Fashionistas with maxed out credit cards beware. The latest research from the department of obvious shows that retail therapy is actually very therapeutic.

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The study conducted by researchers from the University of Michigan carried out three experiments to investigate whether shopping restored a sense of control in people to counter feelings of sadness.

The findings showed that shopping was 40 times more effective at giving people a sense of control, and they were three times less sad compared to those who only browsed. The researchers concluded:
Our experiments provided support for the notion that making shopping choices helps to restore a sense of personal control over one's environment, and thus helps to alleviate sadness.
It's scary to know that in a world where things are constantly spinning out of control, the only thing that can make us feel powerful is the ability to whip out a debit card and buy something that we probably don't really need. Just because we can.

[The Independent]