Try retail therapy to regain your spouse's attention

Ever felt jealous about the attention your partner was giving to someone else? Trying retail therapy like buying eye-catching t-shirts or dresses may help you gain love back in your life. A new study has suggested that feelings of jealously may motivate people to buy things that were more likely to recapture the attention of their partners.

The findings showed that feelings of jealousy increases the desire for buying eye-catching products -- such as a bright coloured coat instead of a dull-coloured one, or a T-shirt with a big logo design versus a low-key design.

"We believe that this effect is not just restricted to jealousy in romantic relationships. Children can be jealous of a sibling's relationship with their parents or workers might be jealous of a colleague's close relationship with a supervisor," said Xun (Irene) Huang, professor at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore.

In addition, the desire to recapture someone's attention with eye-catching products even outweighed the risk of public embarrassment, the researchers said. For the study, the team conducted a series of different experiments. One experiment showed that participants who were experiencing feelings of jealously were more likely to buy a noticeable gold lamp for their office, a public place.

But if they were buying a lamp for their bedroom, interest in a gold lamp versus a plain grey one was equal. According to Huang, the study may also have implications for marketing. Print advertisements and in-store displays can capture situations in which jealously is at play, which could motivate consumers to buy products that will attract someone's attention.

Television commercials that promote attention-grabbing products might also be effective during sit-coms in which jealously is a common theme.
The study was published online in the Journal of Consumer Psychology.