, the more impulse buying behavior increases.
Shopping lifestyle reflects an individual's choices in spending time and money.
When consumers have free time and cash, they are more likely to shop, which relates to their involvement with products and can trigger impulse buying behavior (Dewi & Adi, 2.
H2: Shopping lifestyle has a positive effect on impulse buying Shopping motivation Impulse buying is a consumer behavior that occurs without planning.
a person's motivation when shopping can lead to impulse buying (Dewi & Adi, 2.
Researchers have long identified that consumers' shopping motivations are not only limited to utilitarian .
needs, but also include hedonic .
leasure, relaxation, or stimulatio.
, social .
tatus, social interactio.
, and recreational .
aspects (Budiman et al.
, 2.
Consumers' online impulse buying behavior may enable them to enjoy themselves or escape unpleasant emotions (Mashilo et al.
, 2.
Attractive offers can easily influence people, encouraging them to shop and satisfy their needs, often leading to impulse buying (Nurtanio et al.
, 2.
Motivation is a force in a person that encourages them to do something.
The urge is obtained by a depressed atmosphere, which arises from unmet needs (Sebayang et al.
, 2.
Motivation drives all consumer actions, as consumers constantly seek to satisfy their needs and desires (Sani & Hafidah, 2.
There are two shopping motives, i.
, utilitarian shopping motives and hedonic shopping motives.
Both function simultaneously in purchasing decisions Syah et al.
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(Hudin et al.
, 2.
Consumers often try new products or brands to seek novel experiences, moving away from their usual purchases (Budiman et al.
, 2.
H3: Shopping motivation has a positive effect on impulse buying H4: Shopping motivation moderates the effect of hedonic shopping on impulse buying H5: Shopping motivation moderates the effect of shopping lifestyle on impulse buying Figure 1.
Research model Methodology This study is a descriptive quantitative research, an approach that describes the characteristics of a phenomenon or population with numerical data, and aims to provide a systematic description of the studied variables without manipulation (Cresswell, 2.
Researchers collect data through surveys, questionnaires, or measurements, which are then statistically analyzed (Sekaran & Bougie, 2.
The questionnaire, using a 1-5 scale from "strongly disagree" to "strongly agree," was distributed via Google Forms.
This study consists of independent variables: hedonic shopping (X.
and shopping lifestyle (X.
The dependent variable is impulse buying (Y), and the moderating variable is shopping motivation (Z).
The research population is consumers who use e-commerce as a purchasing tool.
determining the sample size, the sample selection is based on non-probability sampling, namely accidental sampling.
In short, anyone that the researcher happens to meet and fits the general criteria of the study can be a part of the sample (Sugiyono, 2.
112 respondents were obtained after distributing the questionnaire.
Results and discussions Results Table 1 shows that there are more female respondents than males.
Active respondents are between 20 and 25 years old.
On average, the respondents' income falls within the 1-3 million range, and they shop online 1-3 times monthly.
The instrument test consists of a validity test and a reliability test.
The instrument test determines whether the data obtained from the questionnaire is highly accurate and consistent.
During data processing, there were several invalid instruments.
Therefore, an outlier was identified and Table 2 shows the result.
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Table 1.
Characteristics of respondents Item 1 Gender Male Female 2 Age <20 Ae 25 years >25 Ae 35 years >35 Ae 45 years >45 years 3 Income .
n rupia.
<1 Ae 3 million >3 Ae 5 million >5 Ae 10 million >10 million 4 Shopping online .
n a mont.
1 Ae 3 times >3 Ae 5 times >5 Ae 10 times >10 times Total Percentage (%) Source: questionnaire output, authorsAo own work.
Table 2.
Outer loading X11
X15
X18
X23
X24
X27
X28
Source: SEM-PLS output, authorsAo own work.
Referring to Table 2, each indicator's validity score exceeds 0.
7, indicating that the research data is valid.
Furthermore, reliability testing uses a composite reliability of > 0.
7 and an AVE value of > 0.
Table 3 shows that the data is reliable.
Table 4 explains the influence level of the independent variables on the dependent variable.
An R-squared value of 0.
738 shows that the independent variables account for 73.
8% of the Syah et al.
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variation in the dependent variable, with the remaining 26.
2% is influenced by other factors not included in the study.
Table 3.
Construct reliability and validity Variable Composite reliability Average variance extracted (AVE) R square R square adjusted Figure 2.
Path model Table 4.
R-square Table 5.
Hypothesis testing Hypothesis Original sample (O) T statistics (|O/STDEV|) X1 -> Y
X2 -> Y
Z -> Y
X1*Z -> Y
X2*Z -> Y
Source: SEM-PLS output, authorsAo own work.
P values Remark H1 rejected H2 Accepted H3 Accepted H4 Rejected H5 Rejected As shown in Table 5, the hypothesis test reveals that hedonic shopping and shopping motivation positively affect impulse buying, while shopping lifestyle does not.
Shopping motivation cannot moderate the effect of hedonic shopping and shopping lifestyle on impulse Discussion The findings show that hedonic shopping affects impulse buying, and hedonic shopping behavior is oriented towards seeking pleasure and positive emotional experiences during the shopping process.
Consumers who engage in hedonic shopping tend to seek instant gratification and pleasure from the shopping activity, which can encourage them to make Syah et al.
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impulse purchases.
When consumers feel excitement, happiness, or satisfaction while shopping, they are more likely to make purchase decisions without prior planning, often triggered by a positive mood or attractive visual stimuli (Sebayang et al.
, 2.
The results agree with Coelho et al.
and Widiyanto and Rachmawati .
Since a consumer's shopping lifestyle is less influential than their emotional and situational factors, it does not affect impulse buying.
Although shopping lifestyle reflects personal preferences in shopping, such as the tendency to shop in a planned or spontaneous manner, the decision to make an impulse purchase is often triggered by external stimuli, such as attractive promotions, strategic product placement, or an attractive store atmosphere.
This study's results align with those of Mashilo et al.
, who stated that the shopping experience does not affect impulse buying.
The results contradict Dewi and Adi .
, who found that shopping lifestyle positively affects impulse buying.
Thus, although shopping lifestyle influences consumers' interactions with the shopping environment, it does not directly determine impulse buying tendencies, which are more influenced by emotional and situational factors.
Shopping motivation affects impulse buying because deep emotional and psychological needs often drive the urge to shop.
When consumers have certain motivations, such as seeking entertainment, coping with stress, or fulfilling social needs, they are more likely to purchase impulse to achieve instant gratification.
The results of this study align with Eldon et al.
and Savitri et al.
, who found that shopping motivation affects impulse buying.
Shopping motivation is a key driver facilitating impulse buying behavior, as consumers tend to follow their emotional impulses when shopping.
Shopping motivation cannot moderate the relationship between hedonic shopping and impulse buying because they operate at different levels.
Hedonic shoppingAithe pursuit of pleasure and positive emotionsAiis a direct driver of impulse buying, independent of other shopping motivations.
Because hedonic shopping already fosters an environment conducive to impulse buying, the reasons behind the decision to shop .
hopping motivatio.
do not significantly influence that relationship.
Shopping motivation cannot moderate the effect of shopping lifestyle on impulse buying because both operate independently.
Shopping lifestyle reflects how individuals shop, while shopping motivation relates to the reasons behind the decision to shop.
While shopping motivation can influence decisions, it does not change how consumers interact with the shopping environment, which is determined by their shopping lifestyle.
Thus, the influence of shopping style is more dominant in determining impulse buying behavior, so shopping motivation does not have a significant moderating role.
Conclusions Based on data analysis, this study concludes that hedonic shopping and shopping motivation significantly influence impulse buying among e-commerce consumers.
Consumers seeking pleasure and emotional satisfaction from the shopping experience are likelier to make impulse purchases.
Similarly, strong internal motivations for shopping, such as seeking entertainment or coping with stress, also drive unplanned purchasing behavior.
Although a person's shopping lifestyle reflects their preferences, it does not directly influence impulse buying, which is more affected by emotions and specific situations.
Shopping motivation does not moderate the relationship between hedonic shopping and impulse buying, nor between shopping lifestyle and impulse buying.
This implies that the influence of hedonic shopping and shopping lifestyle on impulse buying is either direct and powerful enough on its own, or that these variables do not interact with shopping motivation in a moderating capacity.
These findings provide valuable insights for e-commerce businesses to design strategies that capitalize on consumers' emotional and motivational aspects to increase engagement and sales.
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, 82-92
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References