Digital hoarding (also known as e-hoarding, e-clutter, data hoarding, digital pack-rattery or cyber hoarding) is defined by researchers as an emerging sub-type of hoarding disorder characterized by individuals collecting excessive digital material which leads to those individuals experiencing stress and disorganization. Digital hoarding takes place in electronic environments where information is stored digitally. The term gained popularity among online forums and in the media before receiving scholarly attention. Research indicates there may be correlation between individuals who exhibit physical and digital hoarding behaviors and acknowledges there is a lack of psychological literature on the subject.
Several studies suggest the main influential factors of digital hoarding are related to a number of issues and personal reasons which includes reduced costs for storing data, individuals lacking time to curate accumulated data, the perceived lifespan of data and emotional attachment to digital assets. The studies conducted to examine digital hoarding are limited in scope as this is an emerging area of study. There is a lack of agreement among researchers about whether digital hoarding is a condition to be treated rather than a normal human activity.
The term data hoarding is also used to describe the (non-pathological) archiving of large amounts of data that might otherwise be lost, such as old video games and websites.
Behavioral influences
The limited studies published that focus on examining digital hoarding behavior identified the following influential factors as having significant impact on an individual's decision to accumulate digital material: Some individuals experience anxiety when faced with disposing of digital items, particularly if they fear losing something important. Many digital hoarders don't know how to organize their digital content or aren't in the habit of doing so, and they lack a methodology for determining which content is worth keeping. Natural creative motives such as the desire to share ideas. Perceptions around the need or usefulness of digital assets in the future Perceiving digital assets will be needed in the future Uncertainty around what data will be needed in the future Lacking motivation to manage digital assets Time constraints Keeping all of one's digital files requires less time and effort than evaluating and deleting them.
Researchers cite the following developments in technology as playing a role in enabling the increased accumulation of digital material:
Existence of hardware and software for creating digital content
Development of digital storage capacity
Research findings
The increasing availability of digital materials coincides with increased opportunity for people to accumulate digital materials. Van Bennekom et al. introduced "digital hoarding" in scientific literature in 2015 after reading descriptions of it published on the Internet by both patients and professionals. They define it as "the accumulation of digital files to the point of loss of perspective, which eventually results in stress and disorganization." Since the publication of this case study, several attempts have been made to study digital hoarding. In each of these publications there are clear knowledge gaps identified citing the need of more research to better understand digital hoarding.
Sweeten et al. conducted one of the first research projects in 2018 that focused on digital hoarding, examining characteristics and potential problems associated with digital hoarding. They identified five barriers to deleting digital data including: keeping data for the future/just in case, keeping data as evidence, lazy/time consuming, emotional attachment to data, not my server-not my problem. They also identified four problems associated with accumulating excessive amounts of data including: effects on productivity, effects on psychological wellbeing, cybersecurity issues, links with physical hoarding. Participants in this study were frequently surprised by how much data they accumulated yet still experienced difficulties when discussing discarding that information. This study of digital hoarding was limited by a small sample of participants and the absence of an agreed upon standardized scale to measure digital hoarding behavior.