Consumption virtualisation in the consumer behaviour of large-city silver singles in Poland

The article reports empirical research. The aim of the study is to identify and evaluate the buying behaviour of silver singles that can be regarded as consumption virtualisation. The article consists of three parts: theoretical, methodological, and empirical. The first one explores the concept and essence of consumption virtualisation as a consumer trend. The methodological part discusses the conceptualisation of research and selection of the research sample. In the empirical part, based on the results of the author's own research, the focus is on: key determinants of online shopping done by single seniors, the respondents' behaviour consistent with shopping trends such as showrooming and webrooming, payment methods most often chosen by silver singles when they shop online, the most common reasons for the respondents using a mobile phone/smartphone while shopping at a brick and mortar shop, and reasons for shopping online and offline. The tool used to conduct the research was the author's original survey questionnaire. The research was conducted in two stages in 2018–2022. Single male seniors rate their involvement in consumption virtualisation higher than single senior women. It has been observed that the digital influence factor increases with monthly disposable income, yet it is not necessarily correlated with the respondent's place of residence. The most digitised age group is still that of young old singles; however, it is worth emphasising that digital tools are becoming more common among the oldest old seniors. Given the limited financial capacity, the study of consumer buying behaviour that could be qualified under various consumer trends was confined to a survey conducted in the biggest Polish cities.

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