The Phenomenon Of Lipstick Effects Risking Unhealthy Pockets, Psychologists Reveal Various Factors Trigger It

Illustration of women shopping (Unsplash)

JAKARTA - Recently there has been a phenomenon, where consumers spend money for small fun such as buying premium lipstick even though economic conditions are down and they only have a little money. Delivered by clinical psychologist who graduated from the University of Indonesia Ratih Ibrahim, the triggering factors for the emergence of this phenomenon are due to the Lipstick Effect.

Reporting from ANTARA, Thursday, October 31, 2024, he said that the emergence of the Lipstick Effect phenomenon was influenced by economic, emotional, and socio-cultural factors.

"The three aspects were related to each other. In fact, because I feel, 'oh, how come it's really hard to live', I see, 'While I still have money that I'm happy with myself', just be praised, that's possible (perhaps)," said Ratih.

According to him, buying luxury goods at a more affordable price or at a time of discount is also included in the category of emotional purchases.

At this time, the decision to buy small luxury goods in difficult conditions was influenced, among other things, by the content of the influencers who showed a luxurious lifestyle even when the economy was not doing well.

Ratih, who serves as Director of Personal Growth, said that meeting the desire to buy luxury goods could be a manifestation of the rejection of the reality of life.

"Not only in denial (in rejection), in his denial he built an illusion of control, that 'I have control over my life'," he said.

"But it's an illusion. It means, the reality is actually not, but he's just lying to himself. This is part of this denial," he explained.

Ratih said that it was feared that such conditions for a long time could cause mental health problems.

"Because this is an escape, in denial of the reality conditions, it affects his mental health," he said.

"Because, once you run, when you have to face the reality, the reality is hitting you very badly. It's hard," he said.

Therefore, it is important to immediately realize the habit of buying things that are not really necessary and try to stop them.

In order to contain the desire to buy goods for escape and avoid consumptive behavior that can plunge themselves into debt traps, Ratih said, it is better to set a strict budget policy and avoid looking around shopping applications.