The Anesthesia of Digital Transactions: A Conceptual Framework Linking the Pain of Paying to Expense Control and Debt Accumulation
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.63822/6t3m0r08Keywords:
Behavioral Economics , Debt Accumulation , Digital Finance , Mental Accounting , Pain of PayingAbstract
The rapid digitalization of financial services has fundamentally altered how eco- nomic agents interact with money, shifting the paradigm from tangible cash ex- changes to frictionless digital transactions. Grounded in behavioral economics and mental accounting theory, this conceptual paper investigates the psychological phenomenon known as the “pain of paying” and its profound impact on financial behavior. Specifically, this article proposes a comprehensive theoretical framework illustrating how the pain of paying influences expense control and debt accumulation. Furthermore, it introduces digital finance adoption, including e-wallets, mobile banking, and “Buy Now, Pay Later” (BNPL) schemes, as a critical moderator that numbs this psychological pain. We argue that while financial technology enhances transactional efficiency, it inadvertently weakens self-regulatory mechanisms, leading to suboptimal cash management and an increased propensity for over-indebtedness. The conceptual framework extends to the context of individual consumers as well as Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), highlighting the necessity for robust financial literacy and an entrepreneurial mindset to buffer these adverse effects. The paper concludes with theoretical and practical implications, suggesting avenues for future empirical validation, particularly utilizing variance-based structural equation modeling techniques, and offering insights for regulatory frameworks governing digital financial services.
Downloads
References
Abbas, J., Ahadzie, D. K., Owusu-Ansah, A., & Adjei-Twum, A. (2025). Exegesis of building systems through the lens of systems theory: a conceptual paper. Facilities, 44(1–2), 100–114. https://doi.org/10.1108/F-04-2025-0067
Achtziger, A. (2022). Overspending, debt, and poverty. Current Opinion in Psychology, 46, 101342. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.COPSYC.2022.101342
Agarwal, S., Ang, S. H., Wang, Y., & Zhang, J. (2026). Cash-back rewards: Effects on spending and debt accumulation. Journal of Banking and Finance, 184. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbankfin.2025.107616
Bigliardi, B., Filippelli, S., Petroni, A., & Tagliente, L. (2022). The digitalization of supply chain: a review. Procedia Computer Science, 200, 1806–1815. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.PROCS.2022.01.381
Choudhary, S., & Singh, A. (2025). A Critical Review of Budget Control Strategies for Effective Financial Management in Organizations. American Journal of Finance and Business Management, 4(1). https://doi.org/10.58425/ajfbm.v4i1.364
Chuen, D. L. K., & Zhao, Y. (2024). Historical Experience of Money and Future Expectations on Digital Money, Cross-border Payments, and the International Monetary System. Handbook of Digital Currency: Bitcoin, Innovation, Financial Instruments, and Big Data, 583–603. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-323-98973-2.00009-5
Dant, Tim. (2000). Consumption Caught in the `Cash Nexus’. Sociology, 34(4), 655–670. https://doi.org/10.1177/S0038038500000407
Donou-Adonsou, F., & Leslie-Piper, N. (2025). BNPL and financial fragility in U.S. households. Finance Research Letters, 86. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.frl.2025.108423
Elena Francke, A., & Carrete, L. (2023). Consumer self-regulation: Looking back to look forward. A systematic literature review. Journal of Business Research, 157, 113461. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.JBUSRES.2022.113461
Fu, Y., Fan, Y., & Yang, Z. (2027). Filling in the gaps: Digital platform economies and the agglomeration of urban consumption amenities. Journal of Development Economics, 185, 103933. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.JDEVECO.2026.103933
Gesah, R., Prabowo, M., Minarni, E., & Kurniawan, S. T. (2024). Strenghtening Cash Management Through Effective Internal Control Systems. Journal of Accounting and Tax, 03(02).
Ghosh, P., & Golder, U. (2026). Exploring the effects of FinTech adoption on traditional banking: A systematic literature review on opportunities and challenges. Digital Business, 6(1), 100163. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.DIGBUS.2026.100163
Hasan, M. M., Karim, F., & Ripon, Md. B. B. (2025). Behavioral Economics and Consumer Decision-Making: An Integrative Review. Business and Social Sciences, 3(1). https://doi.org/10.25163/business.3110228
Huebner, J., Fleisch, E., & Ilic, A. (2020). Assisting mental accounting using smartphones: Increasing the salience of credit card transactions helps consumer reduce their spending. Computers in Human Behavior, 113, 106504. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.CHB.2020.106504
Ige, A. (2026). Central banking and fragmentation of currency markets in an emerging economy. Qualitative Research in Financial Markets, 18(1), 249–262. https://doi.org/10.1108/QRFM-12-2023-0308
Jung, C., Foege, J. N., & Nüesch, S. (2020). Cash for contingencies: How the organizational task environment shapes the cash-performance relationship. Long Range Planning, 53(3). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lrp.2019.05.005
Kinanti, T. ., Santoso, F. ., & Artha, B. (2026). Conceptualizing Dual Mechanisms of Decoupling: The Impact of Physical and Temporal Separation on The Intensity of Pain of Paying. Indonesia Economic Journal, 2(1), 1112–1124. https://doi.org/10.63822/t9wz2n13
Kumari, P., & Tripathi, S. (2026). When ‘Pay Later’ means ‘Pay Now’: How deferred payment options shape choice. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 92, 104774. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.JRETCONSER.2026.104774
Lee, I. S., Necka, E. A., & Atlas, L. Y. (2020). Distinguishing pain from nociception, salience, and arousal: How autonomic nervous system activity can improve neuroimaging tests of specificity. NeuroImage, 204, 116254. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.NEUROIMAGE.2019.116254
Li, J., Chaulagain, S., & Yost, E. (2023). Residents’ sense of safety in senior living communities: A conceptual paper. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 112, 103410. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.IJHM.2022.103410
Liu, P. (2023). Decision-making and Utility Theory. Advances in Economics, Management and Political Sciences, 26(1), 313–321. https://doi.org/10.54254/2754-1169/26/20230590
Muehlbacher, S., Kirchler, E., & Kunz, A. (2011). The impact of transaction utility on consumer decisions: The role of loss aversion and acquisition utility. Zeitschrift Fur Psychologie / Journal of Psychology, 219(4), 217–223. https://doi.org/10.1027/2151-2604/a000075
Nkwinika, E., & Akinola, S. (2023). The Importance of Financial Management in Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs): An Analysis of Challenges and Best Practices. Technology Audit and Production Reserves, 5(4), 12–20. https://doi.org/10.15587/2706-5448.2023.285749
O’Donoghue, T., & Rabin, M. (2000). The Economics of Immediate Gratification. Journal of Behavioral Decision Making - J BEHAV DECIS MAKING, 13, 233–250. https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1099-0771(200004/06)13:23.0.CO;2-U
Oliveira, L. (2022). Sensory and Emotional Smart Cultural Tourism: A conceptual paper. Procedia Computer Science, 204, 283–287. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.procs.2022.08.034
Patil, A. (2026). The Psychology of Spending in Cashless Societies. International Journal for Research in Applied Science and Engineering Technology, 14(4), 1093–1097. https://doi.org/10.22214/ijraset.2026.79321
Prelec, D., & Loewenstein, G. (1998). The Red and the Black: Mental Accounting of Savings and Debt. Marketing Science, 17(1), 4–28. http://www.jstor.org/stable/193194
Razak, S. N. F. A., Hoesni, S. M., Zakaria, E., & Ismail, R. (2015). The Role of Dyadic Coping to Marital Quality – The Conceptual Paper. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 211, 911–916. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2015.11.120
Reshadi, F., & Fitzgerald, M. P. (2023). The pain of payment: A review and research agenda. Psychology & Marketing, 40(8), 1672–1688. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1002/mar.21825
Riglietti, F. G. (2022). Business continuity management as a key enabler of supply chain resilience: a conceptual paper. IFAC-PapersOnLine, 55(10), 2197–2202. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ifacol.2022.10.034
Robitaille, N., Plassmann, H., Mazar, N., & Lindner, A. (2026). The affective cost of spending: neuroeconomic and experimental evidence on the pain of paying. Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, 248, 107671. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.JEBO.2026.107671
Sadhu, H. (2025). Behavioral Economics: How Emotions Influence Financial Decisions. International Journal for Multidisciplinary Research (IJFMR), 7(1), 1. www.ijfmr.com
Schanbacher, A. D., Gurdamar-Okutur, N., & Faro, D. (2021). It’s no longer “me”: Low past-self-continuity reduces the sunk-cost bias. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 95, 104146. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.JESP.2021.104146
Schreiber, C., Abbad-Andaloussi, A., & Weber, B. (2024). On the cognitive and behavioral effects of abstraction and fragmentation in modularized process models. Information Systems, 125, 102424. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.IS.2024.102424
Shah, A. M. (2015). “What’s Pain Got To Do With It?”: How the Pain of Payment Influences Our Choices and Our Relationships. Graduate School of Duke University.
Shan Loh, H., & Van Thai, V. (2014). Managing Port-Related Supply Chain Disruptions: A Conceptual Paper *. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajsl.2014.04.005&domain=pdf
Silva, E. M., Moreira, R. de L., & Bortolon, P. M. (2023). Mental Accounting and decision making: a systematic literature review. Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics, 107, 102092. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.SOCEC.2023.102092
Skwara, F. (2023). Effects of mental accounting on purchase decision processes: A systematic review and research agenda. Journal of Consumer Behaviour, 22(5), 1265–1281. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1002/cb.2193
Tsyganov, V. V. (2022). Adapting, Training, and Company Expenses Control. IFAC-PapersOnLine, 55(1), 510–515. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ifacol.2022.04.084
Urikova, O., Mysko, Y., Bondarchuk, M., Karyy, O., & Masiuk, V. (2025). Fintech Revolution: How Digital Technologies Are Transforming the Global Financial Ecosystem and Promoting Sustainable Development. In A. Luntovskyy, M. Klymash, I. Melnyk, M. Beshley, & D. Gütter (Eds.), Networks and Sustainability (pp. 426–449). Springer Nature Switzerland.
Widita, A. A., Lechner, A. M., & Widyastuti, D. T. (2024). Spatial patterns and drivers of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) within and across Indonesian cities: Evidence from highly granular data. Regional Science Policy & Practice, 16(11), 100137. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.RSPP.2024.100137
Xie, J. (2019). Discussion on the Mechanism of Irrational Online Shopping Behavior—Based on the Perspective of Mental Accounting Theory. Open Journal of Social Sciences, 07(05), 53–71. https://doi.org/10.4236/jss.2019.75004
Zellermayer, O. (1996). The Pain of Paying. Carnegie Mellon University.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Bhenu Artha, Fajar Santoso, Wuku Astuti, Tiara Kinanti (Author)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
