will make them happier, more popular or better equipped to succeed in life. Richins said that some credit card overusers believe that their purchases can deliver a magical transformation in their lives. Unfortunately, those changes are often fleeting, and when they quickly fade, the shoppers find themselves out on another spree. Sort of like a drug addict looking for another fix. "For many of the people we studied who overuse their credit cards, making purchases was exciting. When they talk about buying things, their faces light up," Richins said. "These were people who expect magic to happen to them when they buy things." Suffering From "Debtors' Disease" Carol, a costume designer in Portland, Ore., knows that feeling well. While living in Southern California, she racked up more than $20,000 in credit card debt before she realized she was spending so much simply because it made her feel good. "I had a compulsion," said Carol, whose last name is being withheld because she participates in a group called Debtors Anonymous, which fiercely protects its members' identifies. "There was something inside me--this little attitude--that said I could have whatever I wanted whenever I wanted it. I call it the debtors disease." In Carol's case, buying things with her credit card gave her a sense of great self-worth. She says she felt "like an adult, like a real business person." What People Get Out of Buying That attitude is similar to what Richins found in studying people who overuse their credit cards. She found there were four types of transformations people expected: -Self improvement, such as the woman who believed spending money on cosmetic dental work would make her more confident and popular. -Improved relationships, such as the father who was certain buying a built-in swimming pool would improve his relationship with his daughter. -A newfound sense of adventure--what Richins calls "hedonic transformation"--such as the expectation of wild fun that might come from buying an ATV or a sailboat -Greater effectiveness, which is what some buyers might expect from buying an expensive new computer tablet or even a new car. Richins' research is groundbreaking in that it scientifically documents how credit card overusers actually have different beliefs about the products they buy than people who stay within their budget. But it's not as though the emotional urges of credit card users is news to the people who market credit cards. "The ads you see all but promise the kind of transformations that people are looking for," Richins said. "They show the father taking his son to the baseball game and buying food and souvenirs and they add up the cost of everything and then tell you that, sure, those things cost money but the improved relationship you'll have with your son is priceless. They are appealing directly to the type of person who tends to overuse their credit card." Hard-Wired to Love New Things Richins has been studying materialism for more than two decades, and she believes humans are "hard-wired" to want new things that make life better. Primitive people who had better tools survive