This paper aims to examine the connections between young Finnish consumers’ stimulation values, impulsive buying, financial problems and life satisfaction. Results show that stimulation values were directly positively associated with greater life satisfaction and indirectly linked to lower life satisfaction through impulsive buying and financial problems. Findings also reveal the connections between stimulation values and impulsive buying and between impulsive buying and financial problems.

This study brings recommendations for educators to reinforce young consumers’ media literacy and financial literacy to prevent the youth from developing a tendency toward impulsive buying and to seek stimulation more constructively. Also, from a public policy perspective, it would be beneficial to include more financial literacy and financial skills courses in young people’s curricula to help them recognize and resist impulsive buying tendencies, which can further reduce financial problems.

Key words: Consumer behavior, Financial problems, Impulsive buying, Life satisfaction, Stimulation values, Young consumers

In A. B. LeBaron-Black, H. Kelley, & A. Sorgente (Eds.), Flourishing and Floundering Financially in Emerging Adulthood: A Handbook (pp. 146–162). Oxford University Press USA.

In this chapter, we will explore the landscape of opportunities for flourishing and risks for floundering among young professionals today. The evolution of emerging adults’ career culture is examined, highlighting aspects such as increased flexibility, career development, as well as growing uncertainties in the modern information society. We will delve into the pressures to succeed, post-graduation plans, financial concerns, and exploration of self-esteem of emerging adults navigating their career trajectories. Professionally, the demands of globalization and digitalization are ubiquitous, emphasizing the significance of targeted skills like digital literacy. We will widen the scope to address amplified uncertainty in emerging adults’ career development and financial stability, accentuated by global disruptions such as the COVID-19 pandemic. The chapter equips emerging adults, their parents, and educators with strategies for thriving in a rapidly evolving world, while providing quotes from emerging adults today, offering comprehensive insights into the modern career landscape.

Psychology in the Schools, 62: 1196-1216.

The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of depressive symptoms, and their association with the school experience among native and immigrant-origin preadolescents attending the fourth and fifth grades of primary school. Depressive symptoms were most often reported by first-generation immigrant preadolescents followed by their second generation counterparts. Sense of school belonging was the most important protective factor and bullying the most important risk factor in relation to depressive symptoms. Positive school experiences were more beneficial for the mental health of natives than their immigrant-origin counterparts. In turn, negative school experiences were more detrimental for the mental health of immigrant-origin preadolescents.