A research on the role of online shopping culture in hedonic consumption in university students

In today's world, it is known that consumers engage in consumption not only to meet their basic needs but also as an activity that brings pleasure and happiness. Particularly during the pandemic, noticeable differences have been observed in consumption patterns. According to this, a rapid shift from traditional consumption to online consumption during this period stands out. For instance, based on data from 2020 provided by Avantajix.com from the Ministry of Commerce, it is seen that the amount of online shopping in Turkey exceeded 226 billion TL. It is believed that the negative emotions, uncertainties, and the stress created by these during the pandemic have led consumers to turn to online shopping. Indeed, the underlying reasons for engaging in online shopping include people's desire to cope with negative emotions, their efforts to turn negative emotions into positive ones, and the need to manage stress, etc. In this study, the role of online shopping culture in hedonic consumption is examined through associate, undergraduate, and graduate students. For this purpose, semi-structured interviews were conducted with a total of 21 students, consisting of 11 female and 10 male students from Gümüşhane University and Akdeniz University. The interviews were conducted face-to-face, through written communication on the internet, and via social media platforms. The results obtained from the study show that with the development of internet technology and the increase in online shopping, there has been a rise in hedonic consumption among university students. Moreover, it was observed that hedonic consumption plays a significant role in the online shopping behaviors of students at both Gümüşhane University and Akdeniz University, and hedonic consumption makes students feel good. Additionally, it was concluded that students from both universities mostly prefer hedonic (pleasure-oriented) consumption in their online shopping. Keywords: Hedonic consumption, Purchase behavior, Online shopping