UC Riverside

Thrift, a lifestyle of strategic underconsumption, offers a compelling alternative to consumerism, materialism, and overconsumption. Although thrift is often neglected in consumer research, under the right conditions, it confers a number of hedonic benefits to its practitioners. First, we summarize decades of research on the surprising relationship between money and happiness. Next, we investigate three chief reasons that more money fails to produce more happiness (and can actually detract from it): affective forecasting errors, hedonic adaptation, and chronic overspending. Then, we discuss the meaning and history of practicing thrift, with an emphasis on how it contrasts with modern mindsets and habits. Finally, we draw from decades of research in social and consumer psychology to suggest ten ways that individuals can practice thrift in their daily lives-spending and consuming less, but becoming happier in the process.