Is there something that is very different in the make-up of someone who hoards (or accumulates) and someone who tends to discard things (more of a minimalist)? I know that this might require some painting with a broad brush. However, I would imagine that the motivating forces for either behavior might be tied to different personal styles or reasons. Does this correlate with other aspects of life - friendships, relationships, etc.?
Where is Foxface... Yooohooo! Seriously there are some good psychology and therapy trained people here. I'm sure there is correlation there somewhere, but without knowing a persons behaviors one can't really tie it down. I mean is bipolar tied directly to bisexualism or being gender queer?
^ I see your point. However, any insight is appreciated. I wouldn't say I'm fascinated, actually, but I am interested in how some people need to have their private space very cluttered and have every area of it filled with something while others want their private space to be simple, almost to the point of being a little eery. Both of these extremes can be either very neat or messy, but I'm asking more about the quantity issue than the quality issue.
I don't think there's a single cause that's reliably correlated with hoarding. However, there are definitely correlations between hoarding behaviors and certain other personality attributes. One theory I've heard is it's a combination of numbing behavior (essentially a compulsion for acquiring things that occupies the mind) and a form of protectionism; many hoarders feel empty and naked in a home that isn't filled to the brim with stuff, whether that stuff is trash or things they've bought off of infomercials (which, come to think of it, often aren't much different than trash.) There's often, but not always, a sense of social isolation that goes along with hoarding behaviors, and there's certainly some sort of cognitive dysfunction, since most hoarders don't really see their home-filled-with-junk in the same way that normal people see it. Like many behavioral disorders and process addictions, it's not easy to unravel and also not the easiest to treat.
I will throw out there right off the bat that I have never personally treated hoarding With that said, hoarding can often be part of anxiety-spectrum disorders. Hoarding can arise for many reasons including personal trauma and loss (which leads to hoarding as a protection against further loss). From a more analytic perspective, hoarding can sometimes be tied into identity. Hoarders can attach sentimental or personal value to even worthless items and parting with those items is like parting with some piece of themselves which as you can probably see would be quite painful (hence the sometimes extreme difficulty in working on hoarding) If you really want to push the Freudian view...which I do because I love having an excuse to use Freud...the anal stage is marked by the battle between expulsion (minimalism) and retention (obsession). In the case of hoarding from a Freudian view, in this stage in a hoarder's life there may have been an episode of neglect or abuse in which case retention or expulsion becomes the ultimate experience of the client. From a CBT standpoint, some cognition or personal trauma can cause a sudden need to acquire and keep in which case it's good to look at where the cycle began and seek to break the cycle by interrupting the negative or faulty cognition Honestly, hoarding is not new. There "can" be some patterns of manifestation of hoarding but then each individual will have come by it in their own manner.
Hoarding is quite complex and there is no typical reason why someone hoards, but the two most common themes are attachment to items, maybe with a lingering attachment the person who gifted or owned the item/s, or the idea that something still retains value and might "come in handy", even in the most obscure and unlikely way. A hoarder doesn't see the extent of the problem until it's too late and may lack motivation and energy to do anything about it anyway. There may well be underlying issues like depression, or depression may even trigger the hoarding. Loss and grief can begin a process of hoarding. I've seen this a number of times. A bereaved person may refuse to part with any items owned by the deceased as a memory is attached to every possession. In the mind of the bereaved, throwing away or giving away the item is a disposal of that memory. To them it feels like their loved one is slipping further and further away, so they cling on to every item and accumulate their own on top. Nothing is removed from the house and the mere suggestion that something of their loved ones be disposed of provokes anger and resentment. It's very complicated and can be difficult to overcome. Hoarding papers is fairly common. People hoard things like tax returns, bills, bank statements, receipts (or everything).... often because there may be that one occasion when they are called on to produce evidence of a purchase or payment. The trouble is, hoarders don't know when to get rid, so they just keep everything, forever. Hoarding is difficult as you need to first get the person to acknowledge the problem. Many are in denial and see themselves as collectors. I could go on, but I'll leave it there.
I can see this, and the word "protectionism" in reference to a faux type of fulfillment masking for something else makes sense. While this thread was certainly not intended to refer to wealth, some people who are rich seem to measure their worth by their possessions ... and flaunting them for others to see. ---------- Post added 11th Mar 2014 at 02:23 PM ---------- I can especially see how these things can be an extension of someone's identity and thus hard to part with. However, when the things are numerous and people can't part with them, that seems to be a problem. I'm sure this is a tough one. Hoarding is difficult to "measure," as is what the appropriate level of food, alcohol, or sexual activity might be. ---------- Post added 11th Mar 2014 at 02:26 PM ---------- Admittedly, I tend to hoard paperwork for exactly that reason you mention. I like to have it on hand "just in case." I am trying to make the "just in case" periodic shorter and less paranoid, for lack of a better word. However, I have a couple of file cabinets and they are fairly tidy. I'm in agreement with the denial and "collector" status.
Mood, personality disorder symptoms and disability in obsessive compulsive hoarders: a comparison with clinical and nonclinical controls Hoarders have more mood, anxiety and personality disorder symptoms, with particular elevations in dependent (clinging to someone else rather than taking care of yourself) and schizotypal (eccentric with strange beliefs) personality traits. The hoarding dimension of OCD: Psychological comorbidity and the five-factor personality model Hoarding is associated with depression, bipolar disorrder, PTSD and body dysmorphic disorder. Hoarders tend to be less organized and hard-working (Conscientiousness and more prone to negative emotions (Neuroticism). So, the answer to your question is that hoarders do differ from non-hoarders on a number of personality characteristics.
Dunno if this counts, but I hoard emails. I have my email archive back to about 2001, and I'd have it back to 1995 if I hadn't accidentally wiped over the older archive while transferring data to a new drive in 2001. But actually, those have turned out to be quite useful (as have, for example, 10 year old receipts) when I've needed to document proof of a business conversation, or an agreement, or discussions about particular arrangements. And it can be really helpful to go back and read old conversations about some topics when issues arise.
In addition to guilt or attachment issues as mentioned above, in some situations, I think it's a manifestation of fear of commitment. If you throw an item out, you can't get it back. Maybe you should have kept it. Maybe it's still useful. Maybe the Great Depression (economic not clinical) of 1929 will come back and you won't be able to buy new stuff. There's also the fact that throwing out is admitting just a little bit that maybe the purchase was a mistake you made (purchased something you didn't need, or a defective item that you chose poorly, etc...). I've heard clutter (often goes hand in hand with hoarding) described as postponed decisions, similar concept. Not sure how the psychology of minimalism works, I have yet to be exposed to that other extreme of the spectrum.
From watching the show Hoarders I've noticed that a lot of people started hoarding after the death of a loved one. It's pretty sad.
Nah, the only real difference is in whether they hoard or not. There are too many possibilities and explanations to generalise a series of traits to one person based on one behaviour.
I'm not a psychologist, but I wanted to chime in here, too. All of my friends and family know me as a hoarder. I don't think the reasons for this are tied to a specific personality or psychological pattern, but merely a past history. I am a hoarder. My mother is a hoarder. And my grandmother is a hoarder. But this trace only extends this far, because she had a necessity for hoarding. My grandmother, who lived throughout the Great Depression, began developing a collection of things (namely food, toileteries, blankets, etc.), because of the likelihood that money won't be around to replace them (at that time). Whereas my father and his lineage never hoard. They're far more wealthy and never experienced struggles with the question: what if I need this blanket it 5 months from now? Even during the Great Depression, his grandparents were financially secure. One might ask, why this tendency of hoarding has passed onto me, when clearly the Great Depression has ended. Well, financial dilemmas still pass throughout our family and so, again, hoarding has become the wiser decision.
