Indian researchers have called for regulatory intervention and reflective design principles to combat persuasive ecommerce practices that prioritise platform profitability over consumer autonomy, warning that Buy Now, Pay Later schemes exacerbate impulse buying and debt cycles.
The opinion piece, published in Frontiers in Artificial Intelligence, argues that ecommerce platforms have transitioned from shopping sites to designed environments that encourage impulsivity by exploiting behavioural biases through scarcity alerts, countdown timers and AI-enabled personalisation.
Alain Monica George, a doctoral student and research assistant at Marian College Kuttikkanam Autonomous, and Rupa R, an assistant professor at the same institution, analysed persuasive ecommerce practices through behavioural economics and consumer psychology frameworks.
The researchers identified Buy Now, Pay Later programmes as a prime example of exploitative design. Research cited in the paper suggests BNPL use associates with impulse buying, materialistic tendencies and lack of self-control in Generation Z and Millennials, whilst ecological studies show BNPL leads to overdraft and debt, particularly among low-income users.
The authors described the emotional consequences of persuasive design as a cycle of temporary pleasure followed by negative emotions. “The pleasure of instant gratification will always run downhill to anxiety, guilt, or shame,” wrote the authors. “Most consumers will not stop there and will return to the shopping platform to again engage in the act of seeking purchase to fill the relief void, thus creating a compulsive loop.”
Unlike traditional shopping methods, one-click checkout and BNPL eliminate contemplation time and disconnect payment from consequence. “This design does not merely reduce friction or discomfort; it weaponises friction,” wrote the authors. The researchers argued that platforms profit from repeated lapses of self-control whilst consumers bear the emotional and financial toll.
The paper noted regulatory inconsistency in responding to persuasive commerce. The UK, Australia and New Zealand classify BNPL as credit, requiring affordability checks and notices. The EU established protections with the 2021 Consumer Credit Directive and Directive 2019/2161, requiring transparency for online reviews and penalties for misleading practices.
India’s Consumer Protection Act 2019 established the Central Consumer Protection Authority and ecommerce rules prohibiting dark patterns, false scarcity cues and manipulative defaults. However, the researchers warned that enforcement struggles to keep pace with technological developments, with AI engineers and behavioural teams moving faster than regulators and exploiting divergent jurisdictions.
The researchers proposed three reflective design interventions to reintroduce deliberation whilst maintaining convenience: pause nudges that intervene during one-click BNPL signup, transparency nudges identifying why consumers were targeted, and opt-in personalisation returning agency to customers.
“Unless we have a global, cohesive, and enforceable standard created based on the OECD or UNCTAD processes, this form of commerce is likely to become further entrenched—showing manipulation as convenience—leaving consumers even more vulnerable going forward,” wrote the authors.
Whilst acknowledging these interventions require trials to establish feasibility, the authors argued reflective design should be recognised as an ethical normative reference for regulating product design in digital environments.
The researchers called for future investigation into long-term psychological and financial outcomes of AI-enabled personalisation and digital nudging, particularly regarding compulsive buying and post-purchase regret. They also recommended experimental investigations of reflective design interventions and comparative policy research examining BNPL and consumer protection laws across contexts.
