‘Buy Now, Pay Later’ Misuse From a Personality Perspective

Abstract: The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between online credit misuse of ‘buy now, pay later’ payment options and personality. 142 individuals, screened for frequently making purchases online, answered the Ten Item Personality Inventory, the Consideration for Future Consequences scale, and an Online Credit Misuse scale specifically designed for this study. It was found that conscientiousness, consideration for the future and emotional stability correlates with less online credit misuse. Consideration for future consequences was found to partially mediate the relationship between conscientiousness and online credit misuse. Thus, conscientious individuals’ lower misuse of online credit can partly be explained by the fact that they also have more of an eye towards the future. This research sheds lights on which individuals are more at risk of misusing the ‘buy now, pay later’ option, and suggests measure to help prevent financial troubles.