Religiosity as a Buffer Against Excessive Consumption Among Paylater Users: Evidence from Students at an Islamic University in Indonesia
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.59890/ijir.v4i7.217Keywords:
Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL); Consumptive Behavior; Religiosity; Self-Control; Islamic Behavioral Finance; Fintech; Digital Consumer BehaviorAbstract
Digitalization has transformed contemporary consumption through embedded digital credit systems such as Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL). This study examines the effect of PayLater usage on consumptive behavior among students at an Islamic university in Indonesia and investigates the moderating roles of religiosity and self-control. Using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) with data collected from 150 students, the findings reveal that PayLater usage significantly increases consumptive behavior. Religiosity does not show a significant direct effect on consumptive behavior. However, religiosity significantly weakens the positive relationship between PayLater usage and consumptive behavior, indicating its role as a moral buffer within embedded digital credit environments. In contrast, self-control shows no significant direct or moderating effect on consumptive behavior. These findings contribute to Islamic behavioral finance and digital consumer behavior literature by demonstrating that fintech systems are not behaviorally neutral and that religious values remain important in mitigating excessive consumption in increasingly digitalized financial environments.
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