Black Friday promises excitement, yet it often feels more like emotional exhaustion. Every year, students tell themselves “this time will be different…” and then find themselves standing in lines at 5 a.m., refreshing their online carts, and chasing “deals” they know aren’t really deals. Yet, we keep doing it anyway.
UCF student Alyssa Mguyen stated, “Even when I don’t need anything, I still end up at Target. It’s like the sale becomes the excuse, not the reason.”
That’s the deceiving psychology behind Black Friday: it isn’t about the products. Rather, it’s about what those products represent. A deal makes us feel like we’re doing something right.
Why Black Friday Triggers Purchasing Urges
Psychologists say Black Friday is intentionally built to activate scarcity mode, the fear that something valuable is about to disappear. According to Dr. Kit Yarrow, consumer psychologist and author of Decoding the New Consumer Mind, urgency weakens rational thinking. In her words, “When a deal feels temporary, our brains react as if it’s a chance we might never get again.”
That’s why phrases like “Only 2 left!” or “Sale ends in 3 hours” are so powerful. They don’t appeal to logic; they appeal to survival instincts. Students aren’t just scrolling, they’re competing, and when it becomes a competition, purchases feel like victories rather than transactions.
The “Sale is a Personality” Phenomenon
More and more UCF students are reporting guilt and financial fatigue during the post-Black Friday weekend. “It’s not even the money,” said Daniel Flores, a UCF sophomore, “It’s the feeling that I bought stuff for the sake of the sale, not because I actually wanted it.”
This pattern is what experts call justification consumption: buying something only because it was discounted, and then trying to convince yourself it was worth it. A 2022 study in Sustainability found that time-limited deals, such as Black Friday pressure, can actually reduce rational thinking and trigger impulse buying, especially in people who worry about how others see them.
A 2022 study, “The Effect of Time-Limited Promotion on E-Consumers’ Public Self-Consciousness and Purchase Behavior,” found that people who are highly aware of how others perceive them are more likely to make impulsive purchases when faced with time-limited promotions, and more likely to regret them afterward.
That makes Black Friday more than a shopping event; it becomes a performance. A way of proving we’re put together, organized, and ahead. It becomes our identity fuel.
Why Students Feel Drained After Black Friday
Unlike other shopping days, Black Friday turns purchasing into productivity. You’re not just buying something—you’re trying to win something.
Marina Costa, a UCF nursing major, said the stores felt “like an exam room. Everyone looked stressed, but they also looked like they were trying not to look stressed.”
It isn’t just in stores either. There’s also the digital version of scrolling, comparing prices, hunting for discount codes, and debating purchases. It’s a mentally draining attempt to “better” yourself at the lowest possible price. That’s why so many students describe the weekend as a socially accepted burnout. You walk away with bags, but feel further away from yourself.
Why We Still Do It Every Year
Despite everything, Black Friday makes people feel hopeful. Hopeful for a better semester, a better room, a better wardrobe, and an overall better version of themselves.
“I think deep down, we buy things because we want our lives to feel different,” said UCF student Samantha Reyes. “The sale is just the excuse, but change is really what we want.”
That’s why Black Friday survives. Not because students need more things, but because we crave transformation. A sale lets us imagine the version of ourselves we could be. It entertains the hope that something new might change how we feel. Sometimes, spending money is really just saying: I want next semester to feel better than this one.