Scarcity Cues and Unplanned Purchases in Tiktok Live Commerce: Mediating Roles of Fomo and Emotional Arousal

Abstract

This study investigates the influence of scarcity promotion in TikTok Live Shopping on consumers’ impulse buying of personal care products, with fear of missing out (FoMO) and arousal serving as mediating variables. A quantitative survey was conducted involving 200 TikTok users in the Greater Jakarta area who had watched personal care live-shopping sessions and encountered limited-time or limited-stock offers. The data were analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling with SmartPLS 4. The results demonstrate that scarcity promotion positively and significantly affects FoMO, arousal, and impulse buying. FoMO and arousal also have significant positive effects on impulse buying and partially mediate the relationship between scarcity promotion and impulse buying. These findings indicate that scarcity cues can encourage spontaneous purchasing both directly and through consumers’ psychological responses. The measurement model met the requirements for convergent validity, discriminant validity, and internal consistency, while the structural model demonstrated adequate explanatory and predictive relevance. The study strengthens the application of the Stimulus–Organism–Response framework in live commerce and emphasizes that limited-time and limited-stock messages should be communicated accurately and transparently.