The Determinants of Panic Buying during COVID-19

Grace Chua, Kum Fai Yuen, Xueqin Wang and Yiik Diew Wong
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Grace Chua: School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 639798, Singapore
Kum Fai Yuen: School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 639798, Singapore
Xueqin Wang: Department of International Logistics, Chung-Ang University, Seoul 06974, Korea
Yiik Diew Wong: School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 639798, Singapore

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 6, 1-28

Abstract: The COVID-19 pandemic has seen an unmatched level of panic buying globally, a type of herd behavior whereby consumers buy an uncommonly huge amount of products because of a perception of scarcity. Drawing on the health belief model, perceived scarcity, and anticipated regret theories, this paper formulated a theoretical model that linked the determinants of panic buying and analyzed their interrelationships. Subsequently, data were collated from 508 consumers through an online survey questionnaire in Singapore that was conducted during the early stage of the pandemic, before the onset of the circuit breaker in April 2020. Next, an analysis of the results was done through structural equation modeling. It showed that the effect of the health belief model dimensions (i.e., perceived susceptibility, perceived severity, outcome expectation, cues to action, and self-efficacy) on panic buying is partially mediated by the consumers’ perceived scarcity of products. Furthermore, the effect of perceived scarcity on panic buying is partially mediated by consumers’ anticipation of regret. This paper expands on the current theoretical understanding of panic buying behavior, giving insights into the possible measures and solutions that policymakers and relevant stakeholders can uptake to manage panic buying in future a pandemic or health crisis.

Keywords: panic buying; health belief model; perceived scarcity; anticipated regret; COVID-19; health crisis (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (19)

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