The Predictive Ability of Attachment Styles and Self-Control in Digital Compulsive Hoarding among Yarmouk University Students
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.35516/Hum.2026.10283Keywords:
Attachment Styles, Self-Control, Digital Compulsive Hoarding, Yarmouk University studentsAbstract
Objectives: The study aimed to reveal the predictive ability of attachment styles, self-control, and demographic variables (gender, educational level, and college) on digital compulsive hoarding among Yarmouk University students.
Methods: Using a descriptive-predictive approach, the study applied the Attachment Styles Scale (Hazan & Shaver, 1987), Self-Control Scale (Tangney et al., 2004), and Digital Compulsive Hoarding Scale (Neave et al., 2019) to a sample of 987 male and female students selected by convenience sampling.
Results: Anxiety attachment style was the most prevalent, followed by secure and avoidant styles. Self-control was moderate, while digital compulsive hoarding was high. Digital compulsive hoarding was predicted by anxiety attachment style explaining 56.90% of the variance, secure attachment style explaining 5.40%, and self-control explaining 1.40%. Anxious attachment style, avoidant style, and gender explained 0.50%. No significant differences were found for educational level or college.
Conclusions: Counseling programs are necessary to promote secure attachment, reduce anxious attachment, and improve self-control to mitigate digital compulsive hoarding among students.
Downloads
References
Abood, M. (2024). The impact of group counseling on reducing academic procrastination and improving self-control among a sample of high school students. Jordan Journal of Educational Sciences, 14(1), 99–109.
Acar, Ö. F., & Seda, A. C. A. R. (2020). A preliminary investigation of digital hoarding behaviors of university executives. European Journal of Digital Economy Research, 1(1), 27–44.
Baumeister, R. F., Vohs, K. D., & Tice, D. M. (2007). The strength model of self-control. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 16(6), 351–355.
Bowlby, J. (1988). A secure base: Parent-child attachment and healthy human development. Basic Books.
Collins, N. L., & Read, S. J. (1990). Adult attachment, working models, and relationship quality in dating couples. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 58(4), 644–663.
Comert, I., & Ogel, K. (2014). Attachment styles of adolescent substance users. Addicta: The Turkish Journal on Addictions, 1(1), 26–40.
De Boer, J., Van Hooft, J., & Bakker, B. (2011). Stop and start control: A distinction within self-control. European Journal of Personality, 25(5), 349–362.
Evans, M., Dillon, K. D., Goldin, G., & Krueger, J. I. (2011). Trust and self-control: The moderating role of default. Judgment and Decision Making, 6(7), 697–705.
Hazan, C., & Shaver, P. (1987). Romantic love conceptualized as an attachment process. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 52(3), 511–524.
Hussien, M. F., Mahmoud, S., & Mohamed, H. S. (2023). Virtual (digital) hoarding in relation to saving cognition and possession tendency among nursing teaching staff. Assiut Scientific Nursing Journal, 11(37), 121–130.
Inzlicht, M., Legault, L., & Teper, R. (2014). Exploring the mechanism of self-control improvement. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 23(4), 302–307.
Meriçtan, A., & Sevi, O. (2019). Cognitive behavioral therapy for hoarding disorder: A systematic review. Current Approaches in Psychiatry, 11(4), 506–518.
Mikulincer, M., Shaver, P. R., Sapir-Lavid, Y., & Avihou-Kanza, N. (2009). What’s inside the minds of securely and insecurely attached people? The secure base script and its associations with attachment-style dimensions. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 97(4), 615–633.
Neave, N., McKellar, K., Sillence, E., & Briggs, P. (2019). Digital hoarding behaviours: Implications for cybersecurity. In Cyber influence and cognitive threats (pp. 77–95). Academic Press.
Sagar, M. (2021). Predictive role of cognitive flexibility and self-control on social media addiction in university students. International Education Studies, 14(4), 1–10.
Sweeten, G., Sillence, E., & Neave, N. (2018). Digital hoarding behaviours: Underlying motivations and potential negative consequences. Computers in Human Behavior, 85(2), 54–60.
Tangney, J. P., Baumeister, R. F., & Boone, A. L. (2004). High self-control predicts good adjustment, less pathology, better grades, and interpersonal success. Journal of Personality, 72(6), 271–324.
Timpano, K. R., & Schmidt, N. B. (2012). The relationship between self-control deficits and hoarding: A multimethod investigation across three samples. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 122(1), 13–25.
Unger, A., Bi, C., Xiao, Y., & Ybarra, O. (2016). The revision of the Tangney Self-Control Scale for Chinese students. PsyCh Journal, 5(2), 101–116.
Van Bennekom, M. J., Blom, R. M., Vulink, N. C., & Denys, D. (2015). A case of digital hoarding. BMJ Case Reports, 2015, bcr-2015-210530.
Werner-Wilson, R. J., & Davenport, B. R. (2003). Distinguishing between conceptualizations of attachment: Clinical implications in marriage and family therapy. Contemporary Family Therapy, 25(2), 179–193.
Wu, D., Zhao, Y. C., Wang, X., Song, S., & Lian, J. (2023). Digital hoarding in everyday hedonic social media use: The roles of fear of missing out (FoMO) and social media affordances. International Journal of Human–Computer Interaction, 40(18), 5399–5414.
Xie, X., Song, T., Li, L., Jiang, W., Gao, X., Shu, L., & Liu, Y. (2024). Research on personal digital hoarding behaviors of college students based on personality traits theory: The mediating role of emotional attachment. Library Hi Tech, 42(6), 0737–8831.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Dirasat: Human and Social Sciences

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

