Asociación de síntomas emocionales e impulsividad con la compra compulsiva en universitarios.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the presence of compulsive shopping and its association with emotional symptoms and impulsivity in university students of the city of Medellín (Colombia). An adaptation and a validation of the Bergen shopping addiction scale (BSAS) were applied. An intentional sample of 98 students (68% female, mean age 20.4 years, D.T. = 2.19) from four private universities was evaluated. The participants completed the BSAS, Beck's depression and anxiety inventories, and Barrat's impulsivity scale. The BSAS was translated into Spanish and its factor structure was maintained, explaining 47.4% of the variance. 23.5% of those evaluated presented significant levels of compulsive purchase, 37.8% anxiety and 18.4% depression. Correlations were found between compulsive shopping and anxiety, depression and impulsivity. The results of the multiple linear regression showed that compulsive buying is directly related to anxiety and impulsivity, when controlling sex and age. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]