This study aims to investigate the impact of life history strategies on digital hoarding behavior, the mediating role of emotional attachment in that relationship, and the moderating role of emotional regulation. A total of 580 Chinese college students were investigated. The collected data were analyzed using SPSS26.0 software. The findings show that: (a) life history strategy is negatively correlated with digital hoarding behavior; (b) life history strategy influences digital hoarding behavior through its impact on emotional attachment; and (c) emotional regulation negatively affects the influence of emotional attachment on digital hoarding. This study’s findings will assist individuals in overcoming challenges associated with digital hoarding and enhancing their personal information management capabilities. By employing emotional regulation strategies such as cognitive reappraisal, individuals can weaken the impact of emotional attachment on their tendency toward engaging in excessive digital hoarding behaviors. In addition, it advances theoretical and practical research in the field of digital hoarding.
AbramsDBaeckerRChignellM (1998) Information Archiving with Bookmarks: Personal Web Space Construction and Organization. ACM Press/Addison-Wesley Publishing Co.
2.
AinsworthMDS (2006) Attachments and other affectional bonds across the life cycle. In: ParkesCMStevenson-HindeJMarrisP (eds) Attachment Across the Life Cycle. Routledge, pp.41–59.
3.
AlonL (2025) Information seeking and personal information management behaviors as scaffolding during life transitions: The case of early-career researchers. Aslib Journal of Information Management77(2): 354–372.
4.
AlonLHardof-JaffeSNachmiasR (2019) How knowledge workers manage their personal information spaces: Perceptions, challenges and high-level strategies. Interacting With Computers31(3): 303–316.
5.
AlonLKrtalićM (2025) “I wish I could use any language as it comes to mind”: User experience in digital platforms in the context of multilingual personal information management. Journal of the Association for Information Science and Technology76(4): 686–702.
6.
AlonLNachmiasR (2020) Gaps between actual and ideal personal information management behavior. Computers in Human Behavior107: 106292.
7.
AlonLNachmiasR (2023) The role of feelings in personal information management behavior: Deleting and organizing information. Journal of Librarianship and Information Science55(2): 313–322.
8.
ArlingtonV (2013) Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th edn. American Psychiatric Publishing.
9.
BelkRW (1988) Possessions and the extended self. Journal of Consumer Research15(2): 139–168.
10.
BergmanOWhittakerS (2016) The Science of Managing Our Digital Stuff. The MIT Press, p. 1.
11.
BowlbyJ (1969) Attachment and loss (No. 79). Random House.
12.
BrewerRNJonesJ (2015) Pinteresce: Exploring reminiscence as an incentive to digital reciprocity for older adults. In: The 18th ACM conference companion on computer supported cooperative work & social computing, pp.243–246.
13.
CarvalhoCBCabralJMTeixeiraM, et al. (2023) “Belonging without being”: Relationships between problematic gaming, internet use, and social group attachment in adolescence. Computers in Human Behavior149: 107932.
14.
ChangLLuHJLansfordJE, et al (2019) Environmental harshness and unpredictability, life history, and social and academic behavior of adolescents in nine countries. Developmental Psychology55(4): 890–903.
15.
ChangVTOverallNCMaddenH, et al (2018) Expressive suppression tendencies, projection bias in memory of negative emotions, and well-being. Emotion18(7): 925–941.
16.
ChenBBShiZSunS (2017) Life history strategy as a mediator between childhood environmental unpredictability and adulthood personality. Personality and Individual Differences111: 215–219.
17.
CicchettiD (1991) Contributions From the Study of High-Risk Populations to Understanding the Development of Emotion Regulation. Cambridge University Press.
18.
CoxRJ (2008) Personal Archives and a New Archival Calling: Readings, Reflections and Ruminations. Litwin Books, LLC.
19.
CushingAL (2013) “It’s stuff that speaks to me”: Exploring the characteristics of digital possessions. Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology64(8): 1723–1734.
20.
CushingALKerriganP (2022) Personal information management burden: A framework for describing nonwork personal information management in the context of inequality. Journal of the Association for Information Science and Technology73(11): 1543–1558.
21.
Del GiudiceMKlimczukACETraficonteDM, et al (2014) Autistic-like and schizotypal traits in a life history perspective: Diametrical associations with impulsivity, sensation seeking, and sociosexual behavior. Evolution and Human Behavior35(5): 415–424.
22.
DeWallCNAndersonCABushmanBJ (2011) The general aggression model: Theoretical extensions to violence. Psychology of Violence1(3): 245–258.
23.
DongZYangTHouY, et al (2024) System-justifying belief alleviates online privacy concerns: The mediating role of relatedness satisfaction and general trust. Computers in Human Behavior154: 108140.
24.
DozierMEAyersCR (2014) The predictive value of different reasons for saving and acquiring on hoarding disorder symptoms. Journal of Obsessive-Compulsive and Related Disorders3(3): 220–227.
25.
EllisBJFigueredoAJBrumbachBH, et al (2009) Fundamental dimensions of environmental risk. Human Nature20(2): 204–268.
26.
FennisBM (2022) Self-control, self-regulation, and consumer wellbeing: A life history perspective. Current Opinion in Psychology46(8): 101344.
27.
FigueredoAVasquezGBrumbachB, et al (2006) Consilience and life history theory: From genes to brain to reproductive strategy. Developmental Review26(2): 243–275.
28.
FrostROPatronekGRosenfieldE (2011a) Comparison of object and animal hoarding. Depression and Anxiety28(10): 885–891.
29.
FrostROSteketeeGTolinDF (2011b) Comorbidity in hoarding disorder. Depression and Anxiety28: 876–884.
30.
FrostROHartlTL (1996) A cognitive-behavioral model of compulsive hoarding. Behaviour Research and Therapy34(4): 341–350.
31.
GaensbauerTJ (1982) Regulation of emotional expression in infants from two constrasting caretaking environments. Journal of the American Academy of Child Psychiatry21(2): 163–170.
32.
GoldinPRMcRaeKRamelW, et al (2008) The neural bases of EMOTION REGULATIon: Reappraisal and suppression of negative emotion. Biological Psychiatry63(6): 577–586.
33.
GrossJJ (1998) The emerging field of emotion regulation: An integrative review. Review of General Psychology2(3): 271–299.
34.
GrossJJ (2015) Emotion regulation: current status and future prospects. Psychological Inquiry26(1): 1–26.
35.
GrossJJJohnOP (2003) Individual differences in two emotion regulation processes: Implications for affect, relationships, and well-being. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology85(2): 348–362.
36.
GrossJTCassidyJ (2019) Expressive suppression of negative emotions in children and adolescents: Theory, data, and a guide for future research. Developmental Psychology55(9): 1938–1950.
37.
GrossmannKEGrossmannKWatersE (eds) (2006) Attachment from infancy to adulthood: The major longitudinal studies. Guilford Press.
38.
GuoHWeiXZhaoS, et al (2020) Revision of the Chinese version of Digital Hoarding Behaviors Questionnaire. Chinese Journal of Clinical Psychology28(03): 492–495.
39.
HackerLEParkJMTimpanoKR, et al (2016) Hoarding in children with ADHD. Journal of Attention Disorders20(7): 617–626.
40.
Hardof-JaffeSNachmiasR (2011) Personal information management and learning. International Journal of Technology Enhanced Learning3(6): 570–582.
41.
HasaniJChashmiSJEFiroozabadiMA, et al (2024) Cognitive emotion regulation mediates the relationship between big-five personality traits and internet use disorder tendencies. Computers in Human Behavior152, 108020. DOI: 10.1016/j.chb.2023.108020.
42.
HayesAF (2017) Introduction to Mediation, Moderation, and Conditional Process Analysis: A Regression-Based Approach. Guilford Publications.
43.
HazanCShaverPR (1994) Attachment as an organizational framework for research on close relationships. Psychological Inquiry5(1): 1–22.
44.
HuangYChenXShiP (2024) Relationship between attachment orientation and emotion regulation strategies of female college students: The mediating role of emotion regulation goals. Journal of Southwest University50(2): 216–227.
45.
JonesWCapraRDiekemaA, et al (2015) “For telling” the present: Using the Delphi method to understand personal information management practices. In: Proceedings of the 33rd annual ACM conference on human factors in computing systems. pp.3513–3522.
46.
JonesWP (2008) Keeping Found Things Found: The Study and Practice of Personal Information Management. Morgan Kaufmann.
47.
JonesWTeevanJ (2007) Personal Information Management. University of Washington Press, pp.23–24.
48.
KahnemanD (2011) Thinking, Fast and Slow. Farrar, Straus and Giroux.
49.
KaplanHSGangestadSW (2015) Life history theory and evolutionary psychology. In: Buss DM (ed.) The Handbook of Evolutionary Psychology. John Wiley & Sons, Inc., pp.68–95.
50.
KehoeEEganJ (2019) Interpersonal attachment insecurity and emotional attachment to possessions partly mediate the relationship between childhood trauma and hoarding symptoms in a non-clinical sample. Journal of Obsessive-Compulsive and Related Disorders21: 37–45.
51.
KempEKoppSW (2011) Emotion regulation consumption: When feeling better is the aim. Journal of Consumer Behaviour10(1): 1–7.
52.
KleineSSBakerSM (2004) An integrative review of material possession attachment. Academy of Marketing Science Review1(1): 1–39.
53.
KoklicMKKukar-KinneyMVidaI (2022) Consumers’ de-ownership as a predictor of dark-side digital acquisition behavior: Moderating role of moral intensity and collectivism. Journal of Business Research138: 108–116.
54.
KrausMWPiffPKKeltnerD (2009) Social class, sense of control, and social explanation. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology97(6): 992–1004.
55.
KrtalićMAlonL (2024) Personal cultural heritage management: A conceptual framework for constructing and curating cultural identities through personal collections. Journal of Documentation80(6): 1238–1257.
56.
LeeZLeeJLeeSG, et al (2008) The effect of psychological ownership on the possession attachment and willingness to share the Internet content. In: 2008 4th IEEE international conference on management of innovation and technology, pp.722–726. New York, NY: IEEE. DOI: 10.1109/ICMIT.2008.4654454.
57.
LiuH (2022) Impact of knowledge dissemination on employee-based brand equity: Mediating role of brand identification and emotional attachment. Frontiers in Psychology13: 924139.
58.
LuxonAMHamiltonCEBatesS, et al (2019) Pinning our possessions: Associations between digital hoarding and symptoms of hoarding disorder. Journal of Obsessive-Compulsive and Related Disorders21: 60–68.
59.
Mac ArthurRHWilsonEO (1967) The Theory of Island Biogeography. Princeton University Press.
60.
MaloneTW (1983) How do people organize their desks? Implications for the design of office information systems. ACM Transactions on Information Systems1(1): 99–112.
61.
McKellarKSillenceENeaveN, et al (2020) There is more than one type of hoarder: Collecting, managing and hoarding digital data in the workplace. Interacting with Computers32: 209–220.
62.
McKellarKSillenceENeaveN, et al (2024) Digital accumulation behaviours and information management in the workplace: exploring the tensions between digital data hoarding, organisational culture and policy. Behaviour & Information Technology43(6): 1206–1218.
63.
McKemmishS (1996) Evidence of me. Archives and Manuscripts24(1): 28–45.
64.
MurphyK (2014) Hoarding: A life-threatening disorder. Nursing Critical Care9(6): 42–47.
65.
NeaveNBriggsPMcKellarK, et al (2019) Digital hoarding behaviours: Measurement and evaluation. Computers in Human Behavior96: 72–77.
66.
NorrisJILambertNMNathan DeWallC, et al (2012) Can’t buy me love?: Anxious attachment and materialistic values. Personality and Individual Differences53(5): 666–669.
67.
OravecJA (2018) Digital (or virtual) hoarding. International Journal of Computers in Clinical Practice3(1): 27–39.
68.
OwensMMSyanSKAmlungM, et al (2019) Functional and structural neuroimaging studies of delayed reward discounting in addiction: A systematic review. Psychological Bulletin145(2): 141–164.
69.
PhungPJMouldingRTaylorJK, et al. (2015) Emotional regulation, attachment to possessions and hoarding symptoms. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology56(5): 573–581.
70.
PromislowDELHarveyPH (1990) Living fast and dying young: A comparative analysis of life-history variation among mammals. Journal of Zoology220: 417–437.
71.
ReetiAAnkitMManojKP, et al (2024) Digital photo hoarding in online retail context. An in-depth qualitative investigation of retail consumers. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services78: 103729.
72.
RenschlerKFreemanJ (2023) Digital hoarding: A new subtype of traditional hoarding disorder?Brown University Child and Adolescent Behavior Letter39(2): 1–4.
73.
RichardsonGBPlacekCSrinivasV, et al (2020) Environmental stress and human life history strategy development in rural and peri-urban South India. Evolution and Human Behavior41(3): 244–252.
74.
RindfleischABurroughsJEWongN (2009) The safety of objects: Materialism, existential insecurity, and brand connection. Journal of Consumer Research36(1): 1–16.
75.
SaiXZhaoYGengY, et al (2022) Revision of the mini-K scale in Chinese College students. Chinese Journal of Clinical Psychology30(05): 1160–1164.
76.
SchieleKHughesMU (2013) Possession Rituals of the Digital Consumer: A Study of Pinterest. ACR European Advances.
77.
SederaDLokugeSGroverV (2022) Modern-day hoarding: A model for understanding and measuring digital hoarding. Information Management59(8): 103700.
78.
SillenceEDawsonJABrownRD, et al (2023) Digital hoarding and personal use digital data. Human–Computer Interaction. 1–20. DOI: 10.1080/07370024.2023.2293001.
79.
SteketeeGFrostR (2003) Compulsive hoarding: Current status of the research. Clinical Psychology Review23(7): 905–927.
80.
SteketeeGGibsonAFrostRO, et al (2011) Characteristics and antecedents of people who hoard animals: An exploratory comparative interview study. Review of General Psychology15(2): 114–124.
81.
SweetenGSillenceENeaveN (2018) Digital hoarding behaviours: Underlying motivations and potential negative consequences. Computers in Human Behavior85: 54–60.
82.
SzepsenwolOSimpsonJA (2019) Attachment within life history theory: An evolutionary perspective on individual differences in attachment. Current Opinion in Psychology25: 65–70.
83.
ThomasLBriggsP (2014) An older adult perspective on digital legacy. In: The 8th Nordic conference on human-computer Interaction: Fun, fast, foundational, pp.237–246.
84.
ThorpeSBolsterANeaveN (2019) Exploring aspects of the cognitive behavioural model of physical hoarding in relation to digital hoarding behaviours. Digital Health5: 2055207619882172.
85.
TolinDFMeunierSAFrostRO, et al (2010) Course of compulsive hoarding and its relationship to life events. Depression and Anxiety27(9): 829–838.
86.
van BennekomMJBlomRMVulinkN, et al (2015) A case of digital hoarding. BMJ Case Reports2015: bcr2015210814
87.
VitaleFJanzenIMcGrenereJ (2018) Hoarding and minimalism: tendencies in digital data preservation. In: Paper presented at the proceedings of the 2018 CHI conference on human factors in computing systems.
88.
WangLLuYPLingZQ (2007) Test of emotion regulation scale in adolescents. Chinese Journal of Clinical Psychology03: 236–238.
89.
WestRAshCDaporeA, et al (2021) Problematic smartphone use: The role of reward processing, depressive symptoms and self-control. Addictive Behaviors122: 107015.
90.
WhittakerSMasseyC (2020) Mood and personal information management: how we feel influences how we organize our information. Personal and Ubiquitous Computing24(5): 695–707.
91.
WhittakerSSidnerCL (1996) Email overload: exploring personal information management of email. In: Proceedings of the SIGCHI conference on human factors in computing systems, pp.276–283.
92.
WuXYHuangXLiJ (2021) The relationship between attachment anxiety and digital hoarding behavior: The mediating effect of intolerance of uncertainty and difficulties in emotion regulation. Chinese Journal of Clinical Psychology29(5): 996–999.
93.
XieXGaoXYWangZY, et al (2023) An exploratory study of the origins, practices and prospects of digital hoarding. Library and Information Service67(23): 124–137.
94.
XieXSongTLiL, et al (2025) Research on personal digital hoarding behaviors of college students based on personality traits theory: The mediating role of emotional attachment. Library Hi Tech43: 1210–1230.
95.
YueZZhangRXiaoJ (2022) Passive social media use and psychological well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic: The role of social comparison and emotion regulation. Computers in Human Behavior127: 127.
96.
ZaremohzzabiehZAbdullahHAhrariS, et al (2024) Exploration of vulnerability factors of digital hoarding behavior among university students and the moderating role of maladaptive perfectionism. Digital Health10: 1–16.
97.
ZhangMXWuAMS (2022) Effects of childhood adversity on smartphone addiction: The multiple mediation of life history strategies and smartphone use motivations. Computers in Human Behavior134: 107298.
98.
ZhangXChenX (2025) What drives digital hoarding? Understanding the impact of perceived value and the mediating role of security on digital hoarding behavior. Current Psychology44: 1333–1346.
99.
ZhaoJHMaDHLiuY, et al (2022) The association between risk perception of COVID-19 and hoarding behavior: The mediating role of security and the moderating role of Life History Strategy. Chinese Journal of Clinical Psychology30(4): 856–860. DOI: 10.16128/j.cnki.1005-3611.2022.04.020.
Supplementary Material
Please find the following supplemental material available below.
For Open Access articles published under a Creative Commons License, all supplemental material carries the same license as the article it is associated with.
For non-Open Access articles published, all supplemental material carries a non-exclusive license, and permission requests for re-use of supplemental material or any part of supplemental material shall be sent directly to the copyright owner as specified in the copyright notice associated with the article.
