We often throw caution to the cold, dark wind of December when it comes to spending. The cost-of-living crisis may slip our minds amid the razzle-dazzle of Christmas. We just want a moment to enjoy ourselves, to forget about the winter gloom. It’s natural for us to behave this way. Our brains are wired for it.
People in the UK spend on average an extra £700 at Christmas. The UK Office for National Statistics show increases of between 15% and 100% in the sale of books, music, computers, phones and electrical products, clothing and shoes, cosmetics and toiletries, food and alcohol in December.
But neuromarketing, a field of neuroscience that understands the way our brains respond to products, can help us to resist the urge to overspend.
The reasons we buy so much at Christmas are largely unconscious and emotional. For example, our brains are wired to avoid being left out. Social bonds were vital to our ancestors’ survival so when everyone else seems to be buying stuff and enjoying themselves at Christmas, we are motivated by evolutionary impulses to want to join in.
Our desire for new things, even when they have no intrinsic value, has evolutionary roots too. Finding and keeping new information and objects make us feel like we’re reducing uncertainties about the future. So marketing a product as the “latest” version of its kind can make it seem irresistible.
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Brain signals (neurotransmitters) alter our behaviour too. Dopamine drives our motivation and impulsivity for rewards. Oxytocin drives our sense of belonging, which can be stimulated by buying the same things as our friends. And cortisol levels may rise if we fear missing out.
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These neurotransmitters direct our gaze when we look at adverts of products, holding our attention and then making us want to feel the reward of buying. In July 2025, researchers reviewed three years of eye-tracking data of study participants looking at the top 50 most attention-grabbing Christmas ads. They found heart-rending stories are great for capturing our attention, which make us more likely to buy the product. Images featuring emotional icons and cues such as popular celebrities, or lovable cartoon characters distract us. Distraction is known to stop us thinking about future goals (like saving money).
Why your willpower seems to evaporate
The 1970 Marshmallow Test on delayed gratification, developed by psychologist Walter Mischel, suggested that young children who could resist eating a marshmallow while the experimenter left the room would have more discipline in adulthood because their brains were wired for better self-control.
But a 2018 replication of the test found
that family background and economic situation were the key factors in whether children and later adults could delay their gratification and be less impulsive (resist eating the marshmallow). So, if there is unrest in the family or money is tight at Christmas, this could lead to faster, impulsive decisions and paradoxically over-spending on larger quantities of items we don’t really need or want.
Psychological research suggests that our willpower is most depleted when we are tired, if we have a lot to think about, or if we are cold and in need. It is a bit like overworking a muscle that needs constant energy.
This is the perfect formula for distraction at Christmas. We think of all the family and friends to buy gifts for and seek solace in the comfort of nice goods and experiences at Christmas. All this overloads our cognitive control system in the prefrontal cortex – the front part of the brain under the forehead that helps us to control our behaviour by thinking about our long-term goals. And the prefrontal cortex connects directly to the reward centre of the brain. So if the prefrontal cortex is overloaded, the dopamine-driven, fast and impulsive reward responses are likely to take over.
Fast, impulsive thinking and slow, deliberate thinking are both part of the brain’s natural activity. Christmas shopping plays on this fast, impulsive thinking. Think of time-limited deals and the sense of crisis if a child or loved one loses out on a much-desired gift.
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Training our brains
Nevertheless there are ways we can strengthen our willpower to enjoy the season with a sense of balance. The key is becoming conscious of our emotions and our actions. The more we consciously notice our impulsivity, the better we will be at controlling it next time.
You could start right now by noting down any impulsive purchases you have made over the last week or month. And next time you go to buy something, ask yourself whether you are using slow or fast thinking.
And since the prefrontal cortex system is like a muscle that can be trained to
be stronger. Cognitive training on the run up to Christmas may help strengthen your
resolve. Think of playing chess online, or sudoku, or reading one of the books you might have been given last Christmas. Puzzles, reading, meditation practices that slow the mind, can all strengthen your brain’s circuits, and maybe help to be less impulsive this year.
And what about if you’re reading this while you’re in a cafe, taking a break from Christmas shopping? You can review your shopping list (or write one before you leave home) and reaffirm your plans. Remind yourself to stick to the list and budget no matter what. Research shows that planning and setting intentions prevents impulsive responses, especially if people plan a contingency in advance about what they will do if they spot a bright, shiny bargain.
If you can rein in impulsive Christmas purchases now, your future self will thank you for it.
Samantha Brooks receives funding from Liverpool John Moores University
