在家的一年是如何把我们都变成网购者的

近年来，网上购物越来越流行，但它在2020年经历的增长却是独一无二的。2021年初公布的一项调查显示，约70%的美国人表示，他们现在的网上购物比流感大流行前多了。

And even though the drive to vaccinate people against COVID-19 is helping the country return to normal, the acceleration of online shopping is projected to continue. E-commerce retail sales are forecast to surpass $1 trillion by 2023—up from around $800 billion in 2020, based on data from eMarketer and Citi.

有趣的是，电子零售的崛起并不只是影响我们过去一年的银行账户余额 - 它对我们的兴趣也有一些令人惊讶的影响情绪健康。Here’s how online shopping has impacted our mental health—for better and for worse—during the pandemic.

暂时缓解焦虑

购物成为人民的主要来源焦虑during the pandemic because it simply didn't feel safe to do so. Experiencing heightened concern about running into crowds and being exposed to the coronavirus at the supermarket, nearly a quarter of people were doing their grocery shopping online by May 2020, according to research from the International Food Information Council.

LeelaR.Magavi博士说，人们能够养活家人而不必亲自购物，这让很多人松了一口气Community Psychiatry在加利福尼亚州纽波特海滩。此外，它使商店更容易获得最低价格 - 为在大流行期间经历财务困难的人的压力救济。

“网上购物帮助个人在社交距离，避免长线，并同时省钱，”她说。“避免拥挤的停车场和长线可以减少压力和皮质醇水平。”

对于新加坡的企业家卡罗琳•李（Caroline Lee）来说，网上购物也在流行性封锁和生活方式改变的情况下提供了一些安慰。

“Although I do miss shop hopping and trying stuff on before committing to a purchase, shopping online gives me a sense of normalcy and helps me reassure myself that everything is okay in the world, despite all the recent chaos,” she says.

Mixed Effects on Loneliness

Social isolation has been a source of concern throughout the pandemic, with some 36 percent of Americans (including 61 percent of young adults) reporting they felt “serious loneliness” in a survey in October 2020.

In some respects, shopping online may have contributed to feelings of寂寞。We don’t have opportunities to bump into neighbors in the cereal aisle or interact with a salesperson when we’re making purchases from home.

But some shopping from home—particularly in the case of TV shopping—may have actually provided a sense of socialization, says Bruce D. Sanders, PhD, consumer psychologist and author of “零售商的优势：使用购物者心理学提高利润万博maxbetx官网登陆.”

“As socially isolated people watch TV shows featuring hosts who seem like friends to them, they feel less lonely. When we watch a TV home shopping host interact with members of the audience, such as by taking calls on-air, and with guests and celebrities, it loosely resembles a social gathering,” he says, referring to research from 2011.“许多电视家庭购物的顾客说，他们尊重主人和客人，就像他们尊重实体店里值得信赖的顾问一样。”

这可能是为什么家庭购物网QVC和HSN在3月下旬和5月中旬之间的10％之间飙升10％的原因。而那些家庭购物者与主人建立起来的感知关系可能会鼓励人们在未来继续从购物渠道购买，即使实体店被认为风险较小。

“电视购物有助于缓解流感大流行带来的孤独感隔离现在，在大流行期间使用的购物渠道可能会引发长期习​​惯，“桑德斯解释道。

零售疗法的好处

在大流行期间，将自己从在线商店视为一点东西（也称为零售疗法）被证明是许多人的一种急需的情感推动，包括尼龙卡森，营养师和“边界购物狂.”

“零售疗法真的帮助我在这些充满挑战的时刻应对。她说：“从某种意义上说，这是一种治疗方法，它给你带来了一些值得期待的东西，也就是说，等待你为自己买的礼物。”。

当我们沉迷于零售疗法，尤其是在网上商店时，我们中的许多人都会感到喜悦，这背后有几个原因。

马加维博士说：“许多人喜欢阅读在线评论，并相应地购买物品。”。“做出选择和决定的能力可以释放多巴胺，增加动力感和幸福感。”

研究还表明，零售疗法可以减少残留的悲伤，恢复我们大多数人在大流行期间渴望的控制感。

“People of the world, especially Americans, are accustomed to being in control. It’s something we pride ourselves on as being masters and mistresses of our own destiny, and all of a sudden that was ripped from us,” says Sanders. “With the plethora of options available in online shopping, and with the ability to compare price-points and find the best deal, that offered the sense that we have control again.”

购物成瘾的潜在风险

尽管网上购物有很多好处，但也有太多的好处。有了“一口价”按钮、一键订购和保存信用卡详细信息的个人资料等工具，冲动购物和破坏预算比以往任何时候都要容易。

“Individuals with impulse control disorders who I evaluate in clinic have been spending concerning amounts of money during the pandemic,” says Dr. Magavi.

Generally speaking, most shoppers (both online and in-person) exercise self-control, even when enjoying some retail therapy, says Sanders. However, about6 percentof the U.S. population may have强迫性购买障碍，这会对他们的健康产生负面影响。

“强迫性购房者无法让自己停止不必要的购买，在某些情况下，即使他们负担不起养家糊口。“强迫性的买家经常不使用他们购买的物品，”桑德斯解释说。

如果您觉得在线购物时，您可以超出您的意思，请考虑限制您花费的时间，在完成任何购买之前，请在完成任何购买之前制定所需的内容列表。

总体而言，在线购物一直是大流行期间许多人为许多人的积极情感效益的重要方便。和研究表明，零售治疗可以恢复控制感并提供幸福的推动力，所以考虑这个an excuse to treat yourself to a special delivery (within budget, of course!).