Materialism has often been blamed for consumers’ overspending and excessive debt levels, but there is little understanding of how materialism influences these practices. This research introduces the concept of transformation expectations as an important explanatory variable for the relationship between materialism and credit overuse. Qualitative research is conducted to refine the construct of transformation expectations, followed by research to develop a measure of this construct. In survey research, transformation expectations fully mediate the relationship between materialism and credit overuse. Evidence supports the idea that materialism leads simultaneously to a more favorable attitude toward debt and a stronger belief that life transformations will occur as a result of acquisition, and these two forces work together to increase credit overuse.
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