Between Play and Pressure: Pop Mart's 'Labubu' Craze, Blind-Box Consumption, and Emotional Socialization Among Primary School Students in Beijing
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: This study investigated the psychological, consumerist, and educational intersections of Pop Mart’s ‘Labubu’ craze, analyzing how blind-box retail mechanisms impact peer dynamics and emotional socialization among primary school students in Beijing. Employing a comprehensive desk-based methodology that synthesized verified qualitative and quantitative secondary sources including municipal consumer protection reports, corporate market filings, and primary empirical school-district surveys the research examined the structural drivers of juvenile collectible consumption. Findings revealed that the algorithmic gamification of blind boxes intensifies status anxiety and peer-group stratification, compelling young learners to utilize scarce ‘secret edition’ figures as compensatory social currency. Concurrently, children internalize retail unboxing as a surrogate coping mechanism against rigorous academic pressures characteristic of Beijing’s primary education system. While informal peer trading networks fostered localized negotiation and community building, unmanaged commercial consumption precipitated compulsive spending habits and amplified classroom socio-economic divides. These insights illustrate the pressing necessity for cross-institutional regulatory oversight, school-based critical media literacy curricula, and parental financial guidance frameworks within contemporary urban educational ecosystems.
Author: Lee Bih Ni
Institution: Universiti of Malaysia Sabah
Language: English
Subfield: Marketing
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7225740006
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