Does Retail Therapy Work?

If you are like me, first of all I'd like to say I'm sorry, you have purchased something in an attempt to obtain relief from a bad mood. There is an actual word for this type of purchase decision, it's called "retail therapy". Retail therapy is buying something solely because you are in a bad mood. According to a new survey by CouponCabin.com nearly 1 in every 4 adults in the U.S have gone shopping solely because they were in a bad mood. According to the survey a higher percentage of women said they've shopped in pursuit of retail therapy than men, 31% to 16%.

Does retail therapy work? Most of the time yes, however like the force in Star Wars, retail therapy has a dark side. 33% of those surveyed said they felt better after their shopping trip and 30% said they temporarily forgot their bad mood. On the other side 16% said they thought it would help cheer them up but it didn't. Another 15% sadid they felt guilty after their purchase.