Association between attachment and hoarding behavior: Mediation of anthropomorphism and moderation of hoarding beliefs among Chinese adolescents

Abstract

The impact of insecure attachment on hoarding behavior (HB) has been supported by empirical evidence. However, scant literature has focused on how anthropomorphism (attributing human-like traits, characteristics, or emotions to nonhuman objects) and hoarding beliefs (motivations for ownership) affect the relationship between insecure attachment and HB, especially among Chinese adolescents. Using a cross-sectional study, we reserved 903 participants (561 males, 342 females, M = 20.20, SD = 1.85, age range = 18-24 years) to complete self-report questionnaires about close relationships, anthropomorphism, saving beliefs, and saving inventory to investigate the mediating role of anthropomorphism and the moderating role of hoarding beliefs in the relationship between insecure attachment and HB. Attachment anxiety and avoidance had a positive relationship with HB, and anthropomorphism is a mediating factor in the association between attachment anxiety and HB. In addition, hoarding beliefs moderated the relationship between attachment anxiety and HB. This study further elaborated on the relationships between insecure attachment, anthropomorphism, hoarding beliefs, and HB, which might shed some light on adolescent clinical interventions. K E Y W O R D S anthropomorphism, attachment anxiety, attachment avoidance, hoarding behavior, hoarding beliefs Xueting Liu and Ying Cai contributed equally.

Psychological mechanism of acceptance and commitment therapy and rational emotive behavior therapy for treating hoarding: Evidence from randomized controlled trials

“…Emotional over-attachment to objects appears to be one of the distinguishing features of hoarding behaviors, with possessions often seen as an extension of the self (19). Attachment anxiety is a significant predictor of hoarding behavior (20,21). It has been suggested that intolerance of uncertainty and experiential avoidance exerted sequential mediating effects on the association of attachment anxiety with hoarding behavior, i.e., attachment anxiety could influence hoarding behavior, which in turn affected intolerance of uncertainty and experiential avoidance and then impacted hoarding behavior (22).…”