“Doom spending” is the name of the trend that first emerged on social media. The term describes the idea of spending a lot of money in order to forget your personal worries and world-weariness.
In a Credit Karma survey, 27 percent of over 1,000 respondents said they engaged in doom spending. There are significantly more among younger people: 35 percent of Generation Z and 43 percent of Millennials report that they spend too much money. “It's just easier to spend money on things that bring immediate fulfillment,’ a 24-year-old American woman tells Bloomberg News. The idea that it's not worth putting money aside is wrong and can have dangerous consequences. Loans and credit can cause important life milestones such as marriage, home ownership and children to be postponed. Ultimately, “doom spending,” intended to ease the mood of crisis, can lead to even more personal and financial crises. The dopamine that is released when shopping and creates a feeling of well-being is only short-lived.