Post‐purchase effects of impulse buying: A review and research agenda

Abstract

Although impulse buying has been studied for decades, prior research mostly focuses on reasons for impulse buying rather than its outcomes. In recent years this trend has changed, due to the emerging sustainability agenda and the attention to impulse buying as one of the main antecedents of overconsumption. However, existing research on the outcomes of impulse buying is currently less systematically synthesised compared to research on the antecedents. Therefore, we present a framework‐based systematic literature review on the outcomes of impulse buying based on 54 articles, drawing on the frameworks of theory, context, characteristics and methods (TCCM) and antecedents–decisions–outcomes (ADO). The results include a review and classification of impulse buying outcomes and their interconnections. This study unpacks the outcomes of impulse buying for consumers, society and business. The review also includes impulse buying antecedents to the extent that they are connected to the outcomes. Furthermore, we derive a conceptual framework of the impulse buying process that reveals the cyclic nature of impulse buying. Based on the findings, recommendations for future research are provided under the prism of theoretical, methodological, contextual, and conceptual development. The review also has implications for businesses and policymakers.