Inconspicuous Consumption Scale: Development and Validation

Martyna Płudowska; Rafał P. Bartczuk; Andrzej E. Sękowski; Elżbieta Masiak

doi:10.18290/pepsi-2025-0022

Published : 2025-12-31

Vol. 31 No. 2 (2025)

Inconspicuous Consumption Scale: Development and Validation

Martyna Płudowska

https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6246-9152

Rafał P. Bartczuk

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0433-7327

Andrzej E. Sękowski

https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1042-0941

Elżbieta Masiak

https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5587-9022

DOI: https://doi.org/10.18290/pepsi-2025-0022

Abstract

We propose a new definition of inconspicuous consumption as an individual disposition and present an instrument for measuring this variable. The article describes the successive stages of the construction of the Inconspicuous Consumption Scale (ICS). The initial set of test items was generated using the method of competent judges - qualitative and quantitative evaluation using CVR Lawshe. Next, an exploratory factor analysis was carried out using data obtained from a sample of 690 participants. In the first step, parallel analysis and the maximum average partial (MAP) criterion were conducted, while in the next step, we again performed exploratory hierarchical factor analysis using maximum likelihood ML with the promax rotation. Confirmatory structure was performed on data collected from 497 respondents (confirmatory factor analysis CFA using the robust ML estimator with the Satorra-Bentler correction).The results of a preliminary selection of items and exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses have led to the development of an instrument which measures four factors that make up the global ICS: Knowledge, Services, Experiences, and Subtle Brand Signals. Reliability and validity studies carried out in Poland in a sample of 1,330 respondents show that the ICS has satisfactory psychometric properties. We have assumed that inconspicuous consumption (IC) consists of deliberate avoidance of visibility and investments directly aimed at improving the quality of life and caring for the environment, both from a local and global perspective. Treated as an individual, relatively enduring disposition in the area of consumer behavior, it appears to be a useful construct for explainingh changes in the area of consumer behavior.

Keywords:

status, consumer culture, values, personality, inconspicuous consumption

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Płudowska, M., Bartczuk, R. P., Sękowski, A. E., & Masiak, E. (2025). Inconspicuous Consumption Scale: Development and Validation. Journal for Perspectives of Economic Political and Social Integration, 31(2), 235–273. https://doi.org/10.18290/pepsi-2025-0022

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