“I must have done something good”: Justifying luxury consumption with karmic beliefs

Abstract

Existing research has shown that a belief in karma may negatively affect luxury consumption because people may avoid “sinful” consumption of expensive products as a result of karmic investment. In this research, we examine the role of karmic beliefs on luxury consumption that individuals may contend is a form of justification. We show that karmic beliefs lead to higher purchase intention of luxury goods by consumers (Study 1), and this effect is mediated by belief in a just world (BJW) (Study 2). We also demonstrate an important boundary condition of promotion focus between karmic beliefs and BJW (Study 3). Our research provides an alternative perspective to investigate the impact of karmic beliefs and the justification mechanism in luxury consumption. © 2022 Elsevier Inc.