Chances are, you or someone you know collect massive amounts of useless data; a gallery
full of photos, an email inbox full of read and unread emails, or apps you have
not used in months, maybe years. Yet many find these digital tokens hard to let
go of.
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Within the past
decade, new studies on this phenomenon have been released, and research
suggested that there may be
negative consequences associated with this
behavior, also known as digital hoarding.
Collecting vs hoarding
There is a fine line between collecting and hoarding. Collectors are
organized, deliberate, and methodical in the objects they acquire. Their goal
is to admire and display these objects.
However, hoarding
is an actual disorder that the
American Psychiatric Association defines as the
persistent difficulty in getting rid of items due to a feeling of needing to
save them. Any attempts to part with these items can cause significant distress,
and the resulting clutter can disrupt their living spaces.
Hoarding is by no
means a new disorder. Some of its earliest references can be seen as far back
as the 14th century. However, hoarding disorder was not added to the Diagnostic
and Statistical Manual until 2010. As our digital age has evolved, so too has
the disorder. Instead of hoarding taking up physical space, there has been an
increase in people now cluttering up their digital space.
What is digital hoarding?
Digital hoarding is a new term, and its exact definition can vary. The
term was first seen in a 2015 case study in the scientific community. This case
study described an older man who was diagnosed with
autism spectrum disorder in
2007 and presented to the clinic requesting treatment for his hoarding
behavior. It was found that he had a hoarding disorder and mainly hoarded
paperwork and bike parts, which contributed to a cluttered living space.
What was new and
interesting about this case was the patient’s hoarding of digital pictures. On
average, he took up to 1,000 photos per day mostly of landscapes and stored all
of them on four hard drives and an additional four, which served as a backup
for the original photos. The digital hoarding alone impacted his life severely
to the point where he would spend, on average, three to five hours per day
organizing them and the thought of getting rid of them caused distress.
He had no interest
in getting rid of them because they would bring back memories for him and he
felt attached to them. By the conclusion of this case study, it was determined
that this patient satisfied the criteria of a hoarding disorder and argued that
digital hoarding be treated as a subtype. The study defined it as an
accumulation and disorganization of digital files, which causes distress and
impairment in functioning.
Types of digital hoarding
Since digital hoarding is
still a new concept, the exact prevalence and
factors at play make it difficult to estimate its true impact.
Hoarding disorder
is only thought to affect 2.6 percent of people, predominantly those over 60.
However, a 2019 study suggests that digital hoarding is common and is
frequently seen in business practice. A 2019 study laid the foundation for a
2020 follow-up report by the same researchers that went into further detail and
outlined four distinct types of digital hoarders in the workplace.
The accidental
hoarder: This type of digital hoarding seems to be the most common. Accidental
hoarding, also called disengagement, comes from poor data management, a lack of
control over acquired data, and accumulation over time. It is most commonly
seen in email inboxes.
It is mostly
characterized by a lack of interest in structuring or organizing data upon
receiving it. And many individuals feel that it is too late to start
organizing. This results in a cycle where data does not get deleted out of
laziness or lack of time and further accumulates and perpetuates the lack of
organization.
This type of
hoarding is not particularly problematic and not indicative of a true hoarding
disorder since the data is not valuable to them, nor does it cause them
distress when deleting it.
The hoarder by
instruction: This type of digital hoarding is most commonly seen in business
environments. Data is stored in mass per a company’s request to be used at a
later date potentially. However, the clear distinction is that the data is well
organized, and the user knows the stored data. Individuals are also usually
relieved or happy when they can finally delete the data and feel no distress.
The anxious hoarder: The anxious hoarder conveys a
more concerning form of digital hoarding and may border on a hoarding disorder.
Individuals who fall under this type may hoard data similar to hoarders by
instruction, but the primary motivation is different. In anxious hoarders,
there is a belief that the data may become important one day, and the idea of
deleting files can cause anxiety. One distinguishing component of anxious
hoarding is that even if the individual recognized the file no longer had
value, they would keep it just in case.
The collector: This
is a relatively unique type of digital hoarder but still incorporates other
aspects of different kinds. Much like hoarders by instruction, a collector
intentionally and knowingly collects data in an organized and systematic
manner.
Like anxious
hoarders, they also believe it may be important one day. However, what is
unique is their motivation behind hoarding. Anxious hoarders can recognize that
certain data is no longer valuable, however, collectors find all of their data
valuable subjectively and gain a sense of pride or identity from it.
Negative
consequences of digital hoarding
Since digital hoarding is a relatively new concept, there is little
information on its effects on mental health. With hoarding disorders, some of
the greatest concern is loss of living space, financial difficulties, and
health hazards relating to a disorganized environment.
With digital
hoarding, most of these concerns are not present since all the stored data is
placed on small hard drives and is relatively cheap in comparison. Although
digital hoarding may not be directly responsible for a negative impact on
mental health, it may be indicative of it.
Hoarding behavior
is compulsive in nature and associated with other mental health issues such as
depression and anxiety. Depending on the type, this can be further worsened,
such as anxious hoarders who may become distressed if forced to delete data.
Even on a functional level, having massive amounts of unorganized data can
trickle down into your lifestyle. It may set the precedence of disorder which
could potentially impact work and the household.
If you are concerned
More likely than not, the average individual has massive amounts of data
that isn’t valuable but would not consider themselves a hoarder. This often
falls under the category of accidental hoarding. If this is the case, taking
the time to implement an organizational method could be beneficial. This can be
done by creating folders and labeling things according to importance.
Another tip to keep in mind is not allowing things
to sit in undesignated areas such as a downloads folder, inbox, or desktop.
Therapy might be beneficial for those who feel that their hoarding affects
their mental health, such as anxious hoarders. In the mentioned above 2015 case
study, the gentleman was able to seek cognitive-behavior therapy, which helped
significantly reduce the amount of digital hoarding and improve his quality of
life.
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