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Hoarding behaviors in a large college sample

Meredith E Coles1, Randy O Frost, Richard G Heimberg

  • 1Adult Anxiety Clinic of Temple University, Department of Psychology, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA 19122-6085, USA. mcoles@temple.edu

Behaviour Research and Therapy
|January 28, 2003
PubMed

Insights

Hoarding behaviors, linked to obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), involve difficulty discarding items and clutter. This study found hoarding strongly relates to anxiety sensitivity, suggesting a new research direction.

Area of Science:

  • Psychology
  • Clinical Psychology
  • Behavioral Science

Background:

  • Hoarding behaviors are common in clinical syndromes, particularly obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).
  • Despite significant distress and impairment, empirical research on hoarding behaviors remains limited.
  • Understanding hoarding is crucial for effective clinical intervention and treatment development.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To examine the nature and structure of hoarding behaviors in a large college student sample.
  • To investigate the relationships between hoarding behaviors, hoarding beliefs, and various psychological constructs.
  • To explore the unique contribution of anxiety sensitivity to hoarding behaviors.

Main Methods:

  • Principal components analysis of the 26-item Saving Inventory-Revised in 563 college students.
  • Assessment of hoarding beliefs, obsessive-compulsive (OC) symptoms, social anxiety, depressive symptoms, and worry.
  • Correlation and regression analyses to determine relationships between variables.

Main Results:

  • Four domains of hoarding were identified: Difficulty Discarding, Acquisition Problems, Clutter, and Interference/Distress.
  • All hoarding domains and total scores strongly correlated with hoarding beliefs and OC symptoms.
  • Hoarding behaviors showed a significant, strong relationship with anxiety sensitivity, comparable to OCD symptom correlations.

Conclusions:

  • Hoarding behaviors are multifaceted, encompassing distinct domains related to discarding, acquisition, clutter, and distress.
  • Hoarding is strongly associated with cognitive factors (hoarding beliefs) and symptom clusters within obsessive-compulsive disorder.
  • Anxiety sensitivity emerges as a critical, under-recognized correlate of hoarding behaviors, warranting further investigation.

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