TY - EJOU AU - Guan, Xiangli AU - Zhang, Yue AU - Li, Yang AU - Zhang, Yaqi AU - Wang, Jingjing AU - Li, Xuejiao AU - Jobe, Mary C. AU - Ahmed, Md Zahir AU - Ahmed, Oli TI - The Effect of Self-Investment on Hoarding Tendency of Chinese College Students: Role of Psychological Connections T2 - International Journal of Mental Health Promotion PY - 2023 VL - 25 IS - 6 SN - 2049-8543 AB - Because of factors such as energy and time one invests in an object, the stronger the connection, value, and reluctance to lose said object individual will have. Hoarding behavior arises when individuals incorporate a strong attachment with themselves to an object. The purpose of this study is to examine the effect of self-investment on hoarding tendency and the roles of possession-self link and liking level in this connection. A hypothetical model of the relationship between self-investment, possession-self link, liking level, and hoarding tendency was tested. A convenience sampling method was used to survey 450 college students in Yunnan Province on either a paper-based or online self-report scale. The data were collected using self-investment, possession-self link, and liking level questionnaires, as well as the Saving Inventory Revised. Results showed positive relationship between the study variables, ranging from 0.37 to 0.87. College students’self-investment had a direct positive predictive effect on hoarding tendency; self-investment, in turn, indirectly predicted hoarding tendency through the mediating effect of possession-self link; and individual liking level of items had a moderating effect for self-investment on the possession-self link. This study shows how self-investment affects the hoarding tendency of college students, and the results of this study also help demonstrate the value of self-investment and possession-self link in optimizing students’ hoarding tendency and thus promoting good psychological status. KW - Hoarding tendency; self-investment; psychological connections; possession-self link; liking level DO - 10.32604/ijmhp.2023.027086