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The importance of stuff and things

Date:
July 31, 2013
Source:
British Psychological Society (BPS)
Summary:
Our possessions have an extensive and surprising impact on our identities and lives, but they may become less important to us as more and more of our lives takes place online, a new article concludes.
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FULL STORY

Our possessions have an extensive and surprising impact on our identities and lives, but they may become less important to us as more and more of our lives takes place online.

That is the conclusion of an article, 'The psychology of stuff and things," published in the August issue of The Psychologist by Dr Christian Jarrett.

He writes: "Our relationship with our stuff is in the midst of great change. Dusty music and literary collections are being rehoused in the digital cloud. Where once we expressed our identity through fashion preferences and props, today we can cultivate an online identity with a carefully constructed homepage. We no longer have to purchase an item to associate ourselves with it, we can simply tell the world … about our preferences. The self has become extended, almost literally, into technology."

Dr Jarrett writes the British Psychological Society's award winning Research Digest blog: http://bps-research-digest.blogspot.co.uk/

Other articles in the August issue of The Psychologist look at the importance of social support after a stroke and the experience of hearing voices, while the magazine's editor Dr Jon Sutton interviews the occupational psychologist Dr Emma Donaldson-Feilder.

The Psychologist is the monthly magazine of the British Psychological Society.


Story Source:

Materials provided by British Psychological Society (BPS). Note: Content may be edited for style and length.


Journal Reference:

  1. Christian Jarrett. The psychology of stuff and things. The Psychologist, 2013; 26 (8): 560-565 [abstract]

Cite This Page:

British Psychological Society (BPS). "The importance of stuff and things." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 31 July 2013. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/07/130731230012.htm>.
British Psychological Society (BPS). (2013, July 31). The importance of stuff and things. ScienceDaily. Retrieved March 29, 2024 from www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/07/130731230012.htm
British Psychological Society (BPS). "The importance of stuff and things." ScienceDaily. www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/07/130731230012.htm (accessed March 29, 2024).

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