Communications on Applied Nonlinear Analysis ISSN: 1074-133X Vol 32 No. 3 (2025) 834 https://internationalpubls.com Impact of Impulse and Hedonic Buying on Mobile Shopping and Cognitive Dissonance: A Study in Tenkasi 1L. Christlin Mercy, 2Dr. J. Vijay Stanly 1Reg. No.241110406024, PhD Research scholar(Full Time), PG & Research Department of commerce, C.S.I Jayaraj Annapackiam College, Nallur-627853, Tenkasi District., Affiliated to Manonmaniam Sundarnar University, Tirunelveli. Tamilnadu, India. christlin1812@gmail.com 2Research Supervisor , Assistant professor of commerce, C.S.I Jayaraj Annapackiam College, Nallur-627853, Tenkasi District., Affiliated to Manonmaniam Sundarnar University, Tirunelveli., Tamilnadu, India. vijaystanlycsijac@gmail.com Article History: Received: 12-01-2025 Revised: 15-02-2025 Accepted: 01-03-2025 Abstract: This study investigates the impact of impulse buying and hedonic buying on Cognitive Dissonance in the context of Tenkasi, Tamil Nadu. The impulse buying refers to status consumption and pursuit of happiness, while hedonic buying refers to the digital payments and online review which induce buying. Both impulse buying and hedonic buying are closely linked to materialism, which in turn influences cognitive dissonance. Cognitive dissonance the psychological discomfort experienced after making a purchase is a significant concern in the context. The study employs a structured questionnaire to collect primary data from 385 respondents. The statistical model was tested by using the Structural Equation Modeling (SEM), analyzed using SPSS and AMOS software. Keywords: Impulse buying, Hedonic buying, Mobile shopping, Cognitive dissonance, consumer behaviour Introduction Technological innovations have reshaped consumer purchasing habits. The advent of mobile shopping, facilitated by smartphones and digital payment systems, has transformed traditional retail into a more convenient, accessible and personalized experience. This shift has given rise to new consumer behaviours. Particularly hedonic buying and impulse buying, which are increasingly prevalent in the digital marketplace. These behaviors are not only reshaping culture but also influencing psychological outcomes such as cognitive dissonance a state of mental discomfort that arises if consumers experiences conflicting thoughts or emotions after making a purchases. Consumers can now shop anytime and anywhere, leading to a significant increase in online transactions. According to recent studies mobile shopping is particularly popular in developing countries because ease of browsing products, comparing prices and making purchases through mobile apps has made shopping a seamless and enjoyable experience for many consumers. However, this convenience also comes with challenges, as the digital environment often encourages impulsive and hedonic driven purchasing decision. In the context of mobile shopping, hedonic buying happens Communications on Applied Nonlinear Analysis ISSN: 1074-133X Vol 32 No. 3 (2025) 835 https://internationalpubls.com when people shop online because it’s enjoyable, they like the pictures, tailored advice and they get ideas for new things to buy and the emotional connections to shopping is particularly evident in mobile commerce, where the convenience of digital payments and the influences of online reviews amplify the hedonic experience. The convenience of mobile shopping and digital payments makes it easier for people to buy things without thinking twice. As well as impulse buying might regret it. So the cognitive dissonance is created by the mobile shopping. Specifically, the study seeks to analyze the relationship between materialism, hedonic buying and impulse buying. Explore the psychological outcomes of hedonic buying and impulse buying, particularly influences with cognitive dissonances. This study aims to explore the impact of hedonic and impulse buying on mobile shopping and cognitive dissonance in the context of Tenkasi, a developing region in India. Review of literature Hedonic Buying Hirschman and Holbrook (1982) says the Hedonic consumption is the behaviour of a pleasant experience entertainment and sensory gained from purchasing a product or service. Bakirtas and divanoglu (2013) The Hedonic shopping is also pleasure and joy that a consumer expects from shopping. Online Review Park and lee investigated the relationship between consumer characteristics, attitude toward online reviews and found a significant relationship between online reviews and purchase influence. Chevalier. J and Mayzlin.D. The number of online reviews is always used to determine the product as it is represent high product popularity. Digital payments Digital payments have significantly impacted consumer behaviour, leading to increased online shopping and higher transaction research by Kristu Jayanti college (2023) examined the positive effects of digital payments on consumers. Impulse Buying Rook D.W (1987) investigated the consumers who succeed with their impulse buying tend to feel good, satisfied, happy and wonderful. Chen. Y and Zhang.L (2015) Studied the online impulse buying is an action without intention but a mental reaction that is exposed to external online stimuli. Status Consumption Roberts (2000) Discussed that the rise of an overall consumer culture has possibly extreme negative outcomes. Materialism and status consumption are the foundation of the consumer culture, Whereas compulsive buying is a harmful consequence of the consumer culture. Communications on Applied Nonlinear Analysis ISSN: 1074-133X Vol 32 No. 3 (2025) 836 https://internationalpubls.com Pursuit Happiness on buying Supriya M. Kala and Anita Goyal (2003) Explored the relationship between happiness and impulse buying, finding that positive emotions can act an internal motivators for spontaneous purchases. Van Boven (2005) suggested that experiences and less easily compared that material goods- harder to align therefore might be less influenced by social comparisons than material goods. Materialism Fournier(1991) found out that materialism can be conceptualized as a value-oriented aspect that reflects a set of beliefs that describes the importance of possession in one’s life. Belk. R.W (1985) Materialism the possession assumes to be a central place in their life and they believe it could provide the greatest source of satisfaction and dissatisfaction. Cognitive Dissonance George.P and Edward. M (2009) The impact of personal involvement in a purchase decision on the information needed to reduce cognitive dissonance related to the purchase and discovered that the degree to cognitive dissonance experienced. Koller.M and Salyberger.T(2007) Introduction the theory of cognitive dissonance has been applied in various research fields and the most prominent one has been consumer behaviour research Research Methodology Research model Figure 1 Theoretical and Empirical Definitions of Variables 1. Hedonic Buying Hedonic buying refers to purchasing behaviour influenced by emotions pleasure and functional needs. It is linked to emotions of happiness, excitement and emotional satisfaction through online shopping. 2. Digital Payments Digital Payments refers to transaction where money is exchanged without the use of physical cash. Online payments platforms such as mobile payments apps, internet banking systems, e-wallets online Communications on Applied Nonlinear Analysis ISSN: 1074-133X Vol 32 No. 3 (2025) 837 https://internationalpubls.com payment processors and digital payments gateways. These payments are fast, secure and convenient enabling transactions from internet connection. 3. Online Review An online rating and comment or feedback posted on the internet by a customer or user about a product, service and experience about mobile shopping online review influencing hedonic motivation to buying. 4. Impulse Buying Impulse buying refers to the unplanned purchase without advance planning or thought. It is influenced by emotions, advertisements and it is characterized by a immediate need to buy something without planning. 5. Status Consumption Status consumption refers to the act of purchasing and using goods or services to project a desired social image. This behaviour the purchase of high end products that convey social standing and reputation. 6. Pursuit of Happiness Pursuit of Happiness is about living a life that is rich in purpose, joy and making intentional choices to achieve that or other activities. It is often linked to impulse buying. 7. Materialism Materialism refers to a buying behaviour to place a high values on possessions often linking them to happiness, success and social status. In the context of impulse buying and hedonic buying materialism. 8. Cognitive Dissonance Cognitive dissonance in mobile shopping refers to the psychological discomfort to a person feels after making a purchase through a mobile app. Hypothesis Generation from Conceptual Models H1 - Digital payments have a positive influence on hedonic buying behaviour. H2 - Online reviews have a positive influence on hedonic buying behaviour. H3 - Hedonic buying has a positive influence on materialism. H4 - Status consumption has a positive influence on impulse buying behaviour. H5 - The Pursuit of Happiness has a positive influence on impulse buying behaviour. H6 - Impulse Buying has a positive influence on Materialism. Data Collection Criteria Primary data collection through structured questionnaire for collection primary data convenient sampling method was used to select a sample size of 385 respondents. Communications on Applied Nonlinear Analysis ISSN: 1074-133X Vol 32 No. 3 (2025) 838 https://internationalpubls.com Measurements Tools The primary data used in this study was obtained from an questionnaire. The Questions for all the variables have been measured by a five-point scale ranging from (1) “Strongly disagree” to (5) “Strongly agree”. RESULTS Statistical Analysis and Findings The tools used were SPSS software and AMOS graphics. The techniques used were CFA and path analysis that is SEM. A. Factor Loadings The factor loadings for every item of each construct is checked against the criteria to be 0.5 or higher, only the items that fulfilled this criterion were included in the final analysis, once the items with lower than 0.5 factor loading were excluded from the data, the estimates were computed again to check for the factor loadings for the remaining items. The Table 1 shows the variable with higher factor loading. Table 1 Final Factor Loadings Included in Analysis Measurement Items Variables Item Factor Loading Shopping makes me feel better. I shop because I want to myself to be special. Shopping is Adventurous. I enjoy shopping. Hedonic Buying HB1 HB2 HB3 HB4 0.912 0.918 0.726 0.688 The online reviews give me relevant information for buying. The online reviews give me meaningful information for buying. The online reviews give me important information for buying. The online reviews give me useful information for better shopping. Online Review OR1 OR2 OR3 OR4 0.829 0.869 0.897 0.927 Digital payments reduces addition costs. Digital payments increase hedonic purchases. Digital payments eliminates carrying cash or cards. Using digital payment for shopping is enjoyable and exciting. Digital Payment DP1 DP2 DP3 DP4 0.864 0.935 0.778 0.723 Communications on Applied Nonlinear Analysis ISSN: 1074-133X Vol 32 No. 3 (2025) 839 https://internationalpubls.com I buy a lot of goods I did not plan to buy in advance. I buy immediately without thinking if I really need them. I say to myself buy now and think later. I often buy and later wonder why I bought them. Impulse Buying IB1 IB2 IB3 IB4 0.890 0.859 0.933 0.782 New products that exude high social status are of interest to me. Simply because a product has prestige, I would purchase it. A product with status would command a higher price for me. I don’t give a damn about a product’s status. Status Consumption SC1 SC2 SC3 SC4 0.915 0.786 0.775 0.688 Having some of the things I need would make my life better. Being able to purchases more items would make me happier. Sometimes I get really annoyed that I can’t afford to get everything I want. I frequently make impulsive, thoughtless purchases using my mobile device Pursuit of Happiness PH1 PH2 PH3 PH4 0.832 0.764 0.775 0.688 I look up to those who own pricey homes, vehicles and apparel. Among life’s greatest accomplishments is obtaining material belongings. The items that I own reveal a lot about my level of success in life. If I could afford to purchase more items, I would be happier. Materialism M1 M2 M3 M4 0.902 0.931 0.973 0.945 I attempt to defend my impulsive buy to myself or others. When I make impulsive purchases, I fear that I have made a mistake. I occasionally become nervous or uncomfortable after making hedonic purchases. Cognitive Dissonance CD1 CD2 CD3 0.957 0.911 0.805 Communications on Applied Nonlinear Analysis ISSN: 1074-133X Vol 32 No. 3 (2025) 840 https://internationalpubls.com I am relieved when I justify my hedonic purchases. CD4 0.942 B. Reliability and Validity There are two ways to measure the security of an instrument: Cronbach's Alpha and Composite reliability that each value must be >0.7. In Table each construct has a value of greater than 0.7 either Cronbach's Alpha or Composite Reliability. In other words, the reliability of this study’s construct was established. Table 2 Reliability and validity of constructs Variable Item Loading AVE Composite Reliability Cronbach’s Alpha Cognitive Dissonance (CD) CD1 CD2 CD3 CD4 0.957 0.911 0.805 0.942 0.818 0.947 0.926 Materialism (M) M1 M2 M3 M4 0.902 0.931 0.973 0.945 0.875 0.967 0.953 Impulse Buying (IM) IM1 IM2 IM3 IM4 0.890 0.859 0.933 0.782 0.749 0.924 0.887 Status Consumption (SC) SC1 SC2 SC3 SC4 0.915 0.786 0.866 0.821 0.718 0.911 0.881 Pursuit of Happiness (PH) PH1 PH2 PH3 PH4 0.832 0.764 0.775 0.688 0.585 0.849 0.769 Hedonic Buying HB1 HB2 0.912 0.918 0.723 0.912 0.869 Communications on Applied Nonlinear Analysis ISSN: 1074-133X Vol 32 No. 3 (2025) 841 https://internationalpubls.com (HB) HB3 HB4 0.726 0.688 Digital Payments (DP) DP1 DP2 DP3 Dp4 0.864 0.935 0.778 0.723 0.776 0.934 0.902 Online Review (OR) OR1 OR2 OR3 OR4 0.829 0.869 0.897 0.927 0.684 0.896 0.859 When the loading factor's minimum value is greater than 0.5, or better still, greater than 0.7, and the Average Variance Extracted (AVE) result is greater than 0.5, the construct is considered legitimate. With an AVE value of >0.5 for each variable in the table, the latent constructs demonstrated convergent validity. The indicators' variance may be explained by each variable to a greater extent than 50%. Despite falling short of the optimal loading value of 0.7, the value is still greater than 0.5, indicating that all constructs meet the requirements for convergent validity. Table 3 Discriminant validity CD DP HB IB M OR PH SC CD 0.880 DP 0.711 0.938 HB 0.719 0.709 0.853 IB -0.42 -0.61 -0.56 0.848 M 0.608 0.609 0.746 0.346 0.906 OR 0.634 0.764 0.685 0.374 0.433 0.867 PH 0.640 0.718 0.676 0.402 0.537 0.562 0.792 SC 0.738 0.583 0.685 0.289 0.471 0.431 0.773 0.828 The table shows each variable's correlation value together with the square root AVE findings in bold. The study's constructs meet the criteria for discriminant validity by examining the square root of AVE values, which show that each variable has a value greater than the correlation between the variables. In order for the research to proceed with testing structural models, the constructs of this study have undergone reliability and validity testing. C. CFA Model Fit Once the factor loadings, validity and reliability for each construct has been checked for, the model fit of the variables was tested employing different SEM benchmarks (Kline, 2005). Communications on Applied Nonlinear Analysis ISSN: 1074-133X Vol 32 No. 3 (2025) 842 https://internationalpubls.com Table 4 Model Fit Summary CMIN/DF NFI GFI AGFI RMR TLI CFI RMSEA Model 1.151 0.991 0.991 0.975 0.007 0.997 0.999 0.020 From the above Table the model fit indicate a Chi-Square/ Degrees of Freedom (CMIN/DF) value of 1.151. Root Mean Square Residual (RMR) value of 0.007. Goodness of fit Index (GFI) value of 0.991. The Adjusted Goodness of fit Index (AGFI) value of 0.975.The Normal Fit Index (NFI) value of 0.991. Comparative Fit Index (CFI) value of 0.999. The Root mean Square Error of Approximation (RMSEA) value of 0.020 is excellent as values less than 0.05 are considered indicative of a good fit. D. Hypothesis Testing using Path Analysis Hypothesis testing, SEM was used. The path analysis for the model indicated that, Materialism has an extremely significant positive impact on impulse and hedonic Buying with a p-value of 0.00, and has a highly positive significance impact on materialism with p-value of 0.05 so Hypothesis is accepted. It can be clearly said that materialism is affected by impulse and hedonic buying behavior which is directly affected by cognitive dissonance (See below in figure 2). Figure 2 Results of the Path Analysis Model Table 4 Result of Path Analysis Tables Estimate S.E β C.R P-value Hedonic Buying Digital Payment 0.452 0.017 0.635 26.415 *** Hedonic Buying Online Review 0.60 0.017 0.648 26.936 *** Impulse Buying Status Consumption 0.449 0.017 0.639 26.630 *** Impulse Pursuit 0.420 0.017 0.600 25.002 *** Communications on Applied Nonlinear Analysis ISSN: 1074-133X Vol 32 No. 3 (2025) 843 https://internationalpubls.com Buying Happiness Materialism Hedonic Buying 0.032 0.006 0.245 5.329 *** Materialism Impulse Buying 0.047 0.006 0.353 7.663 *** Cognitive Dissonance Materialism 1.428 0.089 0.492 16.033 *** Cognitive Dissonance Impulse Buying 0.155 0.012 0.398 13.365 *** Cognitive Dissonance Hedonic Buying 0.116 0.011 0.303 10.560 *** Source: Computed Primary Data From the above Table, the Hypothesis testing results, analyzed using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). Digital payments and Online reviews have a strong positive influence on hedonic buying behavior with β = 0.635 and 0.648. Status consumption and pursuit of Happiness have a strong positive influence on impulse buying behavior with β = 0.639 and 0.600. Hedonic buying and impulse buying positively influences on materialism with β = 0.245 and 0.353. Materialism, impulse buying and hedonic buying positively influence on cognitive dissonance β = 0.492, 0.398 and 0.303, Respectively these behavior lead to cognitive dissonance psychological discomfort. All Hypotheses were supported at p-value < 0.001. Conclusion The results of the current study have important implications for researchers and society in general. The impact of hedonic buying and impulse buying has been an increase in the spread of consumer culture around the world, as consumers in the developing countries are increasingly becoming influenced by cognitive dissonance in mobile shopping. The findings reveal that digital payments and online reviews significantly influence by hedonic buying behaviour, while status consumption and the pursuit of happiness influence by hedonic buying behaviour. Both impulse buying and hedonic buying are closely linked to materialism, influences by the cognitive dissonance. While impulse and hedonic buying behaviours are prevalent in mobile shopping due to the convenience and emotional appeal of digital platforms, they can lead to cognitive dissonance among consumers. Therefore consumers must be mindful of these behaviours to ensure a positive and satisfying shopping experiences. Consumers should make more throughtful purchasing decisions, while consumers should focus on reducing the impact of impulse and hedonic buying. By doing so, they can achieve more positive and satisfying shopping experiences. References 1. Bakırtas, H., & Divanoglu, S. U. (2013). The effect of hedonic shopping motivation on consumer satisfaction and consumer loyalty. International Journal of Asian Social Science. Communications on Applied Nonlinear Analysis ISSN: 1074-133X Vol 32 No. 3 (2025) 844 https://internationalpubls.com 2. Bawa, A., & Kansal, P. (2008). Cognitive dissonance and the marketing of services: Some issues. Journal of Service Research, 8(2), 31–51. https://doi.org/10.1177/1094670508319095 3. Belk, R. W. (1985). Materialism: Trait aspects of living in the material world. Journal of Consumer Research, 12(3), 265–280. https://doi.org/10.1086/208515 4. Chen, Y., & Zhang, L. (2015). Influential factors for online impulse buying in China: A model and its empirical analysis. International Management Review, 11(2), 57–60. 5. Chevalier, J. A., & Mayzlin, D. (2006). The effect of word of mouth on sales: Online book reviews. Journal of Marketing Research, 43(3), 345–354. https://doi.org/10.1509/jmkr.43.3.345 6. Fournier, S., & Richins, M. L. (1991). Some theoretical and popular notions concerning materialism. Journal of Social Behavior and Personality, 6(6), 403–414. 7. George, B. P., & Edward, M. (2009). Cognitive dissonance and purchase involvement in the consumer behavior context. IUP Journal of Marketing Management, 8(3–4), 7–24. 8. Gilovich, T., Kumar, A., & Jampol, L. (2014). A wonderful life: Experiential consumption and the pursuit of happiness. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 25(1), 152–165. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcps.2014.08.004 9. Ghozali, I., & Latan, H. (2015). Konsep, teknik, dan aplikasi menggunakan program SmartPLS 3.0 (2nd ed.). Badan Penerbit Universitas Diponegoro. 10. Hair, J. F., Black, W. C., Babin, B. J., & Anderson, R. E. (2014). Multivariate data analysis (7th ed.). Pearson. 11. Hirschman, E. C., & Holbrook, M. B. (1982). Hedonic consumption: Emerging concepts, methods and propositions. Journal of Marketing, 46(3), 92–101. https://doi.org/10.1177/002224298204600314 12. Kalla, S. M., & Goyal, A. (2010). Can search for happiness lead to impulse buying ? A multi- method investigation of happiness as an internal motivator to impulse buying. Journal of Business and Retail Management Research, 5(1), 53-63. 13. Kim, Y. (2011). Application of the cognitive dissonance theory to the service industry. Service Marketing Quarterly, 32(2), 96–112. https://doi.org/10.1080/15332969.2011.557727 14. Kline, R. B. (2005). Principles and practice of structural equation modeling (2nd ed.), New York, Guilford press. 15. Koller, M., & Salzberger, T. (2007). Cognitive dissonance as a relevant construct throughout the decision-making and consumption process: An empirical investigation related to a package tour. Journal of Customer Behavior, 6(3), 217–227. https://doi.org/10.1362/147539207X251651 16. Lee, J., Park, D., & Han, I. (2011). The different effects of online con unsumer reviews on consumers’ purchase intentions depending on trust in online shopping malls: An advertising perspective. Internet Research, 21(2), 187–206. https://doi.org/10.1108/10662241111123748 17. Ogut, H., & Tas, B. K. (2012). The influence of internet customer reviews on the online sales and prices in hotel industry. Service Industries Journal, 32(2), 197–214. https://doi.org/10.1080/02642069.2010.529436 18. Roberts, J. A. (2000). Consuming in a consumer culture: College students, materialism, status consumption, and compulsive buying. The Marketing Management Journal, 10(2), 76–91. 19. Rook, D. W. (1987). The buying impulse. Journal of Consumer Research, 14(2), 189–199. https://doi.org/10.1086/209105 Communications on Applied Nonlinear Analysis ISSN: 1074-133X Vol 32 No. 3 (2025) 845 https://internationalpubls.com 20. Schwarz, N., & Strack, F. (1999). Reports of subjective well-being: Judgmental processes and their methodological implications. In D. Kahneman, E. Diener, & N. Schwarz (Eds.), Well- being: The foundations of hedonic psychology (pp. 61–84). Russell Sage Foundation. 21. Sekaran, U., & Bougie, R. (2010). Research methods for business: A skill-building approach (5th ed.). Wiley. 22. Van Boven, L. (2005). Experientialism, materialism, and the pursuit of happiness. Review of General Psychology, 9(2), 132–142. https://doi.org/10.1037/1089-2680.9.2.132 23. Zhu, F., & Zhang, X. (2010). Impact of online consumer reviews on sales: The moderating role of product and consumer characteristics. Journal of Marketing, 74(2), 133–148. https://doi.org/10.1509/jmkg.74.2.133