E-marketing blamed for excessive consumerism in Saudi society

JEDDAH: A field study confirmed that e-marketing has led to behavioral changes among Saudi families, causing rise in excessive consumerist behavior within society.
The study was conducted by Hasan Niazi Al-Saifi, an associate professor in the Information and Communication Department at King Faisal University in Ahsa.
Al-Saifi was quoted as saying to local media that "Saudi society has greatly changed during the last three decades with regard to the social and economic spheres. As a result, the consumption culture has prevailed on a wide scale among families and individuals."
He warned against this costly and very expensive culture that is growing within society at large, and which negatively affects the completion of its development process.
He said the common factor between families nowadays is a trend toward consumption on a large scale regardless of the economic position of the family, the education levels of its members, or their individual purchasing powers.
The study concluded that the inflow of oil revenues into Gulf countries in general and in Saudi Arabia in particular has greatly changed these countries into luxurious societies with higher commodity consumption rates.
"But these consumption levels have quickly turned into excessive consumption trends," the study concluded.
The study also found that excessive spending on things such as travel, cars and personal servants is not matched by any other non-oil Arab country.
The study defined some factors that help in spreading such a consumption culture, including media openness at an influence level of 29 percent, immigration at 4 percent, advertising with 13 percent, income level at 13 percent, and commercial offers with 17 percent, among other influences.