Possessions and Extended Self

Journal of Consumer Research Inc.
Possessions and the Extended Self
Author(s): Russell W. Belk
Source: Journal of Consumer Research, Vol. 15, No. 2 (Sep., 1988), pp. 139-168
Published by: The University of Chicago Press
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2489522 .
Accessed: 30/09/2011 05:05
Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at .
http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp
JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of
content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms
of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected].
The University of Chicago Press and Journal of Consumer Research Inc. are collaborating with JSTOR to
digitize, preserve and extend access to Journal of Consumer Research.
http://www.jstor.org
Possessions a nd t h e Ext end ed S el f
RUS S ELL W. BELK*
Our possessions a re a ma jor cont ribut or t o a nd ref l ect ion of our id ent it ies. A va riet y
of evid ence is present ed support ing t h is simpl e a nd compel l ing premise. Rel a t ed
st rea ms of resea rch a re id ent if ied a nd d ra wn upon in d evel oping t h is concept a nd
impl ica t ions a re d erived f or consumer beh a vior. Beca use t h e const ruct of ext end ed
sel f invol ves consumer beh a vior ra t h er t h a n buyer beh a vior, it a ppea rs t o be a
much rich er const ruct t h a n previous f ormul a t ions posit ing a rel a t ionsh ip bet ween
sel f -concept a nd consumer bra nd ch oice.
Hol l ow h a nd s cl a sp l ud icrous possessions beca use t h ey
a re l inks in t h e ch a in of l if e. If it brea ks, t h ey a re t rul y
l ost .-Dich t er 1964
W7 [ e ca nnot h ope t o und erst a nd consumer beh a v-
ior wit h out f irst ga ining some und erst a nd ing
of t h e mea nings t h a t consumers a t t a ch t o possessions.
A key t o und erst a nd ing wh a t possessions mea n is rec-
ognizing t h a t , knowingl y or unknowingl y, int ent ion-
a l l y or unint ent iona l l y, we rega rd our possessions a s
pa rt s of oursel ves. As Tua n a rgues, "Our f ra gil e sense
of sel f need s support , a nd t h is we get by h a ving a nd
possessing t h ings beca use, t o a l a rge d egree, we a re
wh a t we h a ve a nd possess" (1980, p. 472). Th a t we
a re wh a t we h a ve (e.g., Va n Est erick 1986; Feirst ein
1986; Rosenba um 1972) is perh a ps t h e most ba sic
a nd powerf ul f a ct of consumer beh a vior.
Th e premise t h a t we rega rd our possessions a s pa rt s
of oursel ves is not new. Wil l ia m Ja mes (1890, pp.
291-292), wh o l a id t h e f ound a t ions f or mod ern con-
cept ions of sel f , h el d t h a t :
a ma n's S el f is t h e sum t ot a l of a l l t h a t h e CAN ca l l
h is, not onl y h is bod y a nd h is psych ic powers, but h is
cl ot h es a nd h is h ouse, h is wif e a nd ch il d ren, h is a nces-
t ors a nd f riend s, h is reput a t ion a nd works, h is l a nd s,
a nd ya ch t a nd ba nk-a ccount . Al l t h ese t h ings give h im
t h e sa me emot ions. If t h ey wa x a nd prosper, h e f eel s
t riumph a nt ; if t h ey d wind l e a nd d ie a wa y, h e f eel s ca st
d own,-not necessa ril y in t h e sa me d egree f or ea ch
t h ing, but in much t h e sa me wa y f or a l l .'
If we d ef ine possessions a s t h ings we ca l l ours, Ja mes
wa s sa ying t h a t we a re t h e sum of our possessions.
Th e purpose of t h is a rt icl e is t o exa mine t h e rel a -
t ionsh ip bet ween possessions a nd sense of sel f . It is
ba sed not onl y on t h e premise t h a t t h is rel a t ionsh ip is
of import a nce t o und erst a nd ing consumer beh a vior,
but a l so on t h e premise t h a t und erst a nd ing t h e ex-
t end ed sel f wil l h el p us l ea rn h ow consumer beh a vior
cont ribut es t o our broa d er exist ence a s h uma n beings
(Bel k 1987a ). Th e f irst sect ion consid ers va rious evi-
d ences t h a t possessions a re a n import a nt component
of sense of sel f . Th e most d irect f orm of evid ence is
f ound in t h e na t ure of sel f -percept ions. Ad d it iona l ,
especia l l y st riking evid ence is f ound in t h e d imin-
ish ed sense of sel f wh en possessions a re unint ent ion-
a l l y l ost or st ol en. More evid ence of t h e rol e of posses-
sions in sense of sel f comes f rom a nt h ropol ogica l
st ud ies of t h e wa y possessions a re t rea t ed rit ua l l y a nd
a f t er d ea t h . Beca use ext end ed sel f is such a broa d
t opic, severa l unreviewed a rea s of evid ence on t h e ex-
t ent a nd na t ure of t h e rel a t ionsh ip bet ween posses-
sions a nd sense of sel f a l so a re id ent if ied . In so d oing,
t h e scope of t h e present t rea t ment is a l so d ef ined .
Th e quest ion of wh a t f unct ions t h e ext end ed sel f
serves is a d d ressed in t h e second sect ion, wh ich be-
gins wit h a brief review of t h e ba sic st a t es of our exis-
t ence: h a ving, d oing, a nd being. Th ese st a t es a re rel e-
va nt t o t h e quest ion of h ow we d ef ine wh o we a re.
Next , t h e f unct ions of possessions in h uma n d evel op-
ment a re consid ered . Four st a ges a re id ent if ied : (1)
t h e inf a nt d ist inguish es sel f f rom environment , (2)
t h e inf a nt d ist inguish es sel f f rom ot h ers, (3) posses-
sions h el p a d ol escent s a nd a d ul t s ma na ge t h eir id ent i-
t ies, a nd (4) possessions h el p t h e ol d a ch ieve a sense
of cont inuit y a nd prepa ra t ion f or d ea t h . Fina l l y, t h e
rol e of possessions in crea t ing or ma int a ining a sense
of pa st is consid ered .
Th e t h ird sect ion exa mines severa l processes in-
vol ved in sel f -ext ension. One process is t h e init ia l in-
corpora t ion of object s int o our ext end ed sel ves. A
number of incorpora t ion processes a re d iscussed , not
a l l of wh ich invol ve possession in t h e sense of ind ivid -
ua l ownersh ip. A pa rt icul a r process of sel f -ext ension
*Russel l W. Bel k is t h e N. El d on Ta nner Prof essor of Business
Ad minist ra t ion, Gra d ua t e S ch ool of Business, Universit y of Ut a h ,
S a l t La ke Cit y, UT 84060. Th e a ut h or wish es t o t h a nk Mel a nie
Wa l l end orf , Fl oyd Rud min, a nd Gra nt McCra cken f or t h eir com-
ment s on a n ea rl ier version of t h is a rt icl e.
'Ja mes ca l l ed h is t ext a n encycl oped ia of psych ol ogy a nd quot es
Herr Horwicz's Psych ol ogisch e Ana l ysen (no d a t e or publ ish er
given) a s a source of ma ny of h is id ea s on sel f .
139
? JOURNAL OF CONS UMER RES EARCH * Vol . 15 * S ept ember 1988
140
THE JOURNAL OF CONS UMER RES EARCH
t h a t is consid ered in some d et a il is cont a mina t ion. In
cont a mina t ion, bot h good a nd ba d a spect s of object s
a re seen t o a t t a ch t o us t h rough ph ysica l cont a ct or
proximit y. A f ina l process t h eorized is t h e ma int e-
na nce of mul t ipl e l evel s of t h e sel f , such a s viewing
our f a mil y, cit y, a nd na t ion t o be a pa rt of wh o we a re.
Th e f ourt h sect ion of t h is a rt icl e f ocuses on a num-
ber of specia l ca t egories of possessions t h a t a re com-
monl y incorpora t ed int o t h e sense of sel f . Th ese ca t e-
gories a re col l ect ions, money, pet s, ot h er peopl e, a nd
bod y pa rt s. In ea ch ca se, resea rch is reviewed support -
ing t h e cont ent ion t h a t t h is ca t egory of object s is a
pa rt of t h e ext end ed sel f a nd is t h eref ore t rea t ed
d if f erent l y f rom object s not consid ered t o be a pa rt of
sel f .
Th e f ina l sect ion d iscusses impl ica t ions of t h e ex-
t end ed sel f f ormul a t ion f or consumer resea rch . Th e
a rea s of impl ica t ions out l ined incl ud e gif t -giving, vi-
ca rious consumpt ion (genera l l y t h rough ot h er f a mil y
members), ca re of possessions, orga n d ona t ion, prod -
uct d isposit ion, a nd t h e cont ribut ion of ext end ed sel f
t o d ef ining mea ning in l if e. Th e l a t t er t opic el eva t es
t h e f ocus of consumer beh a vior resea rch t o a l evel of
grea t er signif ica nce t h a n sa t isf a ct ion wit h prod uct
perf orma nce. Fol l owing t h e f ina l sect ion, t h e f ormu-
l a t ion of t h e ext end ed sel f is reviewed brief l y a nd con-
cl usions a re of f ered .
EVIDENCES
Possessions in S el f -Percept ion Resea rch
Th e t erm ext end ed sel f h a s not been a ppl ied pre-
viousl y t o t h e concept ion of sel f -pl us-possessions, but
Roch berg-Ha l t on (1984, p. 335) comes cl ose:
Va l ued ma t eria l possessions . . . a ct a s signs of t h e sel f
t h a t a re essent ia l in t h eir own righ t f or it s cont inued
cul t iva t ion, a nd h ence t h e worl d of mea ning t h a t we
crea t e f or oursl eves, a nd t h a t crea t es our sel ves, ex-
t end s l it era l l y int o t h e object ive surround ings.
One d if f erence in t h e present view is t h a t t h e ext end ed
sel f is seen not t o be l imit ed t o ext erna l object s a nd
persona l possessions, but a l so incl ud es persons,
pl a ces, a nd group possessions a s wel l a s such posses-
sions a s bod y pa rt s a nd vit a l orga ns. Th e not ion of
ext end ed sel f is a superf icia l l y ma scul ine a nd West ern
met a ph or comprising not onl y t h a t wh ich is seen a s
"me" (t h e sel f ), but a l so t h a t wh ich is seen a s "mine."
As Ja mes (1890, p. 291) not es, t h e t wo concept s a re
int erwoven in t h e wa y we t h ink of our sel ves:
Th e Empirica l S el f of ea ch of us is a l l t h a t h e is t empt ed
t o ca l l by t h e na me of me. But it is cl ea r t h a t bet ween
wh a t a ma n ca l l s me a nd wh a t h e simpl y ca l l s mine t h e
l ine is d if f icul t t o d ra w. We f eel a nd a ct a bout cert a in
t h ings t h a t a re ours very much a s we f eel a nd a ct a bout
oursel ves. Our f a me, our ch il d ren, t h e work of our
h a nd s, ma y be a s d ea r t o us a s our bod ies a re, a nd
a rouse t h e sa me f eel ings a nd t h e sa me a ct s of reprisa l
if a t t a cked . And our bod ies t h emsel ves, a re t h ey simpl y
ours, or a re t h ey us? Cert a inl y men h a ve been rea d y t o
d isown t h eir very bod ies a nd t o rega rd t h em a s mere
vest ures, or even a s prisons of cl a y f rom wh ich t h ey
sh oul d some d a y be gl a d t o esca pe.
Al t h ough prior t h eories a nd resea rch on consumer
sel f -concept (see S irgy 1982 f or a review) a re mod er-
a t el y support ive of t h e cont ent ion t h a t possessions
a re incorpora t ed int o sel f -concept , t h is resea rch prob-
a bl y consid era bl y und erest ima t es t h e ext ent t o wh ich
t h is is t rue. One rea son is t h a t prior resea rch met h od s
genera l l y a t t empt t o f ind a correspond ence bet ween
perceived ch a ra ct erist ics of t h ese object s a nd per-
ceived ch a ra ct erist ics of t h e sel f . But , one ca n h ol d a n
object l ike t h e S t a t ue of Libert y t o be a pa rt of one's
id ent it y wit h out h a ving t o h ol d a sel f -concept com-
posed of ch a ra ct erist ics a t t ribut ed t o t h is st a t ue. S ec-
ond , a s a rgued by Bel k (1984b), t h e f ocus of t h ese
st ud ies on bra nd ima ges prior t o a cquisit ion is t oo
l imit ed . Bot h nonbra nd ima ges (e.g., ciga ret t e
smoker, wine connoisseur) a nd post -a cquisit ion ob-
ject bond ing (e.g., wit h one's pet ) ma y cont ribut e
st rongl y t o t h e sense of sel f . Th ird , a s a rgued by Bel k
(1984b) a nd S ol omon a nd Assa el (1988), ra t h er t h a n
a singl e prod uct or bra nd represent ing a l l of one's sel f -
concept , onl y a compl et e ensembl e of consumpt ion
object s ma y be a bl e t o represent t h e d iverse a nd possi-
bl y incongruous a spect s of t h e t ot a l sel f . For a l l of
t h ese rea sons, t h e present f ocus on ext end ed sel f is
subst a nt ia l l y d if f erent t h a n prior consumer sel f -con-
cept resea rch . For resea rch a ppl ica t ions wit h in t h e
perspect ive a d voca t ed h ere, see Bel k (1987b, 1988)
a nd Bel k a nd Aust in (1986).
Th is more expa nsive view of t h e ext end ed sel f ca n
be exa mined in l igh t of severa l prior concept ua l iza -
t ions a nd st ud ies f ocusing on d ist a l el ement s of t h e
sel f . McCl el l a nd (1951) suggest ed t h a t ext erna l ob-
ject s become viewed a s pa rt of sel f wh en we a re a bl e t o
exercise power or cont rol over t h em, just a s we migh t
cont rol a n a rm or a l eg. In t h e ca se of t ool s, inst ru-
ment s, a nd wea pons, envisioning t h e ba sis f or t h e ex-
t end ed sel f met a ph or is ea sy. Th e grea t er t h e cont rol
we exercise, t h e more cl osel y a l l ied wit h sel f t h e object
sh oul d become. Th is principl e l ed McCl el l a nd t o h y-
pot h esize t h e f ol l owing h iera rch y of most t o l ea st
cl osel y sel f -a l l ied object ca t egories: (1) me, my "f ree
wil l ," (2) my bod y, my conscience, (3) my bel ongings,
(4) my f riend s, a nd (5) st ra ngers, ph ysica l universe.
Th e pred ict ed cl oser a l ignment of sel f t o bel ongings
t h a n t o f riend s recognizes t h e "f ree wil l " of peopl e
(f riend s) t h a t is l a cking in most bel ongings.
Prel inger (1959) t est ed Ja mes's premise t h a t posses-
sions a re viewed a s pa rt s of sel f a nd McCl el l a nd 's h y-
pot h esis t h a t cont rol d ict a t es t h e st rengt h of t h is l ink-
a ge. He h a d subject s sort 160 it ems ont o a f our-posi-
t ion (zero t o t h ree) cont inuum of not -sel f t o sel f . Th e
it ems were sel ect ed so t h a t ea ch of eigh t concept ua l
ca t egories wa s represent ed by 20 it ems. Th ese ca t ego-
ries a nd t h e mea n "sel f ' scores f or t h e it ems wit h in
t h em were in d escend ing ord er:
POS S ES S IONS AND THE EXTENDED S ELF 141
1. Bod y pa rt s (e.g., t h e skin, t h e genit a l orga ns),
2.98;
2. Psych ol ogica l or int ra orga nismic processes
(e.g., t h e conscience, a n it ch ing on t h e sol e of
t h e f oot ), 2.46;
3. Persona l id ent if ying ch a ra ct erist ics a nd a t t ri-
but es (e.g., a ge, occupa t ion), 2.22;
4. Possessions a nd prod uct ions (e.g., wa t ch , per-
spira t ion, t oil et a rt icl es), 1.57;
5. Abst ra ct id ea s (e.g., t h e mora l s of societ y, t h e
l a w), 1.36;
6. Ot h er peopl e (e.g., t h e peopl e in your h ome-
t own, f a t h er), 1.10;
7. Object s wit h in t h e cl ose ph ysica l environment
(e.g., d irt on t h e h a nd s, f urnit ure in t h is
room), 0.64;
8. Dist a nt ph ysica l environment (e.g., t h e a d -
joining room, t h e moon), 0. 19.
Al t h ough it is unf ort una t e t h a t Prel inger grouped
some a ut onomic bod il y prod uct ions wit h posses-
sions, t h ese f ind ings st il l support Ja mes's cont ent ion
t h a t possessions a re seen a s pa rt of sel f . Th ey a l so sug-
gest a n ord ering of t h e "sel f ness" of t h ese object ca t e-
gories t h a t is pa ra l l el t o t h e h iera rch y suggest ed by
McCl el l a nd . To t est McCl el l a nd 's cont rol h ypot h esis
more d irect l y, Prel inger h a d f ive jud ges sepa ra t e t h e
160 it ems int o t h ree groups: t h ose t h a t a re pred omi-
na nt l y und er t h e cont rol of peopl e, t h ose t h a t prima r-
il y cont rol or a f f ect peopl e, a nd t h ose t h a t a re pre-
d omina nt l y neut ra l in bot h rega rd s. Th e f irst t wo ca t -
egories bot h received h igh mea n "sel f ' scores (over
1.8) f rom subject s, wh il e t h e neut ra l it ems cl ea rl y re-
ceived "non-sel f ' scores (mea n l ess t h a n 0.2). Th ese
f ind ings suggest t h a t besid es cont rol over object s,
cont rol by object s ma y a l so cont ribut e t o a n it em be-
ing viewed a s pa rt of sel f . Th a t is, we ma y impose our
id ent it ies on possessions a nd possessions ma y impose
t h eir id ent it ies on us.
Int erest ingl y, cont rol a l so h a s been suggest ed t o be
t h e crit ica l d et ermina nt of f eel ings of possession
(Furby 1978; Tua n 1984). If bot h h ypot h eses a re cor-
rect , t h e more we bel ieve we possess or a re possessed
by a n object , t h e more a pa rt of sel f it becomes. It is
t el l ing t h a t t h e ca t egories of ext end ed sel f just not ed
correspond quit e cl osel y t o t h e a rea s in wh ich El l is
(1985, pp. 115-117) f ound evid ence of h uma n pos-
sessiveness (no h iera rch ica l ord ering wa s report ed ):
(1) one's bod y, (2) persona l spa ce, (3) ingest ibl es, (4)
t errit ory, (5) d omicil e, (6) copul a t ory pa rt ners, (7)
of f spring, (8) f riend s, (9) t ool s, a nd (10) object s of a es-
t h et ic a ppea l , pl a y a nd a musement , pet s a nd memen-
t os. Nut t in (1987) f ind s t h a t even t h e l et t ers in our
na mes a re viewed possessivel y. Appa rent l y, in cl a im-
ing t h a t somet h ing is "mine," we a l so come t o bel ieve
t h a t t h e object is "me." McCa rt h y (1984) concl ud es
t h a t such object s a ct a s remind ers a nd conf irmers of
our id ent it ies, a nd t h a t our id ent it ies ma y resid e in
object s more t h a n t h ey d o in ind ivid ua l s.
Al l port (1937) h ypot h esized t h a t t h e process of
ga ining a n id ent it y, a nd in so d oing ga ining sel f -es-
t eem, progresses f rom inf a ncy by ext end ing sel f via a
cont inuousl y expa nd ing set of t h ings rega rd ed a s
one's own. Th is h ypot h esis wa s t est ed by Dixon a nd
S t reet (1975) wh o cond uct ed a n a pproxima t e repl ica -
t ion of Prel ingers' st ud y a mong 6- t o 16-yea r-ol d s.
Th ey f ound essent ia l l y t h e sa me ra nk ord ering of it em
ca t egories rega rd ed a s "sel f ," but f ound onl y t wo ca t -
egories f or wh ich t h is t end ency ch a nged signif ica nt l y
wit h a ge: ot h er peopl e a nd possessions. In bot h ca ses,
ol d er ch il d ren were more l ikel y t h a n younger ch il -
d ren t o ca t egorize such object s a s being pa rt of sel f
("you"'). In a t h ree-genera t iona l st ud y of f a vorit e pos-
sessions, Roch berg-Ha l t on (1984, 1986; Csikszent -
mih a l yi a nd Roch berg-Ha l t on 198 1) f ound t h a t a s we
a ge t h e possessions t h a t peopl e cit e a s "specia l " t end
increa singl y t o be t h ose t h a t symbol ize ot h er peopl e
(e.g., gif t s f rom peopl e, ph ot ogra ph s of peopl e). Th eir
int erpret a t ion of t h ese f ind ings suggest s a n a ge-re-
l a t ed wid ening of t h e bound a ries of sel f (Roch berg-
Ha l t on 1984, p. 352). Th ese f ind ings a l so ma y suggest
t h a t possessions a re rega rd ed not onl y a s a pa rt of sel f ,
but a l so a s inst rument a l t o t h e d evel opment of sel f .
Ot h er work on t h e rol e t h a t specia l possessions pl a y
in ea sing l if e t ra nsit ions a l so suggest s t h a t possessions
ca n be inst rument a l t o ma int ena nce of sel f -concept
(e.g., McCra cken 1987a ).
A st ud y by Bel k (1987b, 1988; Bel k a nd Aust in
1986) exa mines t h e sel f -d ef ining rol e of pl a ces, publ ic
monument s, experiences, t ime period s, t el evision
progra ms, mot ion pict ures, a nd publ ic f igures, in a d -
d it ion t o t h e sort of object s, persons, a nd t ra it s st ud -
ied in prior resea rch . Of t h e a d d it iona l ext end ed sel f
ca t egories consid ered , pl a ces a nd experiences t end t o
be seen a s most cl ea rl y a pa rt of ext end ed sel f . Ad d ed
t o t h e previousl y not ed f ind ings t h en, we ma y sum-
ma rize t h e ma jor ca t egories of ext end ed sel f a s bod y,
int erna l processes, id ea s, a nd experiences, a nd t h ose
persons, pl a ces, a nd t h ings t o wh ich one f eel s a t -
t a ch ed .
Of t h ese ca t egories, t h e l a st t h ree a ppea r t o be t h e
most cl ea rl y ext end ed . However, given t h e d if f icul t ies
in sepa ra t ing mind a nd bod y in ph il osoph ies a nd psy-
ch ol ogies of t h e sel f (e.g., Ca mpbel l 1984; Engl eh a rd t
1973; Tuner 1984), object s in a l l of t h ese ca t egories
wil l be t rea t ed a s pot ent ia l pa rt s of t h e ext end ed sel f .
In conversa t ions in Engl ish (a l t h ough l ess t rue in
some ot h er l a ngua ges such a s Ja pa nese), it is cl ea r t h a t
some object s in t h e f ormer ca t egories a re t rea t ed a s
bot h a pa rt of ext end ed sel f a nd a pa rt of essent ia l un-
ext end ed sel f . For inst a nce, sa ying I h a ve a d a rk t a n
or my bod y is t a n (possessive a nd ext end ed uses) is
more usua l t h a n sa ying I a m a t a n bod y (a nonposses-
sive a nd a n unext end ed usa ge). However, sa ying I a m
142 THE JOURNAL OF CONS UMER RES EARCH
t ired (unext end ed ) is more common t h a n sa ying my
bod y is t ired (ext end ed ). Even grea t er compl ica t ions
in ma king d ist inct ions bet ween ext end ed a nd unex-
t end ed sel ves a re f ound wit h a soma t ognost ics wh o
ca nnot a ppreh end t h e exist ence of pa rt s of t h eir bod -
ies (Lit winski 1956; S a cks 1985), a mput ees wh o d e-
vel op ph a nt om l imbs (Pl ugge 1970), a nd recent t rea t -
ment s of bel ief s a s possessions (Abel son 1986; Abel -
son a nd Prent ice f ort h coming). From t h e present
perspect ive, t h e issue is a n empirica l l y resol va bl e one
t h a t d epend s upon percept ions. For inst a nce, Bel k
a nd Aust in (1986) f ound t h e f ol l owing mea n scores
f or va rious bod y pa rt s on a f our-point sca l e of "sel f -
ness," wh ere f our is t h e h igh est possibl e score: eyes
3.5, h a ir 3.2, h ea rt 3.1, l egs 3.1, h a nd s 3.1, f ingers 3.0,
genit a l s 3.0, skin 3.0, nose 2.7, knees 2.7, ch in 2.6,
kid neys 2.6, l iver 2.6, a nd t h roa t 2.5. For t h is sa mpl e,
it seems best t o concl ud e t h a t none of t h ese bod y pa rt s
is necessa ril y a n inh erent pa rt of unext end ed sel f , but
t h a t eyes, h a ir, a nd h ea rt a re more l ikel y t o be t rea t ed
in t h is wa y t h a n a re kid neys, l iver, a nd t h roa t . Th e
st ud y a l so f ound some evid ence of sex a nd a ge d if f er-
ences in t h e incorpora t ion of bod y pa rt s int o sense
of sel f . Furt h ermore, it is l ikel y t h a t t h ose wh o h a ve
und ergone such el ect ive bod y a l t era t ions a s pl a st ic
surgery a nd t a t t ooing a re l ikel y t o view t h e a f f ect ed
bod y pa rt s a s being more a pa rt of sel f (e.g., S a nd ers
1988).
Loss of Possessions
If possessions a re viewed a s pa rt of sel f , it f ol l ows
t h a t a n unint ent iona l l oss of possessions sh oul d be re-
ga rd ed a s a l oss or l essening of sel f . Gof f ma n (1961)
provid es a t h orough review of t h e evid ence of d el iber-
a t e l essening of sel f brough t a bout in such inst it ut ions
a s ment a l h ospit a l s, h omes f or t h e a ged , prisons, con-
cent ra t ion ca mps, mil it a ry t ra ining ca mps, boa rd ing
sch ool s, a nd mona st eries. One of t h e f irst st eps in re-
ceiving new members int o t h ese inst it ut ions is t o sys-
t ema t ica l l y d eprive t h em of a l l persona l possessions
incl ud ing cl ot h ing, money, a nd even na mes. Th eir
bod ies ma y be st a nd a rd ized t o some d egree, a s wit h
mil it a ry h a ircut s, a nd t h eir beh a viors a nd conversa -
t ions ma y be severel y rest rict ed . Th ey a re reissued
st a nd a rd wa rd robes a nd minima l possessions t o a id
in rebuil d ing a new st a nd a rd ized id ent it y. Th e resul t
of t h is syst ema t ic subst it ut ion of st a nd a rd ized "id en-
t it y kit s" f or f ormer possessions is a n el imina t ion of
uniqueness (S nyd er a nd Fromkin 1981) a nd a corre-
spond ing a nd of t en t ra uma t ic l essening of t h e ind i-
vid ua l 's sense of sel f . Al t h ough t h e new, more st a n-
d a rd ized possessions t h a t a re subst it ut ed ma y event u-
a l l y rest ore some sense of sel f , t h e new sel f sh oul d
necessa ril y be l ess unique a nd invol ve more of a
sh a red group id ent it y. Furt h ermore, t h e ind ivid ua l
t ypica l l y becomes a user of t h ese new object s ra t h er
t h a n a n owner of t h em. Beca use cont rol is rest rict ed
a nd t h e orga niza t ion rema ins t h e owner, id ent it y is
seen t o be best owed by t h e orga niza t ion. Th e present
f ocus woul d suggest t h a t t h ose wh o h a ve l ess of t h eir
ext end ed sel ves st ripped f rom t h em ma y a d just more
rea d il y t o such sit ua t ions.
Anot h er inst a nce in wh ich nonvol unt a ry l oss of
possessions ma y bring a bout a d iminish ed sense of
sel f is wh en possessions a re l ost t o t h ef t or ca sua l t y. In
t h e ca se of burgl a ry vict ims, Rosenbl a t t , Wa l sh , a nd
Ja ckson (1976) suggest t h a t a process of grief a nd
mourning ma y f ol l ow t h e d iscovery of t h ef t , just a s
one migh t grieve a nd mourn t h e d ea t h of a l oved one
wh o h a d been a pa rt of one's l if e. Wh a t is l ost in bot h
ca ses ma y be a pa rt of sel f . As t h e col l ege st ud ent vic-
t im of a bicycl e t h ef t a ccuses t h e unknown t h ief , sh e
revea l s t h e id ent it y invest ed in t h e bike (Donner
1985, p. 31):
It h urt s t o t h ink t h a t someone el se is sel l ing somet h ing
t h a t f or me is more precious t h a n money . . . Every-
one wh o owns a bike h a s t h eir own st ory t h a t ma kes
t h eir bike more t h a n just ma ch inery t o t h em. And you
ripped it of f . You st ol e a piece of my l if e. You d id n't
just st ea l a ch unk of met a l t o sel l . . . You wa l ked of f
wit h my memories.
Th e present a ut h or cond uct ed a sma l l -sca l e t est of
t h is h ypot h esis using d a t a f rom int erviews wit h a non-
represent a t ive sa mpl e of 20 burgl a ry vict ims wh o
were a sked in open-end ed quest ions t o reca l l t h eir ini-
t ia l t h ough t s a nd f eel ings upon d iscovering t h e l oss.
Fol l owing a nger a nd ra ge, t h e most commonl y re-
port ed rea ct ions were f eel ings of inva sion a nd viol a -
t ion. In f a ct , eigh t of t h e 11 f ema l es in t h e sa mpl e
spont a neousl y suggest ed t h a t it wa s a s t h ough t h ey
h a d been viol a t ed , pol l ut ed , or ra ped . Th ere a re sim-
il a r report s in Ma guire's (1980) st ud y of Brit ish bur-
gl a ry vict ims, a l t h ough onl y 12 percent of t h e f ema l es
in h is st ud y suggest ed such a f eel ing. Ad d it iona l con-
f irma t ion of t h is f eel ing of persona l viol a t ion is f ound
in st ud ies by Korosec-S erf a t y (1985) a nd Pa a p
(1981).
Th ere a re a l so report s of f eel ings of l oss of a pa rt of
sel f a mong vict ims of na t ura l d isa st ers. McLeod
(1984) f ound t h a t t h ose wh o l ost possessions t o a
mud sl id e went t h rough a process of grief simil a r t o
t h a t in l osing a l oved one-moving f rom d enia l t o a n-
ger, t o d epression, a nd f ina l l y t o a ccept a nce (of t en a f -
t er ma ny mont h s). Th e a ut h or joined severa l ot h er
resea rch ers in cond uct ing d ept h int erviews wit h f l ood
vict ims d uring t h e summer of 1986, a nd f ound t h a t
a f t er six weeks most vict ims were st il l in t h e ea rl y
st a ges of grief a nd of t en coul d not t a l k a bout t h e d i-
sa st er or cried wh il e a t t empt ing t o d o so. Fiel d not es
f rom one such int erview incl ud e t h is a ccount :
Th e l osses t h a t concerned (t h e f l ood vict im) most were
t h ose of h is record col l ect ion,. . . a f irst ed it ion book
col l ect ion, . . . t h e t ool s t h a t h is f a t h er-t h e ca binet
ma ker-h a d used , . . . t h e ceil ing a nd pa nel ing of t h e
ba sement s t h a t h e h a d inst a l l ed wit h t h e h el p a nd a d -
vice of h is f a t h er, a nd (upst a irs), t h e h ut ch , l owboy,
a nd st ereo ca binet t h a t h is f a t h er h a d ma d e.
POS S ES S IONS AND THE EXTENDED S ELF 143
Cl ea rl y wh a t is mourned h ere is a l oss of sel f . S imil a r
f ind ings were obt a ined in t h e Buf f a l o Creek f l ood
(Erikson 1976). As Georg S immel observes, "ma t eria l
propert y is, so t o spea k, a n ext ension of t h e ego, a nd
a ny int erf erence wit h our propert y is, f or t h is rea son,
f el t t o be a viol a t ion of t h e person" (1950, p. 322).
Th e f l ood vict im a l so il l ust ra t es h ow t h e l a bor of t h e
ind ivid ua l (in t h is ca se t h e vict im's recent l y d ecea sed
f a t h er) a d h eres in t h e object s prod uced . In t h is sense,
t h e l oss of possessions wa s a l so a f urt h er l oss of h is
f a t h er's ext end ed sel f t h a t rema ined in h is f a t h er's
crea t ions.
Besid es t h e more d irect l oss of sel f wh en persona l
possessions a re l ost t o t h ef t or ca sua l t y, t h e vul nera -
bil it y revea l ed in such l osses ma y d a ma ge t h e sense of
sel f d erived f rom t h e a t t a ch ment s t o h ome a nd neigh -
borh ood . Home (e.g., Cooper 1974; Dunca n 1976;
Dunca n a nd Dunca n 1976) a nd neigh borh ood (e.g.,
Ba kker a nd Ba kker-Ra bd a u 1973; Gerson, S t ueve,
a nd Fisch er 1977) h a ve been suggest ed t o be st rong
sources of persona l id ent it y. As wit h more persona l
possessions, h ome a nd neigh borh ood h a ve been h y-
pot h esized t o cont ribut e t o sense of sel f t o t h e d egree
t h a t a person f eel s cont rol over t h em (Ba kker a nd
Ba kker-Ra bd a u 1973; Ed ney 1975). Th is ma y ex-
pl a in wh y Brown (1982) f ound t h a t burgl a ry vict ims
report l ess sense of communit y, l ess f eel ing of pri-
va cy, a nd l ess prid e in t h eir h ouse's a ppea ra nce t h a n
d o t h eir nonburgl a rized neigh bors. Th e sa me ph e-
nomenon h a s been observed in t h ose d ispl a ced by
sl um cl ea ra nce, even wh en t h ey were rel oca t ed t o
"bet t er" h ousing (Fried 1963). In t h e word s of Pet er
Ma rris, "Th ey id ent if y wit h t h e neigh borh ood : it is
pa rt of t h em, a nd t o h ea r it cond emned a s a sl um is a
cond emna t ion of t h emsel ves t oo" (1986, p. 55).
Besid es l oss of possessions t o t h ef t or ca sua l t y, ot h -
ers h a ve ma int a ined t h a t wh enever t h e f unct ions a nd
propert y of ind ivid ua l s a re t a ken over by inst it ut ions,
such a s government a nd sch ool s, t h ere is a regret t a bl e
l oss of sel f (Diet ze 1963; Wiggins 1974). Al t h ough t h e
int ent of t h ese inst it ut ions is presuma bl y not t o l essen
ot h ers' sense of sel ves, Wiggins (1974) suggest s t h a t
t h ere a re inst a nces in wh ich a person's possessions a re
d a ma ged wit h t h e int ent of d iminish ing t h e owner.
He gives a s one exa mpl e a ch il d wh o d est roys t h e
propert y of a l a rger ch il d or of a n inviol a bl e sibl ing in
a n ef f ort t o more ef f ect ivel y d irect a ggression a t t h is
person. Va nd a l ism ma y be mot iva t ed simil a rl y wit h
t h e t a rget s being societ y, t h ose wh o seem t o be more
f ort una t e, or publ ic inst it ut ions (e.g., Ch est er 1976;
Fish er a nd Ba ron 1982).
Th e t ra uma t h a t ma y a t t end invol unt a ry l oss of
possessions norma l l y is not present in vol unt a ry d is-
posit ion of possessions. Ind eed , La Bra nch e (1973)
observes t h a t wh en possessions a re recognized a s in-
consist ent wit h our ima ges of sel f , we gl a d l y negl ect
or d ispose of t h em. But , wh en t h e d isposit ion is
f orced , a s by economic circumst a nces, t h e pa rt ing
l ikel y brings sorrow. As one el d erl y respond ent pa wn-
ing possessions t o ma ke it t h rough t h e wint er ref l ect s
(Cot t l e 1981, p. 18):
I st a nd in t h ose l ines wit h my suit ca se f ul l of t h ings t o
pra ct ica l l y give a wa y; I st a nd in t h a t h ock sh op, a nd I
t el l mysel f t h a t my ent ire l if e is being sol d . . . Don't
ma ke me h ock my l if e a wa y, I beg you.
Of course, t h ere is a more ut il it a ria n expl a na t ion of
t h e f eel ings of resent ment a t t h e l oss of possessions.
In t h is more ut il it a ria n view, we merel y regret t h e l oss
of va l ued possessions beca use of t h e benef it s t h ey pro-
vid e ra t h er t h a n f rom a ny f eel ings of sel f d erived f rom
or mingl ed wit h t h ese object s. Ja mes (1890, p. 293)
ch a l l enges t h e suf f iciency of t h is view:
a l t h ough it is t rue t h a t a pa rt of our d epression a t t h e
l oss of possessions is d ue t o our f eel ing t h a t we must
now go wit h out cert a in good s t h a t we expect ed t h e pos-
sessions t o bring in t h eir t ra in, yet in every ca se t h ere
rema ins, over a nd a bove t h is, a sense of t h e sh rinka ge
of our persona l it y, a pa rt ia l conversion of oursel ves t o
not h ingness, wh ich is a psych ol ogica l ph enomenon by
it sel f .
Ext reme exa mpl es of t h is pa rt ia l a nnih il a t ion of sel f
a re cit ed by Bea gl eh ol e (1932) a nd Rigby a nd Rigby
(1949) in a ccount s of a rt col l ect ors wh o h a ve gone t o
such grea t l engt h s a s suicid e t o a void f a cing t h e f orced
brea kup of t h eir col l ect ions. Less ext reme exa mpl es
a re f ound in t h e simpl e nost a l gic regret a t t h e d isposa l
of wornout cl ot h ing a nd simil a r it ems t h a t h a ve been
a ssocia t ed wit h pl ea sa nt memories of one's pa st (e.g.,
Lurie 1981, p. 33; Rooney 1984, pp. 3-4).
If invol unt a ry l oss of possessions ca uses a l oss of
sel f , one of t h e prima ry rea ct ions f ol l owing such l oss
sh oul d be a n a t t empt a t sel f -rest ora t ion. Th is ph e-
nomenon h a s been observed in psych oa na l ysis a nd
h a s l ed t o t h e h ypot h esis t h a t , a l ong wit h bod y l oss,
object l oss is t h e f ount a inh ea d of crea t ivit y (Nied er-
l a nd 1967; Nied erl a nd a nd S h ol eva r 1981). Bod y l oss
ref ers t o some rea l or ima gined ph ysica l d ef ormit y or
bod il y imperf ect ion t h a t d et ra ct s f rom sense of sel f .
Object l oss norma l l y ref ers t o t h e d ea t h of a cl ose f a m-
il y member, but is a l so used by Nied erl a nd t o ref er t o
t h e t ra uma t ic l oss of possessions. In bod y a nd object
l oss, t h e crea t ion of a rt , cra f t , concept , or writ ing is
seen a s a n a t t empt t o ext end t h e sel f in new wa ys t h a t
ma ke up f or t h e l oss a nd rest ore t h e sel f t o wh ol eness.
Th a t is, period s of crea t ivit y ma y f ol l ow t h e l oss of
one's possessions.
Nied erl a nd a nd S h ol eva r (1981) a l so suggest t h a t
f or ma ny young America n ma l es, t h e a ut omobil e is a
pa rt of t h eir ext end ed sel ves a nd t h eir ego id ea l s. Th is
view is support ed by consumer sel f -concept resea rch
(e.g., Bl och 1982; Grubb a nd Hupp 1968; Ja cobson
a nd Kossof f 1963). Th e processes of crea t ing a nd nur-
t uring ext end ed sel f t h rough a n a ut omobil e ma y be
seen in cust omizing (persona l izing) t h e ca r a nd in l a v-
ish ing grea t ca re on it s ma int ena nce. Wh en such a ca r
is d a ma ged , t h e owners rea ct a s if t h eir own bod ies
144 THE JOURNAL OF CONS UMER RES EARCH
h a ve been injured . Consid er t h e sense of persona l in-
jury d escribed by Bel l ow (1975, p. 36) a f t er a t rea s-
ured ca r wa s a ssa ul t ed :
S omeone h a d d one t o my ca r a s ra t s, I h a d h ea rd , d id
wh en t h ey ra ced t h rough wa reh ouses by t h e t h ousa nd s
a nd t ore open sa cks of f l our f or t h e h el l of it . I f el t a
simil a r rip a t my h ea rt . . . I h a d a l l owed t h e ca r t o
become a n ext ension of my own sel f . . . , so t h a t a n
a t t a ck on it wa s a n a t t a ck on mysel f . It wa s a moment
t erribl y f ert il e in rea ct ions.
Furt h ermore, t h e possessors of such d a ma ged t rea -
sures a re a nxious t o eit h er rest ore t h e a ut o t o it s f or-
mer perf ect ion or repl a ce it wit h a more perf ect sub-
st it ut e. Th ese rea ct ions ref l ect t h e d esire t o rest ore t h e
d a ma ged sense of (ext end ed ) sel f ca used by t h e injury
t o t h e a ut omobil e.
Invest ing S el f in Object s
Th e id ea t h a t we ma ke t h ings a pa rt of sel f by crea t -
ing or a l t ering t h em a ppea rs t o be a universa l h uma n
bel ief . Ant h ropol ogist s genera l l y a gree t h a t t h e ma ker
of a n object , t h e user of l a nd , a nd t h e cul t iva t or of a
pl a nt a re rega rd ed a s being ent it l ed t o t h e prod uct of
t h eir l a bor (e.g., Herskovit s 1952; Lewinski 1913).
Locke (1690) ma d e t h is t h e f ound a t ion f or h is views
on propert y a nd government , expl a ining t h e "na t ura l
ba sis" f or priva t e propert y in t h ree st eps: (1) we own
oursel ves (see Wikse 1977), (2) t h eref ore we own our
l a bor (wh a t we d irect our bod ies t o d o), a nd (3) t h ere-
f ore we own wh a t we prod uce f rom our l a bor out of
t h e unowned ma t eria l s of na t ure. Csikszent mih a l yi
a nd Roch berg-Ha l t on ( 198 1) provid e a more psych o-
l ogica l expl a na t ion in suggest ing t h a t we invest "psy-
ch ic energy" in a n object t o wh ich we h a ve d irect ed
our ef f ort s, t ime, a nd a t t ent ion. Th is energy a nd it s
prod uct s a re rega rd ed a s a pa rt of sel f beca use t h ey
h a ve grown or emerged f rom t h e sel f . Th e sa me prin-
cipl e h a s been suggest ed t o a ppl y t o object s t h a t a re
f orcef ul l y a ppropria t ed f rom ot h ers (Vebl en 1898).
Af t er t h e d evel opment of money pa yment f or l a bor,
purch a sing object s of f ers a not h er mea ns f or invest ing
sel f (in t h is ca se more symbol ica l l y) in possessions.
Bea gl eh ol e (1932) reviews ot h er a nt h ropol ogica l
evid ence of t h e l ink bet ween possessions a nd sel f . Th e
a l most l it era l incorpora t ion of object s int o sel f a nd
sel f int o object s is s4own in va rious pra ct ices of t ra d i-
t iona l peopl es. Th ese pra ct ices incl ud e l icking new
possessions, burying t h e umbil ica l cord on t riba l
l a nd , insert ing removed f oreskin benea t h t h e ba rk of
a persona l t ree, ea t ing or t a king t h e na mne of con-
quered enemies, burying a ncest ors on sa cred t riba l
l a nd , a nd cl a iming ownersh ip of new l a nd or a rt if a ct s
by t ouch ing t h em, na ming t h em f or a pa rt of t h e per-
son's bod y, l ea ving a l ock of h a ir on t h em, or sh ed -
d ing bl ood on t h em. Anot h er exa mpl e, perh a ps re-
pugna nt t o West ern observers, is t h e d rinking of t h e
urine of Ved ic priest s t o pa rt a ke of t h e psych ogenic
propert ies of t h e Ama nit a musca ria mush room t h a t
t h ese priest s rit ua l l y consume (Wa ssori 1972). Ea ch
of t h ese pra ct ices suggest s t h e d esire t o t a p int o t h e
l if e f orce of na t ure or ot h er peopl e by symbol ica l l y
merging wit h t h ese f orces.
In a d d it ion, t h e a ssocia t ion of peopl e a nd posses-
sions is sh own in t h e pra ct ice of burying t h e d ea d wit h
t h eir possessions. Th is pra ct ice bega n a t l ea st 60,000
yea rs a go (Ma ringer 1960) a nd perh a ps more t h a n
100,000 yea rs a go (Lea ky 1981). Al eksh in (1983)
compa red t h e gra ve good s of men a nd women in Eu-
rope a nd f ound evid ence t h a t suggest s women onl y
bega n t o experience inf erior st a t us in t h e t h ird mil l en-
nium B.C. (i.e., t h e number a nd qua l it y of t h eir gra ve
good s d id not d if f er unt il t h en). Ra t h je a nd McGuire
(1982) h a ve perf ormed simil a r a na l yses of gra ve
good s of t h e Ma ya . Th a t a nt h ropol ogist s a ssume t h a t
possessions t el l us a bout t h eir possessors is it sel f evi-
d ence of t h e t end ency t o see possessions a s symbol s of
sel f . Th e inf erence process is not unl ike t h a t of pol ice
d et ect ives wh o a t t empt t o const ruct a n id ent it y f or
unknown corpses by using t h e corpses' possessions
(Pogrebin, Pool e, a nd Regol i 1986).
In more recent t ra d it iona l societ ies, using t h e cl ot h -
ing or possessions of t h e d ea d is of t en a t a boo. Unt il
out l a wed 100 yea rs a go in Ind ia , t h e wif e, a s "prop-
ert y" of a d ecea sed h usba nd , wa s expect ed t o join h im
in d ea t h (Bord ewich 1986). S uch not ions of posses-
sion surviving even d ea t h suggest a st rong a ssocia t ion
bet ween sel f a nd possessions. To t h e ext ent t h a t ot h er
peopl e ca n be viewed a s possessions (t h is point wil l be
pursued in a subsequent sect ion), mourning f or d ea d
l oved ones a l so ma y be int erpret ed a s grieving f or a
l oss of sel f . Th e prior possessions of t h e d ecea sed ca n
be powerf ul rema ins of t h e d ea d person's ext end ed
sel f . Th ese rema ins a re of t en t h e f ocus of norma l a nd
pa t h ol ogica l mourning (Vol ka n 1974). Th e sa me a s-
socia t ion is sh own in sympa t h et ic ma gic in wh ich ma -
l evol ence is d irect ed a t a person t h rough t h eir cl ot h -
ing, h a ir or na il cl ippings, or ot h er bel ongings (Cl od d
1920). Evid ence of t h e power of possessions t o ca p-
t ure t h e ext end ed sel f is a l so sh own in t h e a ngry d e-
st ruct ion of object s l ef t beh ind by t h e S h a h of Ira n
a nd Ferd ina nd Ma rcos in t h e Ph il ippines a f t er t h ey
were d eposed (Gol d st ein 1987).
Cont empora ry consumpt ion a l so sh ows t h a t t h e
f eel ing of id ent it y invest ed in ma t eria l object s ca n be
ext ra ord ina ril y h igh . For inst a nce, Ames (1984, pp.
30-31) record s f eel ings a t t a ch ed t o a 19t h cent ury
purch a se of a pa rl or orga n:
Buying a prominent object l ike a pa rl or orga n migh t
init ia t e a new ch a pt er in a set of l ives, not onl y by pro-
vid ing a new wa y t o use t ime but a l so a new t ool t o
mea sure t ime. In l a t er yea rs t h e object woul d serve t o
remind it s owners of t h e d a y it f irst ent ered t h eir h ome
a nd of t h e t ime t h a t h a d pa ssed since t h en. It woul d
not onl y st ruct ure t h eir present but a l so t h eir percep-
t ions of t h eir own pa st .
POS S ES S IONS AND THE EXTENDED S ELF 145
Th ey knew f rom experience t h a t purch a sing a ma jor
object coul d be a signif ica nt a nd moment ous occa sion
in it sel f , a t ime of h eigh t ened posit ive emot ions a nd
f eel ings of wel l -being a nd import a nce . . . a ma jor
purch a se woul d t ra nsf orm t h em in t h eir own eyes a nd
in t h e eyes of ot h ers. Th ey woul d become wort h more
. a nd a cquire grea t er st a t us. By so d oing t h ey woul d
receive more respect a nd d ef erence f rom ot h ers wh ich
woul d , in t urn, ma ke t h em f eel bet t er a bout t h em-
sel ves. Buying a pa rl or orga n woul d ma ke t h em some-
t h ing t h ey were not bef ore.
One of t h e mod ern equiva l ent s of t h e pa rl or orga n
in t erms of impa ct on ext end ed sel f is t h e a ut omobil e,
especia l l y f or ma l es (e.g., Myers 1985; Weil a nd
1955). Th e owner of a n expensive Porsch e d escribes
h is a t t a ch ment in t h is wa y (S t ein 1985, p. 30):
S omet imes I t est mysel f . We h a ve a n a ncient , ba t t ered
Peugeot , a nd I d rive it f or a week. It ra rel y brea ks, a nd
it get s grea t mil ea ge. But wh en I pul l up next t o a bea u-
t if ul woma n, I a m st il l t h e geek wit h t h e gl a sses.
Th en I get ba ck int o t h e Porsch e. It roa rs a nd t ugs t o
get moving. It a ccel era t es even going uph il l a t 80. It
l ea d et h t ra sh y women . . . t o ma ke pout ing l ooks a t
me a t st opl igh t s. It ma kes me f eel l ike a t omca t on t h e
prowl . .
Not h ing el se in my l if e compa res-except d riving
a l ong S unset a t nigh t in t h e 928, wit h t h e sod ium-va -
por l a mps ref l ect ing of f t h e wine-red f inish , wit h t h e a ir
insid e reeking of t a n gl ove-l ea t h er uph ol st ery a nd t h e
. . . Bl a upunkt pl a ying t h e S h irel l es so l oud it ma kes
my h a ir vibra t e. And wit h t h e girl s I wil l never see
a ga in pul l ing up next t o me, giving t h e ca r a once-over,
a nd l ooking a t me a s if I were a cool guy, not a worried ,
overext end ed 40-yea r-ol d sch nook writ er.
As t h ese exa mpl es suggest , t h e d egree t o wh ich sel f
ma y become ext end ed int o possessions ca n be grea t .
In ext reme ca ses, we a ga in ma y not e McCa rt h y's
(1984) cont ent ion t h a t id ent it y somet imes ma y l ie
more in ext end ed sel f t h a n in unext end ed sel f .
Rel eva nt Perspect ives a nd Doma in
Th e preced ing d iscussion h a s present ed ecl ect ic ev-
id ence support ing t h e proposit ion t h a t we rega rd our
possessions a s pa rt s of our sel ves. As t h is a rt icl e d evel -
ops a d eeper t h eoret ica l und erst a nd ing of t h is ph e-
nomenon, it wil l cont inue t o d ra w upon a broa d ba se
of l it era t ure f rom psych ol ogy, consumer resea rch ,
psych oa na l yt ic t h eory, ma t eria l a nd popul a r cul t ure
st ud ies, f eminist st ud ies, h ist ory, med icine, a nt h ro-
pol ogy, a nd sociol ogy. Th ese a rea s a nd pa rt icul a r
st ud ies wit h in t h em d ea l wit h const ruct s t h a t a re use-
f ul in a d va ncing t h e a rgument s a nd expl a na t ions of
t h e f ol l owing sect ions. A number of ot h er a rea s of in-
quiry a s wel l a s omit t ed subf iel d s f rom t h ese a rea s just
not ed a re pot ent ia l l y rel eva nt t o t h e st ud y of ex-
t end ed sel f , but h a ve been excl ud ed eit h er beca use of
spa ce consid era t ions or beca use of t h e a rea s' perspec-
t ives being l ess compa t ibl e wit h t h e present t h eoret i-
ca l emph a sis or wit h t h e f ocus on consumer beh a vior.
Fut ure resea rch seeking a broa d er perspect ive woul d
benef it f rom consul t ing t h e a d d it iona l l it era t ures in
Ma rxism a nd neoMa rxism, crit ica l t h eory, f ol kl ore,
pol it ica l ph il osoph y, environment a l psych ol ogy, ma -
croma rket ing, semiot ics, impression ma na gement ,
a nd col l ect ive memory. Th e l it era t ure on propert y,
ownersh ip, a nd possession a l so provid es a wea l t h of
rel eva nt ma t eria l (see Rud min, Bel k, a nd Furby
1987).
Th e scope of t h is a rt ica l a l so is d el imit ed by it s pre-
d omina nt f ocus on societ ies t h a t h ol d a n ind ivid ua l is-
t ic concept of sel f . As Bel k ( 1 984c) suggest s, t h ere a re
t imes a nd pl a ces in worl d h ist ory d uring wh ich t h e
opera t ive not ion of sel f is more col l ect ive t h a n ind i-
vid ua l . For a series of excel l ent d iscussions of t h e
emergence of t h e ind ivid ua l sel f , see Ca mpbel l
(1987), Ca rrit h ers, Col l ins, a nd Lukes (1985), a nd
Ma cf a rl a ne (1978). Th e present d iscussion a d d resses
col l ect ive sel ves in a sect ion d ea l ing wit h l evel s of t h e
sel f , but t h e prima ry f ocus is on t h e ind ivid ua l . Most
of t h e present f ormul a t ion a l so a ppl ies in inst a nces of
col l ect ive concept ua l iza t ions of t h e sel f , but col l ec-
t ive sel f invol ves a d d it iona l concept s not a d d ressed
h ere-f or inst a nce, group rit ua l s f or f using a new ob-
ject int o col l ect ive id ent it y. Th us, a n a d equa t e t h eo-
ret ica l f ormul a t ion of col l ect ive ext end ed sel f must
a wa it f urt h er work. In t h e f ol l owing sect ion on t h e
f unct ions of ext end ed sel f , socia l f unct ions of t h is
const ruct l a rgel y a re ignored .
FUNCTIONS OF EXTENDED S ELF
Ha ving, Doing, a nd Being
Object s in our possession l it era l l y ca n ext end sel f ,
a s wh en a t ool or wea pon a l l ows us t o d o t h ings of
wh ich we woul d ot h erwise be inca pa bl e. Possessions
ca n a l so symbol ica l l y ext end sel f , a s wh en a unif orm
or t roph y a l l ows us t o convince oursel ves (a nd per-
h a ps ot h ers) t h a t we ca n be a d if f erent person t h a n we
woul d be wit h out t h em. Ta na y (1976) suggest s t h a t
h a nd guns represent a symbol ic penis f or t h eir owners.
However, Ka t es a nd Va rzos (1987) ch a l l enge t h is in-
t erpret a t ion a nd inst ea d emph a size t h e rea l ra t h er
t h a n symbol ic power given by guns. Th is sense of en-
h a ncement of persona l power is wh a t ma d e t h e six-
gun t h e "equa l izer" in America n West ern l ore. Ta -
na y's symbol ic int erpret a t ion f ocuses on t h e sense of
being presuma bl y provid ed by such a wea pon,
wh erea s t h is a l t erna t ive int erpret a t ion ma int a ins t h a t
it is wh a t one ca n d o wit h a gun t h a t cont ribut es t o
sense of sel f . Th us, h a ving possessions ca n cont ribut e
t o our ca pa bil it ies f or d oing a nd being. Th e rel a t ion-
sh ips a mong h a ving, d oing, a nd being a re st rong a nd
h a ve been most f ul l y expl ored by exist ent ia l psych ol -
ogist a nd ph il osoph er Jea n-Pa ul S a rt re.
In h is ma jor work, Being a nd Not h ingness, S a rt re
(1943) suggest s t h a t d oing is merel y a t ra nsit iona l
146 THE JOURNAL OF CONS UMER RES EARCH
st a t e or a ma nif est a t ion of t h e more f und a ment a l d e-
sires t o h a ve or t o be. Furt h er, S a rt re ma int a ins t h a t
t h e onl y rea son we wa nt t o h a ve somet h ing is t o en-
l a rge our sense of sel f a nd t h a t t h e onl y wa y we ca n
know wh o we a re is by observing wh a t we h a ve. In
ot h er word s, h a ving a nd being a re d ist inct but insepa -
ra bl e. Wh en a n object becomes a possession, wh a t
were once sel f a nd not -sel f a re synt h esized a nd h a ving
a nd being merge. Th us, a ccord ing t o S a rt re, posses-
sions a re a l l -import a nt t o knowing wh o we a re. Peo-
pl e seek, express, conf irm, a nd a scert a in a sense of be-
ing t h rough wh a t t h ey h a ve.
Ot h er peopl e a l so a f f ect rel a t ionsh ips a mong h a v-
ing, d oing, a nd being, a ccord ing t o S a rt re. Besid es
ot h ers somet imes serving in a n object ca pa cit y a s pos-
sessions, ot h ers a re a n import a nt mirror t h rough
wh ich we see oursel ves. Th ese ot h ers f irst come t o a s-
socia t e possessions a nd possessor a nd t h en, d epend -
ing upon wh ich is known best , eit h er come t o inf er
t h e t ra it s of t h e person f rom t h e na t ure of t h e posses-
sions or t h e na t ure of t h e possessions f rom t h e t ra it s of
t h e person (Bel k 1978). Bel k, Ba h n, a nd Ma yer (1982)
a nd Hol ma n (1981) review a bund a nt buyer beh a vior
l it era t ure support ing t h is veiw. However, a s Dougl a s
a nd Ish erwood (1979, p. 72) remind us, t o t h ink t h a t
a singl e it em ca n successf ul l y inf orm ot h ers a bout us
is equiva l ent t o t h inking t h a t a singl e word f rom a
poem ca n convey t h e mea ning it crea t es in t h e con-
t ext of t h e poem.
S a rt re's view t h a t h a ving a nd being a re t h e cent ra l
mod es of exist ence cont ra st s wit h Ka rl Ma rx's view
t h a t d oing, a nd pa rt icul a rl y working, is cent ra l t o ex-
ist ence a nd sel f -wort h . Th e probl em wit h h a ving, in
Ma rx's view, is t h a t it prod uces a f a l se pa t h t o h a ppi-
ness t h rough "commod it y f et ish ism" (Ma rx 1978). In
commod it y f et ish ism, consumers worsh ip good s a nd
bel ieve t h a t good s h a ve ma gica l powers t o bring h a p-
piness, provoking a perva sive a nd ongoing expect a -
t ion t h a t h a ppiness l ies in t h e next purch a se or "I
woul d be h a ppy if I coul d just h a ve. . . ." Ma rx sug-
gest s inst ea d t h a t rea l h a ppiness is a ch ieved t h rough
d oing mea ningf ul a nd properl y rewa rd ed work (Ma rx
1967). Accord ingl y, t h e perspect ive a d voca t ed by
Ma rxist s is t h a t we sh oul d l ive t o work ra t h er t h a n
work t o l ive (Dyke 1981). Th is is a l so t h e ma jor ba sis
f or t h e Ma rxist object ion t o ca pit a l ism. Wh en t h e
ca pit a l ist owns t h e prod uct s of a worker's l a bor, t h e
worker h a s been a l iena t ed f rom t h a t wh ich s/h e h a s
crea t ed . Th e worker h a s been robbed of a pa rt of sel f .
Th e ca pit a l ist , in Ma rx's view, is seen not onl y a s a n
expl oit er of l a bor, but a l so a s a t h ief of t h e worker's
very sel f (Ma rx 1964).
Fromm (1976) inst ea d a d voca t es being a s t h e pre-
eminent f orm of exist ence. Like Ma rx, Fromm a t -
t a cks "ra d ica l h ed onism," or concent ra t ion on h a v-
ing, a s being unrewa rd ing. He suggest s t h a t t h is view
promot es a h a ving mod e of exist ence t h a t views
t h ings, experience, t ime, a nd l if e it sel f a s possessions
t o be a cquired a nd ret a ined . In t h e a l t erna t e being
mod e of exist ence t h a t Fromm proposes, t h is orient a -
t ion t o h a ve is reject ed in f a vor of a n opposing orien-
t a t ion t o sh a re, t o give, a nd t o sa crif ice. Th e out come
of pra ct icing t h is being mod e of exist ence, a ccord ing
t o Fromm, is t o rea l ize one's id ent it y wit h out t h e
t h rea t of l osing it , a t h rea t t h a t is inh erent in t h e h a v-
ing mod e-f or wh ich h e a sks "If I a m wh a t I h a ve a nd
if wh a t I h a ve is l ost , wh o t h en a m I?" (1976, p. 76).
Th e views of S a rt re, Ma rx, a nd Fromm on h a ving,
d oing, a nd being present signif ica nt quest ions t h a t a re
not necessa ry or possibl e t o resol ve h ere. Al l a cknowl -
ed ge, h owever, t h a t h a ving possessions f unct ions t o
crea t e a nd t o ma int a in a sense of sel f -d ef init ion a nd
t h a t h a ving, d oing, a nd being a re int egra l l y rel a t ed .
Ma st ery of Possessions a nd Huma n
Devel opment
S el f Versus Environment . Th e f unct ions t h a t pos-
sessions f ul f il l in our l ives a re not const a nt over our
l if e spa ns. Accord ing t o Freud ia n a nd ot h er psych o-
a na l yt ic t h eories (e.g., Erikson 1959), t h e inf a nt be-
gins l if e being una bl e t o d ist inguish sel f f rom t h e envi-
ronment , incl ud ing mot h er. As Ausubel , S ul l iva n,
a nd Ives (1980) point out , t h is ma y be seen a s a per-
cept ua l probl em in d ist inguish ing f igure f rom
ground . Ot h ers suggest t h a t t h e d ist inct ion soon
emerges a s a resul t of t h e cont ingency a nd kinest h et ic
f eed ba ck prod uced by t h e inf a nt 's a ct ions (Lewis a nd
Brooks 1978; S el igma n 1975). Th a t is, a s t h e inf a nt 's
mot or skil l s d evel op, t h ose object s t h a t ca n be con-
t rol l ed come t o be seen a s sel f a nd t h ose object s t h a t
ca nnot be cont rol l ed come t o be seen a s environ-
ment . Accord ing t o Isa a cs (1933, p. 226), t h e mot h -
er's ca regiving a l so prod uces t h e f irst sent iment s of
ownersh ip:
In t h e ca se of t h e inf a nt a t t h e brea st , t o h a ve is l it era l l y
a nd simpl y t o t a ke int o onesel f , int o one's mout h . Th e
nippl e is onl y h ere a t a l l wh en it is in my mout h , wh en
it is (in f eel ing) a pa rt of me. And t o bit e a nd swa l l ow
a t h ing is f or l ong t h e onl y sure wa y of ret a ining it . .
Th is is t h e ul t ima t e f orm of ownersh ip, f rom wh ich a l l
ot h ers a re d erived .
Even t h ough t h e inf a nt 's mot h er provid es ca re,
nourish ment , a nd securit y, h er l a ck of perf ect respon-
siveness t o t h e inf a nt 's d esires ma kes it l ikel y t h a t sh e
is t h e f irst object t h a t t h e inf a nt rega rd s a s not sel f .
Th e sepa ra t ion f rom mot h er a l so h a s l ed ot h ers t o
suggest t h a t t h e "securit y bl a nket " serves a s a t ra nsi-
t iona l object h el ping t h e ch il d t o f eel t h e securit y of
t h e mot h er t h rough a n object t h a t symbol izes h er
(e.g., Furby a nd Wil ke 1982; Weisberg a nd Russel l
1971; Winicot t 1953). Bowl by (1969) suggest s t h a t
such ma t eria l object s of t en a id in id ent it y f orma t ion
wh en ch il d ren recognize t h eir ind epend ence a nd sep-
a ra t eness f rom t h eir mot h ers.
If t h e ea rl y ch a nges in person-object rel a t ionsh ips
ma y be d escribed a s moving f rom being one wit h t h e
POS S ES S IONS AND THE EXTENDED S ELF
147
environment t o h a ving object s t h a t a id t h e t ra nsit ion
t o a worl d wh ere sel f is d ist inct f rom t h e environment ,
t h en t h e next ch a nges ma y be ch a ra ct erized a s mov-
ing f rom h a ving t ra nsit ion object s t o d oing t h ings
wit h or t o t h e environment . Th is mot iva t ion is l a -
bel ed "compet ence" or "ma st ery" mot iva t ion (Wh it e
1959). Furby (1980) expa nd ed t h is concept by sug-
gest ing t h a t we d evel op a st ronger sense of sel f by
l ea rning t o a ct ivel y cont rol object s in our environ-
ment ra t h er t h a n f eel ing cont rol l ed by t h em. Furby
a nd Wil ke (1982) present ed evid ence sh owing t h a t
unt il six mont h s of a ge t h e ch il d ma y be most int er-
est ed in simpl y cont rol l ing a n object , wh erea s by
t wel ve mont h s t h e ch il d is more int erest ed in pra ct ic-
ing emerging skil l s (e.g., wit h bl ocks). In bot h ca ses,
prod ucing some int end ed ef f ect by d oing somet h ing
wit h a n object is t h e goa l .
S el f Versus Ot h ers. Da t a f rom Kl ine a nd Fra nce
(1899, pp. 446-447) a nd Isa a cs (1935) suggest t h a t
t h e rel a t ionsh ip bet ween a person a nd a n object is
never a s simpl e a s a person-t h ing bond , beca use ot h er
peopl e of t en seek t o cont rol t h ese object s:
a grea t pa rt of t h e va l ue of t h ose t h ings wh ich l it t l e ch il -
d ren wa nt t o own is f a r f rom int rinsic. It a rises d irect l y
f rom t h e f a ct t h a t ot h ers h a ve or wa nt t h e object . And
t h us we ent er t h e open f iel d of riva l ry. Not t o h a ve wh a t
ot h ers h a ve, or t o h a ve l ess t h a n t h ey, is t o f eel sh ut out
f rom t h e l ove a nd rega rd of t h e person giving. It is t o
be t rea t ed a s not l ovewort h y (Isa a cs 1935, p. 74).
In t h is sense, rel a t ionsh ips wit h object s a re never t wo-
wa y (person-t h ing), but a l wa ys t h ree-wa y (person-
t h ing-person). Th is brings f ort h a meum et t uum con-
cern wit h object ownersh ip (Bea gl eh ol e 1932).
Th e riva l ry a spect s of possessions seem cl ea r
a mong young ch il d ren. Pia get ( 1932) report ed t h a t 8-
t o 12-mont h -ol d ch il d ren of t en d ispl a y viol ent ra ge
wh en a t oy is t a ken f rom t h em a nd given t o a not h er
ch il d . Muel l er (1978) a nd Muel l er a nd Brenner
(1977) f ound t h a t bet ween 80 a nd 90 percent of socia l
int era ct ions of ch il d ren up t o t wo yea rs of a ge a re f o-
cused on ph ysica l object s; t h e a ut h ors d id not report
wh a t proport ions of t h ese int era ct ions invol ved con-
f l ict s. Furby's (1982) exa mina t ion of t h is issue re-
vea l ed t h a t f or 18- t o 21-mont h -ol d s, more t h a n 85
percent of t h eir object -orient ed int era ct ions wit h
peers invol ved conf l ict a bout ret a ining possession in-
st ea d of sh a ring or giving. Horney (1964) suggest ed
t h a t such compet it iveness, a l ong wit h ot h er evid ence
of l a ck of a f f ect ion f rom pa rent s or peers, l ea d s t h e
ch il d t o compensa t e a s a n a d ul t t h rough neurot ic
st rivings f or power, prest ige, a nd possessions. Al -
t h ough t h is ma y not be a compl et e expl a na t ion of
t h ese a d ul t t ra it s, it seems a more pl a usibl e ba sis f or
a d ul t orient a t ions t owa rd possessions t h a n a re expl a -
na t ions via Freud ia n ora l a nd a na l f ixa t ions (Bel k
1 982a ).
Al t h ough receiving ma t eria l object s ma y convey a
sense of l ove a nd wort h t o t h e ch il d (subst it ut ing ma -
t eria l resources f or l ove resources is d if f icul t a ccord -
ing t o resea rch by Foa a nd Foa 1974 a nd percept ua l
f ind ings by Brinberg-Brinberg a nd Ca st el l 1982;
Brinberg a nd Wood 1983), f rom t h e pa rent s' point s of
view, cont rol of t h eir ch il d ren's ma t eria l possessions
of f ers a mea ns of bringing a bout d esired beh a viors.
Wh it ing (1960) provid es a succinct mod el of t h is sort
of resource med ia t ed socia l iza t ion:
1. Pa rent s ca n use resources t o reinf orce beh a v-
ior in t h ree wa ys-
a . Giving (e.g., a "t rea t " f or being "good "),
b. Wit h h ol d ing (e.g., no d essert unt il veget a -
bl es a re ea t en),
c. Depriving (e.g., no more t el evision view-
ing-somet h ing a l rea d y "possessed "-un-
t il t h e ch il d "beh a ves");
2. Resources invol ved must be-
a . S ca rce (i.e., not f reel y a va il a bl e t o t h e
ch il d ),
b. Va l ued (a t t h e t ime) by t h e ch il d ,
c. Cont rol l ed by t h e pa rent ;
3. Ant icipa t ions of resource a va il a bil it y in t h e
f ut ure ca n a l so be mod if ied t o med ia t e beh a v-
ior t h rough -
a . Th rea t s t o wit h h ol d or d eprive resources,
b. Promises t o give resources.
Th e wa y pa rent s use such resource med ia t ed beh a v-
iora l mod if ica t ion not onl y a f f ect s beh a viors-t h ose
concerning possessions a s wel l a s ot h er ones-but
a l so crea t es new a t t it ud es t owa rd t h e possessions used
a s reinf orcement s. For exa mpl e, if sweet s a re wit h -
h el d or d eprived or if t h rea t s t o d o so a re ma d e, t h ese
a ct ions ma y enh a nce t h e va l ue of sweet s, encoura ge
t h e d el a y of gra t if ica t ions unt il unpl ea sa nt t a sks a re
compl et ed , or inst il l a n a t t it ud e t h a t good perf or-
ma nce sh oul d be f ol l owed by ind ul gence. Th e pot en-
t ia l ef f ect s of such socia l iza t ion on a d ul t ma t eria l l if e-
st yl es a re envisioned ea sil y.
Ad ol escence a nd Ad ul t h ood . Erikson (1959) sug-
gest ed t h a t a d ol escent s pred ict a bl y und ergo a n "id en-
t it y crisis." One h ypot h esis is t h a t a d ol escent s a t t h is
st a ge increa singl y seek id ent it y t h rough a cquiring
a nd a ccumul a t ing sel ect ed consumpt ion object s.
Mont ema yor a nd Eisen's (1977) st ud y, wh ich a sked
t eena gers t o d escribe wh o t h ey a re, f ound t h a t t h is is
t rue in ea rl y t eena ge yea rs wh en respond ent s cit ed
possessions, na me, a nd l oca t ion a s pa rt of wh o t h ey
a re. However, in l a t er t eena ge yea rs, t h ey f ound t h a t
respond ent s were more l ikel y t o cit e skil l s (e.g., a t h -
l et ic, a rt ist ic) a nd t ra it s (e.g., expressions of mora l
ch a ra ct er, sel f -suf f iciency). A st ud y of 8- t o 30-yea r-
ol d Ch ica goa ns (Csikszent mih a l yi a nd Roch berg-
Ha l t on 1981) f ound t h a t t h is genera t ion is more l ikel y
t h a n it s pa rent s a nd gra nd pa rent s t o cit e a s f a vorit e
possessions t h ose t h a t ref l ect skil l s (e.g., a t h l et ic
equipment ) or object s wh ich t h ey ca n ma nipul a t e or
148 THE JOURNAL OF CONS UMER RES EARCH
cont rol (e.g., musica l inst rument s, st ereo, pet s). Ma -
t eria l possessions such a s cl ot h ing a nd a ut omobil es
a re seen a s a n import a nt source of prest ige d uring
h igh sch ool (S nyd er 1972), but t h ere is proba bl y some
t end ency t o a scribe such prest ige t o one's f a mil y
ra t h er t h a n t o one's sel f a s a n ind ivid ua l . Th ese f ind -
ings suggest t h a t onl y cert a in t ypes of possessions a re
va l ued a s ext ensions of sel f d uring a d ol escence a nd
t h a t sel f -d ef init ion t h rough d oing t h ings ma y be pre-
f erred t o sel f -d ef init ion t h rough h a ving t h ings.
During preret irement a d ul t h ood , Csikszent mih a l yi
a nd Roch berg-Ha l t on (1981) f ound t h a t emph a sis
sh if t s f rom d ef ining onesel f by wh a t one d oes t o d e-
f ining sel f t h rough wh a t one h a s. Furby (1978) f ound
t h a t 40- t o 50-yea r-ol d s a re t h e most l ikel y of a l l a ge
groups t o cit e socia l power a nd st a t us a s rea sons t o
own persona l possessions. Csikszent mih a l yi (1982,
pp. 5-6) expl a ins:
A person wh o owns a nice h ome, a new ca r, good f urni-
t ure, t h e l a t est a ppl ia nces, is recognized by ot h ers a s
h a ving pa ssed t h e t est of personh ood in our societ y
. . . t h e object s we possess a nd consume a re . . .
wa nt ed beca use . . . t h ey t el l us t h ings a bout oursel ves
t h a t we need t o h ea r in ord er t o keep our sel ves f rom
f a l l ing a pa rt . Th is inf orma t ion incl ud es t h e socia l rec-
ognit ion t h a t f ol l ows upon t h e d ispl a y of st a t us sym-
bol s, but it incl ud es a l so t h e much more priva t e f eed -
ba ck provid ed by specia l h ouseh ol d object s t h a t objec-
t if y a person's pa st , present , a nd f ut ure, a s wel l a s h is
or h er cl ose rel a t ionsh ips.
Ol son (1981, 1985) f ound t h a t young coupl es cit e
a s f a vorit e object s in t h e h ome t h ose t h a t ref l ect t h eir
f ut ure pl a ns a nd goa l s, but ol d er coupl es cit e object s
t h a t rel a t e t o t h eir experiences t oget h er. Ca meron
(1977) cond uct ed a series of experiment s suggest ing
t h a t h a ving ch il d ren is a key l if e event t h a t ca uses t h e
pa rent s t o become l ess sel f -f ocused a nd more f ocused
on t h eir ch il d ren. Feibl ema n (1975) not es t h e emer-
gence of a t end ency of pa rent s by l a t e mid d l e a ge t o
l ive vica riousl y t h rough t h eir ch il d ren. At t h is point ,
ch il d ren represent a n ext ension of sel f , but not t o t h e
excl usion of ma t eria l possessions. In f a ct , Bel k (1985)
f ound pa rent s t o be more ma t eria l ist ic a nd possessive
t h a n t h eir ch il d ren a nd t h eir own pa rent s. Beca use of
a ccumul a t ed possessions, wel l -d evel oped skil l s, pos-
session of bot h a pa st a nd a f ut ure, a nd pa rent h ood ,
t h e mid d l e yea rs of l if e a l so a re l ikel y t o invol ve t h e
most ext end ed concept of sel f .
Ol d Age. If t h e young a re f ut ure-orient ed , t h e ol d
a re pa st -orient ed . Csikszent mih a l yi a nd Roch berg-
Ha l t on (1981) f ound t h a t f or t h eir Ch ica go sa mpl e,
such possessions a s ph ot ogra ph s, a t h l et ic t roph ies,
a nd mement os a re most t rea sured by gra nd pa rent s.
Th e rea son most of t en cit ed f or possessions being
t rea sured by t h is group is t h a t possessions h a ve t h e
a bil it y t o symbol ize ot h ers, of t en beca use t h ey a re
gif t s f rom t h ese import a nt ot h ers. S h erma n a nd New-
ma n (1977) f ound t h a t post ret irement -a ge persons
wh o possess such remembra nces a re h a ppier t h a n
t h ose wh o d o not . McCra cken (1987a ) suggest s t h a t
h omes f or t h e a ged woul d d o wel l t o consid er t h e
id ent it y d epriva t ion t h a t occurs wh en t h ese peopl e
a re ma d e t o d isca rd possessions. Pl a ces t h a t a re espe-
cia l l y rel eva nt t o one's pa st h a ve a l so been f ound t o
be pa rt icul a rl y va l ued by t h e ol d beca use of t h e mem-
ories t h a t pl a ces ca n st ir (Howel l 1983; Lowent h a l
1975). In cont ra st , t h e young t end t o va l ue pl a ces a c-
cord ing t o t h e a ct ivit ies t h ese pl a ces f a cil it a t e (Csiks-
zent mih a l yi a nd Roch berg-Ha l t on 1981; Ha rt 1979).
During ol d a ge, t h e sense of one's own mort a l it y
a l so becomes more a nd more und enia bl e. Wit h d e-
crea sing f ut ure yea rs, d ecl ining skil l s a nd a bil it ies,
a nd a sh rinking net work of ol d f riend s, sense of sel f
possibl y cont ra ct s a s wel l . However, t h is is not neces-
sa ril y t h e ca se. Ma ny peopl e seek t o a ssure t h a t t h eir
sel ves wil l ext end beyond t h eir d ea t h s. Lif t on (1973)
suggest s f ive wa ys t h rough wh ich t h is ext ension ma y
be a t t empt ed : (1) t h rough one's ch il d ren, (2) t h rough
bel ief in a l if e a f t er d ea t h , (3) t h rough one's works
(e.g., a rt ist ic, l it era ry, sch ol a rl y), (4) t h rough id ent i-
f ica t ion wit h na t ure (wh ich wil l cont inue), a nd (5)
t h rough experient ia l t ra nscend ence (e.g., a bsorpt ion
in music ma y a l l ow one t o t ra nscend t h e worl d of h ere
a nd now a nd symbol ica l l y be reborn).
A sixt h wa y, wh ich is not ment ioned , is t o h a ve
one's possessions (especia l l y t h ose in col l ect ions one
h a s crea t ed ) "l ive on" t h rough h eirs or museums
(Rigby a nd Rigby 1949). Ba sed on int erviews wit h
persons a ges 62 t o 85, int erviews wit h t h eir f riend s,
rel a t ives, a nd a cqua int a nces, a nd a n a na l ysis of l et -
t ers, mement os, a nd conversa t ions of t h e d ying a nd
t h eir survivors, Unruh (1983) f ound evid ence of t h e
wid esprea d use of t h is st ra t egy. He d et ect ed f irst a so-
l id if ica t ion of id ent it y t h rough crea t ing l et t ers, jour-
na l s, memos, a nd poems t h a t were mea nt t o be l ef t
beh ind . S econd , a rt if a ct s incl ud ing ph ot ogra ph s,
scra pbooks, souvenirs, a nd jewel ry were a ccumu-
l a t ed . And t h ird , t h ese a rt if a ct s were d ist ribut ed t o
persons wh o were bel ieved t o be wil l ing t o ca re f or
t h em, a nd in so d oing h onor a nd remember t h e d o-
nor. Th is d ist ribut ion wa s a ccompl ish ed t h rough pre-
d ea t h gif t s a nd wil l s a nd t est a ment s. West ern societ y
sel d om el eva t es reverence f or a ncest ors t o t h e l evel
of Fa r Ea st ern cul t ures such a s Ja pa n a nd Ch ina , but
West ern societ y d oes revere it s h eroes' a nd vil l a ins'
possessions, a s il l ust ra t ed by pil grima ges t o El vis Pre-
sl ey's Gra cel a nd ma nsion a nd Wil l ia m Ra nd ol f Hea r-
st 's ca st l e (Ma ines 1978).
Possessions a nd t h e S ense of Pa st
Int egra l t o a sense of wh o we a re is a sense of our
pa st . Possessions a re a convenient mea ns of st oring
t h e memories a nd f eel ings t h a t a t t a ch our sense of
pa st . A souvenir ma y ma ke t a ngibl e some ot h erwise
int a ngibl e t ra vel experience. An h eirl oom ma y record
a nd reca l l f a mil y h erit a ge just a s a h ist oric monument
ma y h el p t o crea t e a sense of a na t ion's pa st .
POS S ES S IONS AND THE EXTENDED S ELF 149
Overa l l , Csikszent mih a l yi a nd Roch berg-Ha l t on
(1981) f ound t h a t t h e t h ree t ypes of possessions t h a t
t h e 315 Ch ica go f a mil ies most f requent l y cit e a s t rea s-
ured a re f urnit ure, visua l a rt (incl ud ing t h a t crea t ed
by f a mil y a nd f riend s), a nd ph ot ogra ph s. In ea ch ca se,
t h e most f requent l y given expl a na t ion f or va l uing
t h ese object s is t h e memories t h ey ca l l f ort h of ot h er
peopl e, occa sions, a nd rel a t ionsh ips. Th ese rea sons
oversh a d ow f unct iona l expl a na t ions f or a t t a ch ment s
t o f urnit ure a nd a est h et ic rea sons f or va l uing a rt ob-
ject s a nd ph ot ogra ph s. As one of t h eir inf orma nt s ex-
pl a ins (Roch berg-Ha l t on 1984, p. 171):
Th is [pa int ing] is my grea t , grea t gra nd f a t h er. I've h a d
it since ch il d h ood . It 's more t h a n just a port ra it -it 's
a person! I'd gra b it righ t a wa y in a f ire. [Wit h out it ]
my l if e woul d be l essened . I'd go on l iving, but it woul d
d epl et e my secure "l ump." It woul d mea n t h a t I
woul d n't be a bl e t o h a nd it d own t o my ch il d ren. Th e
kid s a l rea d y sa y, "I'm gonna inh erit t h is a nd t h a t ."
. . .It 's pa rt of t h e cont inuit y of wh o I a m, wh ere I
ca me f rom, wh ere I'm going.
Ol d er respond ent s a re especia l l y l ikel y t o l ink such
object s t o pa st experiences. One expl a na t ion is t h a t
our a t t a ch ment t o memory-evoking possessions
grows a s we a ccumul a t e experiences f rom our pa st
a nd red uce t h e st ock of pl ea sura bl e experiences l ikel y
t o occur in our f ut ures. Al so, a s Ka st enba um (1977)
observes, "t h e ol d er person sca ns t h e pa st f or evi-
d ence t h a t h e once wa s compet ent , once wa s l oved ,
once comma nd ed respect ." Gif t s received f rom ot h -
ers a re one such evid ence of l ove f rom signif ica nt ot h -
ers (Bel k 1982c; Wa l l end orf a nd Arnol d 1988).
Th us, ch erish ed possessions a re not l ikel y t o be a
ra nd om a ssort ment of it ems t h a t reca l l our pa st s. Just
a s we pose f a mil y ph ot ogra ph s t o ca pt ure t h e "good "
(h a ppy) moment s of our l ives a nd t h en sel ect ivel y
ed it t h e best of t h ese int o a l bums (Ch a l f en 1987; Mil -
gra m 1976; S ont a g 1973), we a re a l so l ikel y t o t rea -
sure most t h ose possessions a ssocia t ed wit h pl ea sa nt
memories. Th ese possessions a re l ikel y t o incl ud e ob-
ject s such a s newspa per cl ippings a nd t roph ies repre-
sent ing pa st a ccompl ish ment s, mement os of pa st ro-
ma nces, a nd souvenirs of enjoya bl e t ra vel experi-
ences, a nd t o excl ud e ot h ers such a s bel ongings of
est ra nged f ormer spouses, poor report ca rd s, a nd gif t s
f rom suit ors wh o l a t er reject ed us.
Not e t h a t socia l inst it ut ions such a s museums f ol -
l ow a simil a r process in sel ect ivel y ret a ining a est h et ic,
scient if ic, a nd h ist orica l cul t ura l a rt if a ct s. Mukerji
(1978) ma kes a d ist inct ion bet ween good s t h a t a re ini-
t ia l l y prod uced a s a rt works a nd a re a cquired a nd re-
t a ined ba sed on presuma bl y a est h et ic jud gment s, a nd
good s t h a t a re init ia l l y prod uced f or more ut il it a ria n
purposes but a re l a t er rega rd ed a s wort h y of preserva -
t ion. Al t h ough t h e ret ent ion crit eria a re somewh a t
d if f erent f or t h e t wo cl a sses of object s, in bot h ca ses
t h e d ecisions t o ret a in t h e object ra t h er t h a n reject it
d et ermine t h e pict ure of our cul t ura l pa st t h a t is a va il -
a bl e t o f ut ure genera t ions. Obviousl y, we a re more
l ikel y t o ch ronicl e our cul t ures' successes t h a n t h eir
f a il ures.
Th e d esire t o know one's ind ivid ua l pa st ca n ex-
pl a in t h e ret ent ion of persona l memora bil ia , just a s
t h e d esire t o remember f a mil y h erit a ge ca n expl a in
ret ent ion of f a mil y h eirl ooms a nd t h e d esire t o a ppre-
cia t e na t iona l h ist ory ca n expl a in museum pa t rona ge
a nd visit s t o h ist oric sit es. However, wh a t ca n expl a in
t h e d esire t o a cquire a nd col l ect a nt iques a nd a nt iqui-
t ies f rom a not h er t ime, pl a ce, a nd f a mil y? Cl ea rl y, it
is not a cl a ima bl e sense of pa st t h a t is a ch ieved a t a ny
except t h e broa d est l evel of id ent it y.
Pa rt of t h e a nswer l ies in t h e d esire t o id ent if y wit h
a n era , pl a ce, or person t o wh ich we bel ieve a d esir-
a bl e set of t ra it s or va l ues a d h eres. At a na t iona l l evel ,
neocl a ssica l a rch it ect ure seems t o h a ve t h is object ive.
At a more persona l l evel , owning a rt if a ct s t h a t once
bel onged t o a f a mous h ist orica l f igure seems t o sh a re
t h is object ive (Rigby a nd Rigby 1949; Wa l l end orf a nd
Bel k 1987). In ea ch ca se, t h ere seems t o be a d esire t o
ba sk in t h e gl ory of t h e pa st in t h e h ope t h a t some of
it wil l ma gica l l y rub of f -a f orm of posit ive cont a mi-
na t ion (Levi-S t ra uss 1963). Th is nost a l gic d esire t o
ga in t h e gl ory of t h e superst a r or of a myt h ica l gol d en
a ge of t h e pa st sh a res somet h ing in common wit h t h e
t end ency McCra cken (1988) d escribes a s d eposit ing
a nd ret rieving cul t ura l mea ning in pl a ces wh ere it is
unl ikel y t o be d ist urbed by cont ra d ict ions present in
rea l it y (e.g., Da vis 1979).
Anot h er rea son f or t h e a ccumul a t ion of a nt iquit ies
t h a t a re f ound or a cquired ra t h er t h a n inh erit ed or
cl a imed on t h e ba sis of a more d irect l inka ge t o t h e
ext end ed sel f is t h a t a nt iques a re ra re a nd t h eref ore
pot ent ia l l y serve a s symbol s of st a t us or "st a t us ma rk-
ers" (Dougl a s a nd Ish erwood 1979). Ot h er mot ives
migh t be f ound in t h e a musement of col l ect ing curi-
osit ies, a est h et ic pref erence f or a nt iques over cur-
rent l y prod uced a rt if a ct s, a nd a pref erence f or h a nd -
cra f t ed works over current ma ss-prod uced works.
However, ea ch of t h ese a d d it iona l expl a na t ions rel ies
on somet h ing of t h e ext end ed sel f of t h e previous
owner, a rt ist , or cra f t sperson a d h ering t o t h e work.
Just a s we seek t o 'ext end our sel ves by incorpora t ing
or owning cert a in object s, we ma y st il l seek t h e sym-
pa t h et ic ma gic (cont a gion) of possessions t h a t ret a in
a pa rt of t h e ext end ed sel f of va l ued ot h ers. Th is is
a l so t rue wit h gif t s received f rom l oved ones. Not e
t h a t we a l so a bh or t h e a rt f orgery or reprod uct ion pre-
cisel y beca use it l a cks t h e persona l ma na of it s crea t or
t h a t is present in t h e origina l (e.g., Ba t t in 1979; Bel k
1986a ; Lessing 1965). Furt h ermore, we ma y pref er
t h e h a nd cra f t ed it em t o t h e ma ss-prod uced it em
l a rgel y beca use it t ook l onger t o crea t e-i.e., more of
ot h ers' sel ves were invest ed in it (S t ewa rt 1984).
Fiel d work wit h owners of a nt iques a nd h a nd ma d e
f urnit ure support s t h is mot iva t ion (Wa l l end orf a nd
Bel k 1987). Th us, we a re symbol ica l l y l a rger a nd
more powerf ul if we possess such a l a boriousl y cra f t ed
150 THE JOURNAL OF CONS UMER RES EARCH
a nt ique. In so d oing, we a ppropria t e pa rt of t h e sel f of
t h e object 's crea t or, even if t h is crea t or is a nonymous.
Fina l l y, f a scina t ion wit h t h ings pa st a l so invol ves
nost a l gia . S t ewa rt (1984) d escribes nost a l gia a s a sa d -
ness wit h out a n object , a nd Ka nt d escribes it a s a
l onging f or one's ch il d h ood (Ka nt 1798; S t a robinski
1966, p. 94). Da vis (1979, p. 3 1) not es t h e rel eva nce
of such l onging t o t h e sel f :
nost a l gia (l ike l ong-t erm memory, l ike reminiscence,
l ike d a yd rea ming) is d eepl y impl ica t ed in our sense of
wh o we a re, wh a t we a re a bout , a nd (t h ough possibl y
wit h much l ess inner cl a rit y) wh it h er we go. In sh ort ,
nost a l gia is . . . a rea d il y a ccessibl e psych ol ogica l l ens
. f or t h e never end ing work of const ruct ing, ma in-
t a ining, a nd reconst ruct ing our id ent it ies.
McCra cken (1986) d escribed h ow ind ivid ua l s a nd
cul t ures, t h rough id ea l ized a nd nost a l gic visions of
t h e "gol d en a ge" of a mist y pa st , use t h e pa st t o ma in-
t a in va l ues t h a t never exist ed . Wit h such a n una ssa il -
a bl e ima ge of t h e pa st , a nt iques f rom t h a t era become
powerf ul symbol s by wh ich we ma y l ist en t o t h e pa st
a nd h ea r it conf er it s ima gined virt ues upon us.
Th us, t h e f unct ions t h a t possessions pl a y in t h e ex-
t end ed sel f invol ve t h e crea t ion, enh a ncement , a nd
preserva t ion of a sense of id ent it y. Possessions h el p
us a t a l l a ges t o know wh o we a re. However, t h is d oes
not impl y t h a t we a re a l wa ys a ct ive in sel ect ing t h e
possessions t h a t we see a s a pa rt of our sel ves. As t h e
next sect ion d iscusses, pa ssive receipt of object s int o
t h e ext end ed sel f a l so occurs.
PROCES S ES OF S ELF-EXTENS ION
Wa ys of Incorpora t ing Possessions int o t h e
Ext end ed S el f
S a rt re (1943) suggest s t h ree prima ry wa ys t h rough
wh ich we l ea rn t o rega rd a n object a s a pa rt of sel f .
One wa y is t h rough a ppropria t ing or cont rol l ing a n
object f or our own persona l use; t h is view is simil a r
t o McCl el l a nd 's (1951) h ypot h eses a bout power a nd
cont rol . S a rt re a l so h ol d s t h a t we ca n a ppropria t e in-
t a ngibl e or nonowna bl e object s by overcoming, con-
quering, or ma st ering t h em. For inst a nce, a mount a in
cl imber in rea ch ing a pea k h a s a ssert ed cont rol of t h e
mount a in a nd t h e pa nora ma it a f f ord s. S imil a rl y, it is
onl y t h rough l ea rning t o rid e a f irst bicycl e, ma nipu-
l a t ing a new comput er syst em, d riving a f irst ca r, or
successf ul l y negot ia t ing ra pid s in a new ka ya k t h a t
t h ese object s rea l l y become pa rt s of t h e ext end ed sel f .
Th is is a n import a nt point , f or it provid es a n expl a na -
t ion of h ow nond ura bl e prod uct s or services a nd pub-
l ic propert y or event s ma y become viewed a s posses-
sions a nd t h ereby pot ent ia l l y cont ribut e t o sense of
sel f . For inst a nce, a s we ma st er get t ing a round in a
f ormerl y unf a mil ia r subwa y syst em, our mobil it y l it -
era l l y increa ses a nd our sel f f igura t ivel y ext end s t o in-
cl ud e t h e subwa y syst em.
S a rt re a l so sees giving possessions t o ot h ers a s a
mea ns of ext end ing sel f -a specia l f orm of cont rol . A
gif t cont inues t o be a ssocia t ed wit h t h e giver so t h a t
t h e giver's id ent it y is ext end ed t o incl ud e t h e recipi-
ent . At t h e sa me t ime, giving (a s wel l a s d est roying)
object s is a n a f f irma t ion of sel f in S a rt re's view, be-
ca use t h is a ct of d oing cl ea rl y sh ows t h e cont rol one
h a s of t h ese possessions. However, gif t recipient s
ma y, d espit e increa sing t h e object s in t h eir cont rol ,
l ose some sense of sel f t h rough t h eir l a ck of cont rol in
ch oosing t h e gif t . Th ey a re t h en encumbered by t h is
pa rt ia l imposit ion of t h e giver's id ent it y a nd must a c-
knowl ed ge t h e giver's ma st ery by a ccept ing t h e gif t
(e.g., Cod ere 1950; Dil l on 1968). In cont ra st , t h e pos-
sessive gif t recipient woul d l ike t o receive ra re gif t s
t h a t a re a pa rt of t h e giver's ext end ed sel f a nd t h ereby
symbol ize t h e recipient 's h ol d on t h e giver's sel f (Ka t z
1976). Beca use most gif t s a re received f rom l oved
ones, gif t receipt sh oul d genera l l y be f ound t o be re-
ga rd ed a s a posit ive ext ension of sel f . Th is woul d
seem t o expl a in t h e h igh f requency wit h wh ich gif t s
a re cit ed a s f a vorit e possessions in t h e Unit ed S t a t es
a nd ot h er count ries (Csikszent mih a l yi a nd Roch berg-
Ha l t on 198 1; Wa l l end orf a nd Arnoul d 1988).
A second wa y of h a ving a n object a nd incorpora t -
ing it int o sel f is by crea t ing it ; t h is view ech oes a n-
t h ropol ogica l f ind ings a nd Locke's (1690) pol it ica l
ph il osoph y. Wh et h er t h e t h ing crea t ed is a ma t eria l
object or a n a bst ra ct t h ough t , t h e crea t or ret a ins a n
id ent it y in t h e object f or a s l ong a s it ret a ins a ma rk
or some ot h er a ssocia t ion wit h t h e person wh o
brough t it int o exist ence. Th is id ent it y is cod if ied
t h rough copyrigh t s, pa t ent s, a nd scient if ic cit a t ions
t h a t preserve a ssocia t ions bet ween peopl e a nd t h eir
ment a l crea t ions.
S a rt re f eel s t h a t buying a n object is merel y a not h er
f orm of crea t ing t h e object , a nd t h a t even t h e l a t ent
buying power of money cont ribut es t o sense of sel f .
"S t op bef ore a sh owca se wit h money in your pocket ;
t h e object s d ispl a yed a re a l rea d y more t h a n h a l f
yours" (S a rt re 1943, p.753). "Th a t wh ich exist s f or
me t h rough t h e med ium of money, t h a t wh ich I ca n
pa y f or, i.e., wh ich money ca n buy, t h a t a m I, t h e pos-
sessor of money" (Ma rx 1975, p. 377). In such a
sense, we ma y suppose t h a t money enl a rges t h e sense
of sel f beca use it enl a rges ima gina bl e possibil it ies of
a l l t h a t we migh t h a ve a nd d o. Money a l so gives us
t h e power t o sel ect ivel y a cquire or reject purch a sa bl e
object s, t h ereby more sel ect ivel y sh a ping our ex-
t end ed sel ves.
Th e t h ird wa y in wh ich object s become a pa rt of sel f
is by knowing t h em. Wh et h er t h e object known is a
person, pl a ce, or t h ing, S a rt re ma int a ins t h a t t h e rel a -
t ionsh ip in knowing t h e object is inspired by a ca rna l
a nd sexua l d esire t o h a ve t h e object . It is no a ccid ent ,
in S a rt re's view, t h a t sexua l rel a t ions h a ve of t en been
d escribed a s knowing or h a ving a not h er person, a s it
is our int ima t e knowl ed ge of t h e ot h er person t h a t a l -
l ows us t o consid er t h e person ours a nd a pa rt of sel f .
POS S ES S IONS AND THE EXTENDED S ELF 151
Likewise, a s Bea gl eh ol e (1932) observed , our int i-
ma t e knowl ed ge of a communit y, st ore, or book
ma kes t h em not onl y "ours" but a l so pa rt of sel f . But ,
l ike sexua l knowl ed ge, such knowing ca nnot be pa s-
sionl ess a nd d ist a nced if t h e object is t o become a pa rt
of t h e ext end ed sel f . As Dixon expl a ins, "To know
wit h out d esire is a n of f ense a ga inst t h e known, t o t rea t
t h e known a s object a nd vict im" (1973, p. 4). Onl y
wh en t h e object is known pa ssiona t el y d oes it become
subject ra t h er t h a n object .
Al l t h ree mea ns out l ined by S a rt re t o ma ke object s
a pa rt of ext end ed sel f (cont rol /ma st ery, crea t ion, a nd
knowl ed ge) a re a ct ive a nd int ent iona l wa ys of sel f -ex-
t ension. Cl ot h ing (S ol omon 1986a ), h ousing (Ja ger
1983), a nd a ut omobil es a re a l l a cquired a s a "second
skin" in wh ich ot h ers ma y see us. Object s such a s l a nd
t o t h e f a rmer, h a nd cra f t ed pieces t o t h e cra f t sperson,
a nd a rt works t o t h e a rt ist ma y become a pa rt of ex-
t end ed sel f , beca use we h a ve int ent iona l l y worked
upon or crea t ed t h ese t h ings, invest ing bot h energy
a nd sel f in t h em. And , object s l ike a pa rl or orga n a nd
h ouseh ol d f urnish ings ma y become a pa rt of us
t h rough t h e knowing t h a t comes wit h h a bit ua t ion-
t h ey h a ve become a pa rt of our f a mil ia r int erior l a nd -
sca pes, h a ve been t h e set t ing f or numerous specia l a s
wel l a s ord ina ry occurrences in our l ives, a nd of t en
h a ve received t h e sa me a mount of ca re a nd a t t ent ion
t h a t we l a vish upon oursel ves a nd immed ia t e f a mil y
members. During t h eir t enure wit h us, a grea t ma ny
memories a re l ikel y t o h a ve a ccret ed in t h ese object s.
Al l of t h ese f orms of sel f -ext ension a re l a rgel y a ct ive
a nd int ent iona l . But , a n a d d it iona l mea ns of sel f -ex-
t ension exist s t h a t ma y or ma y not be a ct ive a nd in-
t ent iona l : cont a mina t ion.
Cont a mina t ion
Ca nniba l ism is t h e most ext reme inst a nce in wh ich
consumers a t t empt t o incorpora t e t h e t ra it s of a n-
ot h er t h rough cont a mina t ion. Th a t t h is is not a n en-
t irel y ext inct pra ct ice is sh own, a t l ea st met a ph ori-
ca l l y, in t h e recent kid na pping, sl a ugh t er, a nd rit ua l
f ea st ing of t h e Universit y of Texa s ma scot bul l , Bevo,
by riva l a t h l et es a nd st ud ent s a t Texa s A & M Univer-
sit y. Apa rt f rom ca nniba l ism, ra pe is t h e most ex-
t reme inst a nce in wh ich one person ma y be sa id t o
cont a mina t e a not h er. Th e concern h ere is not wit h
t h e med ica l sense of germ cont a mina t ion a nd sprea d
of d isea se, but wit h t h e symbol ic cont a mina t ion in-
vol ved in invol unt a ril y incorpora t ing a not h er int o
one's ext end ed sel f (see Rozin, Mil l ma n, a nd Nemer-
of f 1986). As Dougl a s (1966) a rgues, germ t h eory ma y
be merel y a ra t iona l iza t ion of our d isgust a t unwa nt ed
symbol ic cont a mina t ion by ot h ers. Gof f ma n (1971,
pp. 44-47) suggest s six mod es of int erpersona l con-
t a mina t ion:
1. Viol a t ion of one's persona l spa ce (e.g., S om-
mer 1971; Lyma n a nd S cot t 1967);
2. Touch ing a nd bod il y cont a ct ;
3. Gl a ncing, l ooking, a nd st a ring;
4. Noise pol l ut ion;
5. Ta l king t o/a d d ressing one; a nd
6. Bod il y excret a -
a . Corporea l excret a (spit t l e, snot , perspira -
t ion, f ood pa rt icl es, bl ood , semen, vomit ,
urine, a nd f eca l ma t t er-a nd st a ins of
t h ese);
b. Od or (e.g., f l a t us, t a int ed brea t h , bod y
smel l s);
c. Bod y h ea t (e.g., on t oil et sea t s);
d . Ma rkings l ef t by t h e bod y (e.g., pl a t e l ea v-
ings-l ef t over f ood ).
An import a nt omission in t h is l ist of mod es of in-
t erpersona l cont a mina t ion is t h e a cquisit ion of pos-
sessions of a not h er person t h a t h a ve been int ima t el y
a ssocia t ed wit h t h a t person. Burying t h e d ea d wit h
t h eir possessions (gra ve good s) is one exa mpl e of
a void ing such cont a mina t ion. O'Reil l y et a l . (1984)
f ound t h a t second h a nd cl ot h ing worn cl ose t o it s f or-
mer owner (e.g., und erwea r) d oes not sel l a nd a ppa r-
ent l y enjoys a simil a r t a boo a ga inst reuse t o a void
cont a mina t ion. Lurie (1981, p. 24) suggest s t h a t
wh en a d ol escent girl s exch a nge cl ot h ing t h ey sh a re
not onl y f riend sh ip, but a l so id ent it ies-t h ey become
soul ma t es. Th is is a n inst a nce of posit ive cont a mina -
t ion ra t h er t h a n t h e more commonl y recognized neg-
a t ive cont a mina t ions.
Beca use f ood so obviousl y is incorpora t ed int o sel f ,
sh a ring f ood is a symbol ic wa y of sh a ring group id en-
t it y. Th e neigh borl y cup of cof f ee, h ol id a y mea l s, t h e
d inner pa rt y, a nd t h e more t ra d it iona l f ea st , a re a l l
exa mpl es of bond ing t h rough f ood (e.g., Fa rb a nd
Armel a gos 1980; Ca pl ow et a l . 1982). Th e Ch rist ia n
sa cra ment of communion (symbol ica l l y pa rt a king of
t h e bod y a nd bl ood of Ch rist ) is a simil a r wa y of sym-
bol ica l l y sh a ring a n id ent it y. However, even wit h in
such rit ua l s, t h ere is a socia l proh ibit ion a ga inst ea t -
ing t h e pl a t e l ea vings of ot h ers (a l t h ough Gof f ma n
1971, p. 55, not es t h a t t h is proh ibit ion ma y be l if t ed
f or ot h ers wit h wh om we a re most int ima t e, incl ud ing
spouse, pa rent s, a nd ch il d ren-t h ose wh o a re seen a s
a pa rt of ext end ed sel f ). Th is proh ibit ion is st rongest
wh en t h e l ea ver h a s ma d e a persona l imprint on t h e
f ood or on a ut ensil -t eet h ma rks or l ipst ick, f or in-
st a nce. Ut ensil s qua l if y f or t h e proh ibit ion beca use,
l ike t oot h brush es, t h ey a re incorpora t ed int o a not h er
t h rough t h e mout h . Ch ewed f ood is d isgust ing f or t h e
sa me rea son, a nd a l so pot ent ia l l y h a s been cont a mi-
na t ed by t h e spit t l e of t h e ch ewer, just a s a comb is
d isgust ing beca use it pot ent ia l l y h a s been cont a mi-
na t ed by t h e h a ir a nd bod y oil s of it s owner.
Dougl a s (1966, p. 160) not es t h a t a n import a nt cri-
t erion f or d isgust a t cont a mina t ion by ot h ers' int i-
ma t e possessions is t h e possessions' a bil it ies t o con-
152 THE JOURNAL OF CONS UMER RES EARCH
vey t h eir owners' origina l id ent it ies. Rubbish is not
d isgust ing unl ess it is d ist urbed enough t o revea l t h e
h a ir, f ood , or wra ppings t h a t compose it . S imil a rl y,
t h e bones of t h e d ea d a re not d isgust ing if t h ey a re
unrecogniza bl e d ust or a sh es. For t h is rea son, crema -
t oria a re ca ref ul t o screen t h e a sh es of t h e d ea d bef ore
giving t h em t o rel a t ives wh o presuma bl y woul d be
d isgust ed by a ny recogniza bl e rema ins. S ympa t h et ic
ma gic d epend s upon t h e na il s, h a ir, swea t , bl ood , or
ot h er pa rt s of t h e bod y rema ining recogniza bl e. As
wit h ca nniba l ism a nd ot h er t a boo-brea king rit ua l s,
sympa t h et ic ma gic ma y d epend upon t h e viol a t ion of
inh erent norms of purit y f or it s power. Perh a ps t h e
sa me is t rue in sexua l int ima cy; beca use it viol a t es
norms of h ow we t rea t most ot h ers in t h e worl d , such
int ima cy ma y ga in t h e power of a st rong bond ing
rit ua l .
If d isgust a t ot h ers' possessions d epend s on t h eir
recogniza bil it y a s pa rt s of t h ese ot h ers' sel ves, d isgust
a t one's own possessions a nd prod uct ions ma y d e-
pend upon t h eir unrecogniza bil it y a s a pa rt of one's
own sel f . As Al l port ( 1955, p. 43) expl a ins:
Th ink f irst of swa l l owing t h e sa l iva in your mout h , or
d o so. Th en ima gine expect ora t ing it int o a t umbl er
a nd d rinking it ! Wh a t seemed na t ura l a nd "mine" sud -
d enl y becomes d isgust ing a nd a l ien. Or pict ure your-
sel f sucking bl ood f rom a prick in your f inger; t h en
ima gine sucking bl ood f rom a ba nd a ge a round your
f inger! Wh a t I perceive a s sepa ra t e f rom my bod y be-
comes, in t h e t winkl ing of a n eye, col d a nd f oregin.
Th e sa me principl e ma y a ppl y t o visit ing one's f ormer
resid ence. If it ret a ins most of it s f ormer ch a ra ct er,
incl ud ing t h e ch a nges t h e visit or once ma d e t o it , it
ma y be a source of d el igh t . But if it h a s been subst a n-
t ia l l y a l t ered by subsequent resid ent s, it ma y seem
col d , f oreign, or even d isgust ing. Neigh borh ood s a nd
cit ies in wh ich one f ormerl y resid ed ma y seem wa rm
or col d pa rt l y f or t h ese rea sons.
Ma int a ining Mul t ipl e Level s of S el f
As previousl y not ed , some possessions a re more
cent ra l t o sel f t h a n a re ot h ers. Th e possessions cent ra l
t o sel f ma y be visua l ized in concent ric l a yers a round
t h e core sel f , a nd wil l d if f er over ind ivid ua l s, over
t ime, a nd over cul t ures t h a t crea t e sh a red symbol ic
mea nings f or d if f erent good s. However, t h ere is a n-
ot h er sense in wh ich t h e ind ivid ua l h a s a h iera rch ica l
a rra ngement of l evel s of sel f , beca use we exist not
onl y a s ind ivid ua l s, but a l so a s col l ect ivit ies. We of t en
d ef ine f a mil y, group, subcul t ure, na t ion, a nd h uma n
sel ves t h rough va rious consumpt ion object s. Th e pa r-
t icul a r number of such l evel s of sel f is a n open ques-
t ion-Ra poport (1981) suggest s t h a t t h ere a re f our
l evel s of sel f , At kin ( 198 1 ) seven, a nd Fel d ma n ( 1979)
1 1. For purposes of t h e present d iscussion, onl y f our
l evel s of sel f -ind ivid ua l , f a mil y, communit y, a nd
group-need be id ent if ied .
Rega rd l ess of t h e number of l evel s, a prima ry d is-
t inct ion in t h e l evel s of sel f const ruct is bet ween a n
ind ivid ua l versus col l ect ive concept ion of sel f . As
Boorst in (1973) suggest s, one of t h e key wa ys of ex-
pressing a nd d ef ining group membersh ip is t h rough
sh a red consumpt ion symbol s. S uch symbol s h el p
id ent if y group membersh ip a nd d ef ine t h e group sel f .
Al t h ough we ma y be more ind ivid ua l ist ic a nd h a ve
more sepa ra bl e a nd ind epend ent group membersh ips
t h a n wa s t rue bef ore societ a l specia l iza t ion, d ivision
of l a bor, a nd movement of prod uct ion f rom t h e
h ouseh ol d t o t h e of f ice or f a ct ory (Bel k 1984c), we
cl ea rl y st il l d ef ine oursel ves t h rough group id ent it y a t
va rious l evel s.
Just a s a n ind ivid ua l ma y use persona l possessions
such a s jewel ry, a ut omobil e, ma ke-up, a nd cl ot h ing
t o h el p d ef ine a n ind ivid ua l sense of sel f (e.g., S ol o-
mon 1986a ), a f a mil y is most a pt t o use d ist inct f a m-
il y possessions t o d ef ine a f a mil y sel f f or it s members.
Th e key consumpt ion object in t h is ca se is t h e
h ome-bot h t h e d wel l ing a nd it s f urnish ings. Ja ger
(1983, p. 56) a sks,
How is it t h a t a kit ch en t a bl e we once a d mired in a
sh op wind ow ca n l a t er become t h e st a bl e, sil ent f oun-
d a t ion of f a mil y mea l s a nd conversa t ions wit h f riend s?
How ca n a h ouse l ose it s st a t us a s a conf ront ed object
t o become a virt ua l f ound a t ion of our l if e? Al l t h ese
quest ions l ea d us ba ck t o t h e bod y.
Two point s a re import a nt h ere. Th e f irst is t h a t t h e
h ouse is a symbol ic bod y f or t h e f a mil y. Just a s cl ot h -
ing a l t ers t h e ind ivid ua l 's bod y, f urnish ings a nd d eco-
ra t ions a l t er t h e f a mil y's bod y. Th e second import a nt
point is t h a t t h e expressive ima gery of t h e h ouse t h a t
is d ef init iona l of t h e f a mil y is onl y f ul l y a cquired d ur-
ing consumpt ion. At t h e point of a cquisit ion, onl y a
port ion of t h e ul t ima t e mea ning of t h ese object s is
present (Kron 1981; S a il e 1985).
Just a s ind ivid ua l s wit h d if f erent unext end ed core
sel ves a re l ikel y t o incorpora t e d if f erent object s int o
t h eir ext end ed sel ves, f a mil ies wit h d if f erent core
sel ves a re l ikel y t o embra ce d if f erent object s in t h eir
ext end ed sel ves. Resea rch h a s f ound support f or t h e
common sense expect a t ion t h a t f a mil ies wit h d if f er-
ent l if est yl es a nd f rom d if f erent socia l cl a sses t end t o
l ive in d if f erent t ypes of h omes d ecora t ed in d if f erent
f a sh ions. For inst a nce, Weisner a nd Weibel (1981)
f ound signif ica nt d if f erences in d ecor, incl ud ing
d if f erent a ppa rent d egrees of ma t eria l ism, evid ent in
t h e h omes of f a mil ies cl a ssif ied int o f our l if est yl e
groups. Resea rch by Dunca n a nd Dunca n (1976) sug-
gest s t h a t a sel f -expressive h ouse is more import a nt t o
l ower socia l cl a sses a nd t o t h ose wh o a re more mobil e.
McCra cken (1987b) f ound t h a t "h omeyness' is t h e
expressive a t t ribut e t h a t t h e l ower socia l cl a sses seek
most in a h ome, but t h e a nt it h et ica l a t t ribut e of "st a -
t us" is wh a t t h e more socia l l y mobil e h igh er cl a sses
seek most .
Ot h er resea rch ers (e.g., Cooper 1972, 1974; Tua n
1978) h a ve suggest ed t h a t t h e int erior d ecor of t h e
POS S ES S IONS AND THE EXTENDED S ELF 153
h ouse represent s, f or t h e f a mil y, somet h ing a kin t o
t rue sel f , wh il e t h e ext erior a ppea ra nce of t h e h ouse
represent s somet h ing a kin t o socia l sel f (a s seen by
ot h ers). McCra cken (1 987b) a l so f ound d if f erences in
t h e perceived expressiveness of va rious rooms of t h e
h ome a nd d et ect ed a t end ency t o use room d ecor t o
"embra ce" onesel f wit h successive l a yers of f urnish -
ings. Th ese views of int erior a nd ext erior a l so ca n cor-
respond t o t h e a na l ogy of t h e bod y.
Perh a ps t h e d egree of int erna l iza t ion of owned l a nd
is especia l l y int ense f or f a mil y f a rmers. As S t einbeck
(1939, p.50) wrot e of t h e U.S . d ust bowl f a rmers:
If a ma n owns a l it t l e propert y t h a t propert y is h im, it 's
pa rt of h im a nd it 's l ike h im. If h e owns propert y onl y
so h e ca n wa l k on it a nd h a nd l e it a nd be sa d wh en it
isn't d oing wel l , a nd f eel f ine wh en t h e ra in f a l l s on it ,
t h a t propert y is h im, a nd in some wa y h e's bigger be-
ca use h e owns it .
A pa rt of wh a t t h e ownersh ip of f a rm l a nd mea ns t o
such f a mil ies is sel f -suf f iciency a nd possibl y t h e l ink-
a ge t o prior genera t ions of t h e f a mil y wh o worked t h e
l a nd (t h e sense of pa st a spect of ext end ed sel f ). Th ere
a l so ma y be a st rong symbol ism of f a mil y nurt ura nce
expressed in t h e pl a nt a nd a nima l h usba nd ry of t h e
f a rm (Berg 1975). Perh a ps a l l t h ese f a ct ors combine
t o ma ke it especia l l y t ra uma t ic f or f a rm f a mil ies t o
become d ispossessed (Fa rmer 1986).
Th e communit y l evel of sel f is a l so a pa rt of t h e ex-
pl a na t ion of t h e f eel ings of d ispl a ced f a rm f a mil ies.
Rura l communit ies a re a ssocia t ed wit h a st rong sense
of Gemeinsch a f t in wh ich communit y id ent it y d omi-
na t es t h e Gesel l sch a f t ind ivid ua l id ent it y t h ough t t o
be more t ypica l of cit y l if e (Tonnies 1957). However,
even urba nit es ca n f eel a st rong sense of communit y
wit h in neigh borh ood s. Ed ney (1972) f ound a rel a -
t ionsh ip bet ween suburba n t errit oria l ma rkers such
a s f ences, h ed ges, a nd f l ower bord ers a nd wil l ingness
t o d ef end one's neigh borh ood . Brown a nd Werner
(1985) f ound t h a t such ma rkers a s wel l a s h ol id a y d ec-
ora t ions on h omes t end t o pred ict a t t a ch ment t o
communit y a s wel l a s d et er propert y crimes f or
h omes d ispl a ying such symbol s of communit y.
Greenba um a nd Greenba um (1965) f ound more resi-
d ence persona l iza t ion in t h e neigh borh ood h omes of
t h ose S l a vic-America ns wh o h a d a st ronger sense of
subcul t ura l id ent it y. And , Ley a nd Cybriwsky (1974)
f ound t h a t gra f f it i is a mea ns of est a bl ish ing a nd ex-
pressing et h nic, neigh borh ood , a nd ga ng id ent it y in
inner-cit y Ph il a d el ph ia .
Just a s cl ot h ing, a ccent , grooming, a nd jewel ry ca n
d ist inguish a n ind ivid ua l f rom ot h ers a nd express a n
ind ivid ua l sense of being, t h ey ca n a l so ind ica t e group
id ent it y a nd express bel onging t o a group. Forma l
unif orms a re a n obvious exa mpl e, but inf orma l "uni-
f orms" a l so exist f or socia l groups (eit h er sma l l sca l e
or symbol ic-e.g., yuppies, preppies, S l oa ne Ra ngers,
Bon Ch ic, Bon Genre-Bel k 1986b). Ta t t ooing, ea r
piercing, h a ir st yl e, a nd ownersh ip of va rious st yl es of
bicycl es, mot orcycl es, or a ut omobil es a re a l so mea ns
of group id ent if ica t ion, a s a re musica l knowl ed ge a nd
pref erence, ba r, cl ub, a nd ent ert a inment a t t end a nce,
support of specif ic cul t ura l a rt s, a nd knowl ed ge a nd
pref erence f or sport s t ea ms (e.g., Cia l d ini et a l . 1976;
Lynes 1980). Th e rel a t ive va ria bil it y of such con-
sumpt ion t a st es wit h in groups sh oul d t el l us some-
t h ing a bout t h e d egree t o wh ich group members rel y
upon t h e group f or a n id ent it y.
One t est of t h ese id ea s wa s perf ormed by Wickl und
a nd Gol l wit zer (1982). Th ey pred ict ed t h a t MBA st u-
d ent s wh o a re more insecure a bout t h eir job prospect s
woul d t end t o a d opt more of t h e consumpt ion pa t -
t erns of a st ereot ypica l businessperson-h igh st a t us
wa t ch , "business sh oes," sh ort h a ir, l a ck of f a cia l
h a ir, a nd ot h er h igh st a t us a ccessories such a s a t t a ch e
ca ses a nd expensive pens. Among st ud ent s wh o a re
commit t ed t o a business ca reer, t h e st ud y f ound a
st ronger a d opt ion of t h ese st ereot ypica l businessper-
son symbol s by st ud ent s wit h poorer job prospect s.
Al so, t h ose wh o a re more commit t ed t o a business ca -
reer a nd wh o a re in t h e poor prospect s group a re more
l ikel y t o own such symbol s t h a n a re t h ose st ud ent s
l ess commit t ed t o a business ca reer. S imil a r f ind ings
rega rd ing business suit ownersh ip by business st u-
d ent s h a ve been obt a ined by S ol omon a nd Ana nd
( 1985). Th e a ut h ors not e t h e correspond ence of such
possessions t o ma gic a mul et s a nd t ot emic embl ems in
more t ra d it iona l societ ies.
However, symbol s of group id ent it y need not be in-
d ivid ua l l y owned prod uct s. Th ey ca n a l so be such
t h ings a s l a nd ma rks (na t ura l or ma n-ma d e), pl a ces,
l ea d ers, med ia "st a rs," invent ions, inst it ut ions,
sport s t ea ms, scient ist s, a nd publ ic monument s (e.g.,
Geist 1978). In t h e Unit ed S t a t es, one h a s onl y t o re-
ca l l t h e sense of l oss experienced wh en t h e spa ce sh ut -
t l e Ch a l l enger expl od ed t o rea l ize h ow d eepl y rel a t ed
such symbol s ca n be on a n a ggrega t e l evel sense of
sel f . It is a l so perh a ps t h e sense of ext end ed sel f t h a t
ca uses prid e ra t h er t h a n a nger or envy a t t h e ext ra va -
ga nt consumpt ion of pol it ica l a nd med ia st a rs (Lea ch
1986). Th a t is, beca use t h ese st a rs a re a pa rt of group
ext end ed sel f (wit h t h e group in t h is ca se being t h e
na t ion or genera t ion), we a re proud of t h eir consump-
t ion a nd f ind it f it t ing ra t h er t h a n sh a mef ul .
Prosh a nsky (1978) suggest s t h a t t h e d egree t o
wh ich one id ent if ies wit h cit y l a nd ma rks a nd sh a red
consumpt ion object s wit h in a given cit y d epend s
upon t h e cond it ion of t h e cit y a nd one's period of
l ikel y resid ence t h ere. Th e f irst h ypot h esis f ind s some
support in t h e t end ency d et ect ed by Cia l d ini et a l .
(1976) t o id ent if y wit h a nd wea r or d ispl a y t h e col ors
of winning (but not l osing) sport s t ea ms. Prosh a n-
sky's l a t t er h ypot h esis suggest s st ronger id ent if ica t ion
wit h l oca l sh a red consumpt ion object s by ol d er resi-
d ent s a nd t h ose wit h l esser geogra ph ic mobil it y. Th is
expect a t ion is support ed in a st ud y by Bel k (1988).
S imil a rl y, Ha nsen a nd Al t ma n (1976) f ound t h a t col -
l ege st ud ent s wh o d ecora t e t h eir d ormit ory rooms t o
154 THE JOURNAL OF CONS UMER RES EARCH
a grea t er d egree a nd wit h more persona l l y symbol ic
it ems a re l ess l ikel y t o d rop out of col l ege t h a n a re
t h ose wh o d o not persona l ize t h eir rooms.
Recognit ion t h a t a pa rt of one's ext end ed sel f ca n
be sh a red , or a t l ea st perceived t o be sh a red , wit h ot h -
ers h el ps t o expl a in a ct s of civic responsibil it y, pa t rio-
t ism, a nd ch a rit y. Th is expl a na t ion suggest s t h a t such
a ct s of a ppa rent a l t ruism a re ba sed on a ggra nd izing a
broa d er l evel of sel f t h a n t h a t conf ined t o t h e ind ivid -
ua l 's bod y a nd mind . S uch nonreciproca l a l t ruism
ca n be seen a s a ct s t h a t benef it t h e broa d er communi-
t ies incorpora t ed wit h in ext end ed sel f . Even a ct s of
sel f -sa crif ice f or a group wit h wh ich one st rongl y
id ent if ies ca n be seen a s h el ping t h is broa d er sel f l ive
ind ef init el y, giving t h e ind ivid ua l a sort of immort a l -
it y. Al t h ough such a ct s a re unusua l , t h eir occurrence
gives some cred ence t o Joh n Donne's (1623, p. 795)
word s:
No ma n is a n isl a nd , ent ire of it sel f ; every ma n is a
piece of t h e cont inent , a pa rt of t h e ma in. If a cl od be
wa sh ed a wa y by t h e sea , Europe is t h e l ess, a s wel l a s if
a promont ory were, a s wel l a s if a ma nor of t h y f riend 's
or t h ine own were. Any ma n's d ea t h d iminish es me be-
ca use I a m invol ved in ma nkind , a nd t h eref ore never
send t o know f or wh om t h e bel l t ol l s; it t ol l s f or t h ee.
S PECIAL CAS ES OF EXTENDED S ELF
Th e ba sic wa ys in wh ich object s ca n become a pa rt
of ext end ed sel f h a ve a l rea d y been d iscussed . In t h is
sect ion, severa l unique a rea s of consumer beh a vior
t h a t a re a f f ect ed by such sel f -ext ension a re consid -
ered : col l ect ions, money, pet s, ot h er peopl e, a nd bod y
pa rt s.
Col l ect ions
As Bel k (1982b) not es, h uma ns a nd a nima l s once
prima ril y a ssembl ed col l ect ions of necessit ies f or f u-
t ure securit y, but t od a y h uma ns more of t en a ssembl e
col l ect ions of nonnecessit ies f or d ist inct ion a nd sel f -
d ef init ion. Col l ect ions of t h is sort ma y be init ia t ed by
gif t s or ot h er unint end ed a cquisit ions (t h is wa s of t en
f ound t o be t h e ca se in t h e st ud y by Bel k et a l . 1988),
but t h e cul t iva t ion of a col l ect ion is a purposef ul sel f -
d ef ining a ct . Rigby a nd Rigby (1949, p. 35) not e:
From t h e sma l l boy t o t h e connoisseur, t h e joy of
st a nd ing bef ore one's a ccumul a t ed pil e a nd being a bl e
t o sa y 't h is bel ongs t o me' is t h e cul mina t ion of t h a t
f eel ing t h a t begins wit h ownersh ip of t h e f irst it em .
t h ey become us.
S t ewa rt (1984, p. 159) simil a rl y concl ud es t h a t t h e
wa y t o most ef f ect ivel y d ispa ra ge a col l ect ion is not t o
ch a rge t h a t it is ina ut h ent ic, but ra t h er t o sa y "it is
not you."
S t ewa rt (1984) a l so observes t h a t crea t ing one's ex-
t end ed sel f t h rough d evot ed d evel opment of a col l ec-
t ion is t h e ul t ima t e in sel f -d ef init ion by mea ns of h a v-
ing ra t h er t h a n by t h e l ess t a ngibl e mea ns of d oing or
being. Col l ect ing h a s become a signif ica nt a ct ivit y in
our consumer societ y a s it h a s become more wid el y
a f f ord a bl e t h rough t h e d iscret iona ry t ime a nd money
a va il a bl e t o t h e genera l popul a t ion ra t h er t h a n just t o
t h e wea l t h y el it e (Ma son 1981). Ma rch a nd 's (1985)
a na l ysis of a d vert isement s suggest s t h a t t h e merch a n-
d ising of ensembl es of cosmet ics, cl ot h ing a ccesso-
ries, a nd f urnit ure in t h e 1920s h el ped st imul a t e t h e
pa ssion f or col l ect ing. However, cont empora ry col -
l ect ions more of t en a re specia l ized t o a l l ow t h e col l ec-
t or a n a bil it y t o ga in cont rol a nd uniqueness wit h in
sel f -prescribed bound a ries (Trea s a nd Bra nnen
1976). Th us, one migh t be a col l ect or of knickkna cks
in t h e f orm of a f a vored ("t ot emic") a nima l , of sa l t
a nd pepper sh a kers, or of gol d en oa k f urnit ure. As
wit h more wid esprea d col l ect ions of f a mil y ph ot o-
gra ph s, record a l bums, a nd cl ot h ing it ems such a s
sh oes or h a t s, bot h t h e it ems incl ud ed a nd t h e ord er
imposed on t h em a re expressive of one's id ent it y. We
ma y not be a bl e t o cont rol much of t h e worl d a bout
us, but t h e col l ect ion, wh et h er of d ol l s, "d epression
gl a ss," or a ut omobil es, a l l ows us t ot a l cont rol of a
"l it t l e worl d ." Furt h ermore, col l ect ing l egit imizes a c-
quisit iveness. As Cl if f ord (1985, p. 238) not es, "An
excessive, somet imes even ra pa cious, need t o h a ve is
t ra nsf ormed int o rul e-governed mea ningf ul d esire."
Gol d berg a nd Lewis (1978, p. 64) go f urt h er in sug-
gest ing t h a t "Ma ny col l ect ors wh o a re inh ibit ed a nd
uncomf ort a bl e in socia l int era ct ion, surround t h em-
sel ves wit h f a vored object s upon wh ich t h ey project
h uma nl ike qua l it ies. Th ey pra ct ica l l y t a l k t o t h ese
object s; t h ey f ind comf ort in being wit h t h em a nd re-
ga rd t h em a s f riend s." In t h is sense, col l ect ions ma y
be seen a s t ra nsit ion object s or securit y bl a nket s f or
a d ul t s.
Beca use of t h e purposef ul ness a nd t h e commit -
ment of t ime a nd energy spent in d evel oping a col l ec-
t ion, it is na t ura l t h a t a col l ect ion ma y be seen a s more
a pa rt of one's sel f t h a n a re isol a t ed consumpt ion
it ems. Th e d esire of col l ect ors f or cl osure in compl et -
ing or f il l ing ga ps in a col l ect ion (S a a rinen' 1958;
Wisema n 1974) ma y be seen a s a f orm of symbol ic
sel f -enh a ncement . Th e st a mp col l ect ion t h a t l a cks a
f ew ent ries is of t en seen a s h a ving a ca vernous ga p
t h a t cries out t o be f il l ed . Wh a t is l ikel y f el t is a l a ck
of sel f -compl et ion, wh ich is perceived t o be ga ined
t h rough compl et ion of t h e col l ect ion. (Al t h ough ,
ironica l l y, compl et ion of a col l ect ion is a l so f ea red
beca use t h e quest t h en is t h rough , unl ess, a s of t en
h a ppens, one red ef ines t h e col l ect ing f ocus a s compl e-
t ion nea rs.) Th e symbol ic sel f -compl et ion t h esis of
Wickl und a nd Gol l wit zer (1982) suggest s t h a t wh en
one experiences l ow sel f -est eem, t h e a d d it ion of ob-
ject s t o one's col l ect ion ma y be viewed a s compensa -
t ory in rest oring a more compl et e sense of sel f . Devo-
t ion t o t h e col l ect ion ca n a l so provid e a sense of pur-
pose a nd wort h (see Benja min 1955). It is a l so
rea sona bl e t o t h ink of ma ny col l ect ions a s compul -
POS S ES S IONS AND THE EXTENDED S ELF 155
sions a nd t o t h ink of a ct ive col l ect ors a s a d d ict s. For
inst a nce, a col l ect or of Mickey Mouse t oys a nd d ol l s
d escribed h ow h e woul d scrimp a nd sa ve t o a cquire
new it ems ea ch week (Wa l l end orf a nd Bel k 1987). He
ca l l ed t h ese a cquisit ions h is "Mickey f ix" a nd re-
ca l l ed h a ving f requent l y spent ga s a nd rent money t o
ma ke t h ese purch a ses. Th us, t h ere ca n be unh ea l t h y
a spect s t o some obsessive col l ect ing, even t h ough it is
d one in t h e int end ed service of sel f -enh a ncement .
Money a nd Ext ension of S el f
For some peopl e, money is t oo a bst ra ct , invisibl e,
or "commid it ized " (Kopyt of f 1986) t o become a pa rt
of ext end ed sel f . If t h e d esire is t o ext end sel f t h rough
h a ving, t h en using t h e money t o buy more t a ngibl e,
visibl e woul d -be ext ensions of sel f is more l ikel y f or
such peopl e. Money is seen a s prof a ne a nd must be
t ra nsf ormed int o "sa cred " ma t eria l good s (Bel k a nd
Wa l l end orf 1988; Gra ves 1965, pp. 21-22). But , f or
ot h ers, money it sel f is rega rd ed a s a n ext ension of sel f
a nd , in t h is ca pa cit y, becomes a n end ra t h er t h a n a
mea ns t o d oing or h a ving ot h er t h ings.
Wisema n (1974) not es t h a t t h e Cind erel l a st ory
conveys a popul a r f a nt a sy of t ra nsf orming onesel f
t h rough t h e power of money. In t h e f a nt a sy, "t h is
ot h er 'rich me' woul d not merel y h a ve more money,
but woul d be ch a nged f und a ment a l l y, woul d be
st ronger, l ess f ea rf ul , more ch a rming, wiser, l ess vul -
nera bl e, a nd so on. Money is end owed wit h ma gica l
powers" (Wisema n 1974, p. 10). Money is t h ough t t o
bring l ove, f a me, a nd respect . Money is commonl y
seen a s a symbol of success a nd power (Rubenst ein
1981).
Like ot h er pa rt s of ext end ed sel f , wh en consumers
bel ieve st rongl y enough in money a s pa rt of ext end ed
sel f , t h eir wel l -being is l inked t o t h e wel l -being of
t h eir money. Psych oa na l yst Fingert (1952) report s a
ma l e pa t ient wh o wa s rel uct a nt t o pa y a na l ysis f ees
beca use t h e pa t ient f ea red h e woul d be l osing a pa rt
of h is own bod y. Knigh t (1968) not es t h e compa ra bl e
sent iment expressed wh en peopl e sa y t h ey f eel na ked
wit h out t h eir pocket books. And one st ud y f ound a
posit ive correl a t ion bet ween t h e sexua l pot ency of
businessmen a nd t h e l evel of t h e Dow Jones Ind us-
t ria l Avera ge (New Yorker 1975). Th is a ppea rs t o be
a not h er ca se of viewing money a s a n unconscious
symbol of ma scul init y a nd power (Lind gren 1980).
Gol d berg a nd Lewis (1978) not e t h a t d iscussion of
money a nd income is a st rong t a boo in mod ern West -
ern societ y. Wisema n (1974) a nd Ya ma uch i a nd
Templ er (1982) observe t h a t we know more a bout
cont empora ry sexua l beh a vior of peopl e t h a n we d o
a bout t h eir money d ea l ings. Knigh t (1968, p. 83) re-
f l ect s t h a t "It is a s if t h ey (psych ia t ric pa t ient s in t h is
ca se) equa t ed money wit h t h eir in-most being."
Consist ent evid ence sh ows t h a t t h ose wit h h igh er
incomes report h igh er l evel s of sel f -est eem, subject ive
h a ppiness, a nd sa t isf a ct ion in l if e (e.g., Diener 1984),
a l t h ough increa ses in income t h a t d o not ra ise one
a bove compa rison t o ot h ers a ppea r t o h a ve l it t l e ef f ect
(Dunca n 1975). S ome evid ence a l so exist s t h a t we
t end t o jud ge t h ose wit h h igh er incomes a s being bet -
t er a d just ed , h a ppier, a nd h ea l t h ier (Luf t 1957).
Nevert h el ess, t h ere a re cl ea rl y pa t h ol ogies a ssoci-
a t ed wit h ext reme uses of money in t h e service of en-
h a ncing ext end ed sel f . Th e most commonl y a na l yzed
is miserl iness in wh ich a person a t t empt s t o subst it ut e
money f or l ove a nd h a ppiness (e.g., Bergl er 1959;
Jones 1948; Krueger 1986). Gol d berg a nd Lewis
(1978) t rea t miserl iness a s a va in a t t empt t o col l ect
securit y, wh il e more Freud ia n psych ol ogist s see it a s
a na l ret ent iveness (e.g., Bornema n 1976; Ferenczi
1914). Prod iga l spend ing of money t o enh a nce sel f is
inst ea d l inked t o ora l a ggression (Bergl er 1959; Kl ein
1957). Bergl er (1959) a l so sees compul sive ba rga in
h unt ing a s a n a t t empt t o rest ore a sense of persona l
a d equa cy a mong ora l persona l it y t ypes. Compul sive
ga mbl ing is seen a s a not h er pa t h ol ogica l use of
money t o seek a n il l usive h a ppier sel f (Bergl er 1959;
Furnh a m a nd Lewis 1986; Gol d berg a nd Lewis 1978).
Pet s a s Ext end ed S el f
S ecord (1968) not ed t h a t pet s a re of t en seen a s a
pa rt of t h e pet owner's sel f t o t h e ext ent t h a t t h e a t t i-
t ud e is "l ove me, l ove my d og." Veevers (1985) re-
port s evid ence of t h e opposit e inf erence: "h a t e me,
h a t e my d og." Th a t is,- ot h ers' t rea t ment of pet s is
seen t o ref l ect t h eir rega rd f or t h e owners, just a s ot h -
ers' t rea t ment of young ch il d ren is seen t o ref l ect t h eir
rega rd f or t h e pa rent s. Pet s a l so a re rega rd ed com-
monl y a s represent a t ive of sel f a nd st ud ies sh ow t h a t
we a t t empt t o inf er ch a ra ct erist ics of peopl e f rom
t h eir pet s (Foot e 1956; Heima n 1967). S ome rel a t ion-
sh ip bet ween persona l it y a nd ch oice of pet s d oes, in
f a ct , exist (Kid d a nd Kid d 1980). Ot h ers h a ve ob-
served t h a t , l ike peopl e, pet s a re rega rd ed a s f a mil y
members (e.g., Ca in 1985; Fried ma nn a nd Th oma s
1985; Hickrod a nd S ch mit t 1982; Roch berg-Ha l t on
1985; Wa l l end orf a nd Bel k 1987). In t h is rega rd , it is
signif ica nt t h a t we na me our pet s, f eed a nd ca re f or
t h em, ph ot ogra ph t h em, spend money on t h em,
groom t h em, t a l k t o t h em, prot ect t h em, sl eep a nd
pl a y wit h t h em, a nd mourn t h eir d ea t h (Hickrod a nd
S ch mit t 1982; Meer 1984). Ca rma ck (1985), Cowl es
(1985), a nd Ked d ie (1977) f ound t h a t in some ca ses of
pet d ea t h t h e mourning is simil a r t o t h a t wh ich occurs
d ue t o t h e l oss of a h ome or t h e l oss of a l imb. Just a s
ca nniba l ism is t a boo, ea t ing a pet , or even a n a nima l
t h a t is l ikel y t o be t h ough t of a s a pet in a pa rt icul a r
cul t ure, is t a boo. Th us, in t h e West we ea t pigs, but
not d ogs, wh il e in a ncient Pol ynesia -wh ere pigs
were pet s-just t h e opposit e wa s t rue (Tit comb
1969). Resea rch ers such a s Levinson (1972) a nd
Robin a nd Bensel (1985) f ound t h a t pet s a re so inst ru-
ment a l t o sel f -id ent it y t h a t t h ey a re of t en usef ul a s
t ra nsit ion object s (surroga t e pa rent s) f or ch il d ren a nd
a s surroga t e ch il d ren f or a d ul t s.
156 THE JOURNAL OF CONS UMER RES EARCH
Th ese observa t ions a nd popul a r t rea t ment s suggest
t h a t pet s ca n be t h era peut ic in expa nd ing t h e sel f of
ch il d ren, h ospit a l pa t ient s, a nd t h e el d erl y. Al t h ough
t h is is t h e cont ent ion of ma ny (e.g., Fogl e 1981), re-
cent resul t s suggest t h a t pet ownersh ip d oes not a l -
wa ys h a ve h ea l t h y ef f ect s. Tua n (1984) cont end s t h a t
much pet ownersh ip, a s wel l a s pet -l ike rel a t ionsh ips
wit h pl a nt s a nd peopl e, represent s a cruel d esire t o
impose cont rol over t h em a nd comma nd t h em. Evi-
d ence f rom int erviews by t h e a ut h or suggest s t h a t
U.S . ma l es ma y pref er d ogs t o ca t s beca use of d ogs'
grea t er responsiveness t o comma nd s. Al t h ough Horn
a nd Meer (1984) f ound t h a t pet owners report f eel ing
bet t er t h a n d o nonowners of pet s, Ma rt inez a nd Kid d
(1980) f ound t h a t ma l e nonowners h a d grea t er f eel -
ings of wel l -being t h a n ma l e owners of pet s. Ca meron
a nd Ma t son (1972) f ound t h a t pet owners h a ve l ower
ego st rengt h t h a n nonowners. Ca meron a nd col -
l ea gues (Ca meron et a l . 1966; Ca meron a nd Ma t son
1972) a l so f ound t h a t pet owners l ike peopl e l ess t h a n
d o nonowners, a nd report l iking t h eir pet s more t h a n
t h ey l ike peopl e. S uch f ind ings suggest t h a t a l t h ough
pet s, l ike ot h er object s t h a t become pa rt of ext end ed
sel f , ma y be benef icia l , t h ey ca n a l so become h a rmf ul
f et ish es if t oo much of one's sel f a nd one's worl d is
invest ed in t h em. However, it is uncl ea r wh et h er pet
ownersh ip brings a bout such sel f -ima ge probl ems or
resul t s f rom t h em.
Ot h er Peopl e
Th is sect ion d oes not ref er t o sl a very, a l t h ough t h a t
is surel y one h ist orica l inst a nce of t h e t end ency t o
t rea t peopl e a s possessions a nd ext ensions of sel f , a l -
most in t h e ma nner t h a t a t ool ext end s sel f . Ra t h er,
t h e f ocus h ere is on t h e symbol ic ext ension of sel f t h a t
Ja mes (1890, see quot a t ion on p. 1) sa w in "h is wif e
a nd ch il d ren, h is a ncest ors a nd f riend s." Th ere is evi-
d ence t h a t some peopl e t end t o ch oose pot ent ia l
ma t es a s t h ey migh t ch oose pet s, seeking someone
wh o wil l ref l ect f a vora bl y on t h em (S nyd er, Ber-
sch eid , a nd Gl ick 1985). S ome h omosexua l ma l es re-
f er t o "wea ring" a n a t t ra ct ive compa nion t o a pa rt y
or publ ic event . Th e genera l t end ency t o cl a im ca sua l
a cqua int a nces a s cl ose f riend s a nd d rop prominent
na mes in conversa t ions (a nd t h ereby enh a nce percep-
t ions of one's popul a rit y a nd st a t us) h a s been d ubbed
"pronoia " (Gol d ner 1982). As Ba t eson (1982, p. 3)
observes:
Peopl e t h ese d a ys a re f ond of point ing out t h a t you a re
wh a t you ea t . Th a t proposit ion is t rue enough , but
t h ere is a not h er wh ich I t h ink is a good d ea l more pro-
f ound , na mel y, t h a t you a re t h e compa ny you keep.
Your id ent it y, your sel f , d epend s upon t h e peopl e a nd
t h ings t h a t compose your a ssocia t ions. And perh a ps
even more import a nt , your knowl ed ge of yoursel f a nd
your d evel opment a s a person a re bot h pred ica t ed on
t h ose sa me a ssocia t ions.
Cl ea rl y, our l a ws a l l ow us t o rega rd our ch il d ren,
biol ogica l or a d opt ed , a s possessions (Derd eyn 1979).
Th e embryo a l so l ega l l y is t rea t ed a s propert y in ca ses
of in vit ro f ert il iza t ion (Al bury 1984). And a s Lif t on
(1973) not es, ch il d ren a nd gra nd ch il d ren ma y be a s
cl ose a s t h e a vera ge person get s t o immort a l it y. S uch
a l iving l ega cy is of t en a st rongl y d esired ext ension
of sel f . S mit h (1983) not es t h a t we t a ke t h is sort of
possessive a t t it ud e t owa rd ch il d ren wh en we ma ke
boa st f ul cl a ims a bout t h em a nd wh en we "give t h em
a wa y" in ma rria ge. Th e sa me ext end ed sel f not ion en-
t ers a rgument s a bout a bort ion (Pa ul a nd Pa ul 1979).
Ch il d ren a l so a re t rea t ed a s possessions in d ivorce
proceed ings (Hoba rt 1975).
Th e incorpora t ion of ot h ers int o ext end ed sel f ca n
invol ve a d emea ning object if ica t ion of t h ese ot h er
persons. Tournier (1957) d escribes t h e ina bil it y t o re-
l a t e t o peopl e t h a t ca uses some of us t o t rea t ot h ers a s
t h ings ra t h er t h a n a s h uma n beings. S imil a rl y, Dwor-
kin (1981) d ocument s t h e l a ws t h a t a l l owed men t o
t rea t women a s ch a t t el propert y unt il t h e 19t h cen-
t ury. S h e a rgues t h a t men st il l t rea t women a s object s
in pornogra ph y, prost it ut ion, a nd ra pe. Al t h ough
t h ese l a t t er object if ica t ions of women by men a re un-
l ikel y t o a d d t o ext end ed sense of sel f , a nd cert a inl y
not f or women, more norma l rel a t ionsh ips bet ween
peopl e ma y ext end t h e sense of sel f of bot h pa rt ici-
pa nt s.
If ot h er peopl e a re a pa rt of our ext end ed sel ves, it
f ol l ows t h a t t h ere sh oul d be a sense of sel f -l oss d uring
d ivorce a nd a t t h e d ea t h of a spouse, ch il d , or cl ose
f riend . Th is is consist ent l y observed t o be t h e ca se,
a l t h ough a f t er t h e ind ivid ua l h a s rega ined a new sense
of sel f f ol l owing a d ivorce (i.e., if suf f icient t ime h a s
el a psed ), grieving f or a f ormer spouse wh o d ies is mil d
in compa rison t o grieving f or a current spouse wh o
d ies (Doka 1986). In most a l l ot h er inst a nces, h ow-
ever, t h e l oss of a ch il d or spouse is f el t a s a l oss of sel f .
As a wid ow rel a t es, "It 's a s if my insid e h a d been t orn
out a nd l ef t a h orribl e wound t h ere . . . a s if h a l f of
mysel f wa s missing" (Pa rkes 1972, p. 97).
Jea l ousy a t t h e emot iona l or sexua l inf id el it y of a
spouse or l over a l so ref l ect s a grea t ego wound ing a nd
a f ea r of t ot a l l oss of t h is pa rt of sel f (Cl a nt on a nd
S mit h 1977). Most recent t rea t ment s see jea l ousy a s
possessiveness a ppl ied t o peopl e a nd emph a size t h a t
it is a n egoist ic a nd unh ea l t h y emot ion (e.g., Ber-
sch eid a nd Fei 1977; Da vis 1949; Jones 1948). S evera l
st ud ies a l so h a ve l inked jea l ousy t o a socia l a nd cul -
t ura l pa t t ern t h a t emph a sizes compet it ion a nd pri-
va t e ownersh ip of propert y (Ma zur 1977; Wh it eh urst
1977).
Anot h er evid ence of t h e incorpora t ion of ot h er per-
sons int o one's ext end ed sel f is t h e sense of persona l
injury wh en a cl ose f riend or rel a t ive is injured . Th is
is cert a inl y t h e ca se wh en such a person is ra ped , f or
exa mpl e (Burgess a nd Hol mst rom 1976). Brown-
mil l er (1975) a nd Kut a sh , Kut a sh , a nd S ch l esinger
(1978) not e t h a t ra pe is a n a ssa ul t (wit h int ent t o in-
RQIC1NI ANDIr
TWI
IFYTIENl nl E -L F 157
jure a not h er person) a nd a robbery-l ike propert y
crime (wit h int ent t o get a not h er's propert y-in t h is
ca se by "h a ving" h er). Th us, t h e ra pist sees t h e vict im
a s "bot h a h a t ed person a nd d esired propert y"
(Brownmil l er 1975, p. 201). From t h e ra pe vict im's
perspect ive, t h ere is a l so a viol a t ion of sel f d ue t o t h e
unwa nt ed incorpora t ion of t h e ra pist int o sel f . Th us,
a l t h ough t h e ra pist ma y perceive a n ext end ed sense of
sel f , t h e ra pe vict im a nd t h ose wh o incl ud e t h is vict im
wit h in t h eir senses of sel f f eel t ra uma t ic l osses of sel f .
Bod y Pa rt s
As not ed in t h e sel f -percept ion resea rch (e.g., Al l -
port 1937; McCl el l a nd 1951; Prel inger 1959), bod y
pa rt s a re a mong t h e most cent ra l pa rt s of t h e ex-
t end ed sel f . In psych oa na l yt ic t erms, such sel f -ext en-
sion is ca l l ed ca t h exis. Ca t h exis invol ves t h e ch a rging
of a n object , a ct ivit y, or id ea wit h emot iona l energy
by t h e ind ivid ua l . Th e concept most commonl y h a s
been a ppl ied t o bod y pa rt s a nd it is known, f or in-
st a nce, t h a t women genera l l y t end t o ca t h ect bod y
pa rt s t o a grea t er d egree t h a n men a nd t h a t such ca -
t h exis ref l ect s sel f -a ccept a nce (Rook 1985; S ecourd
a nd Joura rd 1953). Rook (1985) f ound t h a t wh en a
bod y pa rt is more h igh l y ca t h ect ed , t h ere is grea t er
use of grooming prod uct s t o ca re f or t h is pa rt of t h e
bod y. Csikszent imih a l yi a nd Roch berg-Ha l t on
(1981) proposed t h e seemingl y id ent ica l concept of
psych ic energy invest ment t o d escribe t h e process of
id ent if ica t ion wit h possessions of a ny t ype. Beca use
we a re perma nent l y a t t a ch ed t o our bod y pa rt s, t h ese
bod y pa rt s a re expect ed t o be more st rongl y ca t h ect ed
t h a n ma t eria l possessions t h a t ca n be more ea sil y a c-
quired a nd d isca rd ed .
Beca use bod y pa rt s a re norma l l y cent ra l t o concep-
t ions of sel f , t h e l oss of bod y pa rt s is t a nt a mount t o
l osing one's id ent it y a nd one's very being. Ind eed , t h e
l oss of a l imb of t en is viewed by t h ose f rom wh om it
h a s been severed in just t h is wa y (e.g., Pa rker 1982;
S ch il d er 1950). One is l it era l l y a nd symbol ica l l y
a f ra id of being l ess of a person f ol l owing a n a mput a -
t ion.
S OME IMPLICATIONS OF EXTENDED
S ELF FOR CONS UMER RES EARCH
In a d d it ion t o t h e genera l impl ica t ion t h a t t h e d o-
ma in of consumer beh a vior is enrich ed a nd enl a rged
by t h e ext end ed sel f f ormul a t ion (e.g., resea rch is
need ed int o ea ch of t h e preced ing "specia l ca ses" a nd
int o t h e processes of sel f -ext ension), consumer re-
sea rch int o a number of import a nt negl ect ed a rea s of
consumer beh a vior ma y be opened by t h is f ormul a -
t ion. S ix negl ect ed a rea s t h a t ca n benef it f rom t h e ex-
t end ed sel f const ruct a re: (1) Ja mes's vision t h a t we
vica riousl y consume t h rough ot h er f a mil y members,
(2) gif t -giving, wh ich h a s received onl y l imit ed a t t en-
t ion f rom consumer resea rch ers, (3) ca re of d ura bl e
possessions, wh ich h a s been a l most t ot a l l y negl ect ed ,
(4) orga n d ona t ion resea rch , (5) prod uct d isposit ion
a nd d isuse, a nd (6) t h e rol e of ext end ed sel f in gener-
a t ing mea ning in l if e, a rgua bl y t h e most signif ica nt
impl ica t ion of t h e ext end ed sel f .
Vica rious Consumpt ion
Vebl en (1899) sa w wives a nd ch il d ren pl a ying a
d ecora t ive a nd expressive rol e f or t urn of t h e cent ury
nouvea u rich e. In t h is view, cl ot h ing a nd bejewel ing
one's wif e is not unl ike d ecora t ing one's h ouse-it is
a n a d vert isement f or sel f . S imil a rl y, Vebl en not ed
t h a t one ca n vica riousl y consume t h rough one's d e-
pend ent s, so t h a t consumpt ion t h a t enh a nces t h eir
ext end ed sel ves enh a nces one's own ext end ed sel f , of
wh ich t h ey a re a pa rt . Al t h ough t od a y's f a mil ies a re
l ess pa t ria rch a l t h a n t h ose of Vebl en's d a y, t h e t en-
d ency t o vica riousl y consume t h rough t h ose wh o a re
a pa rt of ext end ed sel f perh a ps is not d issimil a r. We
ga in in sel f -est eem f rom t h e ego enh a ncing consump-
t ion of t h ese peopl e. If our f riend l ives in a n ext ra va -
ga nt h ouse or d rives a n ext ra va ga nt ca r, we f eel just a
bit more ext ra va ga nt oursel ves. S uch vica rious con-
sumpt ion d if f eres f rom S ol omon's (1986b) "surro-
ga t e consumers" wh o a re rea l l y surroga t e inf orma -
t ion ga t h erers a nd buyers ra t h er t h a n consumers.
If one's spouse is seen a s a n ext ension of sel f , it
woul d seem t o f ol l ow t h a t t h e success of a spouse
sh oul d ra ise one"s sel f -est eem in much t h e sa me wa y
a s persona l success. Wea t h ers (1978) f ound t h a t col -
l ege senior women, especia l l y t h ose wh o a re ma rried ,
t end t o perceive a sh a red sense of prest ige wh en h us-
ba nd s succeed . However, t h is is much l ess t rue f or
t h ose wh o pl a n t o go t o gra d ua t e sch ool a nd is not
t rue a t a l l f or t h ose wh o a re commit t ed t o t h eir own
prof essiona l ca reers. In a d d it ion, Ma cke, Boh rnst ed t ,
a nd Bernst ein (1979) f ound t h a t f or h ousewives, t h e
h usba nd 's success is a ssocia t ed wit h h igh er persona l
sel f -est eem (a ppa rent l y l a rgel y d ue t o increa sed
h ouseh ol d income), but f or prof essiona l women (a nd
f or t h ose h usba nd s' successes t h a t d o not impa ct in-
come), t h e h usba nd 's success ca n a ct ua l l y be a ssoci-
a t ed wit h l ower sel f -est eem. Th ese f ind ings suggest a
compl ex sit ua t ion in wh ich a spouse ca n be bot h a n
ext ension of one's sel f a nd a riva l . Th e riva l ry a spect s
of a rel a t ionsh ip ca n ca use one's spouse's success rel a -
t ive t o t h e ot h er t o h a ve a nega t ive ef f ect on sense of
sel f . Given t h e d ecl ining preva l ence of t h e t ra d it iona l
workh usba nd /h ousewif e h ouseh ol d , we migh t a nt ici-
pa t e t h a t ext ension of sel f via spouse ma y be a d ecl in-
ing ph enomenon a nd t h e socia l compa rison riva l ry
a spect s ma y be increa singl y common (see Bremer a nd
Vogl 1984; Da vis a nd Robinson 1988).
Gif t -Giving
Th e incorpora t ion of one's ch il d ren int o ext end ed
sel f a l l ows a n expl a na t ion f or a ppa rent l y a l t ruist ic
158 THE JOURNAL OF CONS UMER RES EARCH
a ct s of generosit y a nd kind ness t owa rd t h ese ch il d ren.
Exist ing economic a nd a nt h ropol ogica l t h eories h a ve
a d if f icul t t ime d ea l ing wit h such a l t ruism, a nd t end
t o expl a in it a s a l ong-t erm exch a nge process such a s
t h a t envisioned in Trivers' (1971) not ion of recipro-
ca l a l t ruism. In t h is view a nd rel a t ed exch a nge t h eo-
ret ica l views, t h e onl y rea son we h el p or a ct gener-
ousl y t owa rd a not h er h uma n being is beca use t h is
h el ps ensure our own wel f a re. If we h el p a not h er, we
ca n f eel more conf id ent t h a t t h is ot h er wil l h el p us if
a nd wh en we a re in need . In t h e ca se of ch il d ren, t h ey
cont inue t o be seen a s sources of f ina ncia l a nd emo-
t iona l support in t h e event of ca t a st roph e or d if f i-
cul t y. However, t h is pessimist ic view of h uma n be-
h a vior is not need ed wh en t h e not ion of ext end ed sel f
incl ud ing ot h er peopl e is recognized . Th e expl a na -
t ion is simpl y t h a t we give t o our ch il d ren a nd cert a in
ot h ers beca use ma king t h em h a ppy ma kes t h a t pa rt
of us t h a t incl ud es t h em h a ppy. Th e smil e on our
ch il d 's f a ce put s a h ea rt -f el t smil e on our own f a ce.
Th is expl a na t ion ma y st il l invol ve egoism ra t h er t h a n
purel y ot h er-f ocused a l t ruism, but it is l ess cynica l
a nd more compa t ibl e wit h t ra d it iona l not ions of h u-
ma nit a ria nism ba sed on empa t h y.
S imil a rl y, it is expect ed t h a t gif t -giving is more sel f -
gra t if ying t o t h e ext ent t h a t t h e recipient is a pa rt of
t h e giver's ext end ed sel f . Wh en t h is is not t h e ca se,
gif t -giving is expect ed t o be d one onl y grud gingl y or
onl y in a ccord a nce wit h rul es of reciprocit y. For giv-
ing t o ot h ers incorpora t ed wit h in one's ext end ed sel f ,
h owever, reciproca l gif t s f rom a h igh l y ca t h ect ed re-
cipient sh oul d not be required f or cont inued giving.
Beca use some d egree of riva l ry wa s not ed t o occur
wit h a spouse or pa rt ner a nd beca use reciproca l giving
is a rit ua l t h a t h el ps bring f riend s wit h in one's ex-
t end ed sel f , such nonreciproca l giving is most l ikel y
f or gif t s t o rel a t ives such a s pa rent s t o wh om sel f -ex-
t ension is f ixed by more perma nent mea ns (see Ch ea l
1986, 1987). Resea rch on such issues ma y h el p t o ex-
t rica t e consumer resea rch f rom t h e na rrow perspec-
t ive t h a t consumer beh a vior invol ves exch a nge a s a
sol e mea ns of prod uct a nd service a cquisit ion.
Ca re of Possessions
A rel a t ionsh ip sh oul d exist bet ween incorpora t ion
of a n object int o one's ext end ed sel f a nd t h e ca re a nd
ma int ena nce of t h e object . In one st ud y (Bel k 1987b,
1988), t h e more st rongl y h omeowners ca t h ect ed t h eir
d wel l ings, t h e more f requent l y or recent l y t h ey re-
port ed mowing t h e gra ss, remod el ing t h e h ouse,
pa int ing t h e int erior, a nd d ust ing. Homeowners ca -
t h ect ed t h eir d wel l ings more st rongl y wh en t h e d wel l -
ing wa s buil t a nd a cquired more recent l y a nd wa s in
bet t er cond it ion.
A simil a r pa t t ern wa s obt a ined in t h e sa me st ud y
f or ca r ca re by 19- t o 28-yea r-ol d ma l e ca r owners
(f ind ings f or f ema l es were not signif ica nt h ere, a s wa s
expect ed -e.g., Bl och 1982). Report ed f requency of
wa sh ing, wa xing, a nd ch a nging t h e oil in one's ca r is
signif ica nt l y correl a t ed wit h cent ra l it y of t h e veh icl e
t o one's ext end ed sel f . As wit h h ouses, ca rs t h a t a re
newer, more recent l y a cquired , a nd in bet t er cond i-
t ion a l so a re ca t h ect ed more h igh l y. S imil a r f ind ings
h a ve been obt a ined by Rich ins a nd Bl och (1986) wh o
report l esser invol vement wit h a ut omobil es a f t er
t h eir newness "wea rs of f ."
Young f ema l es in t h e sa me st ud y report ed grea t er
ba t h ing or sh owering f requency wh en t h ey h a d h igh er
bod y pa rt ca t h exis scores (f ind ings were nonsignif i-
ca nt f or ma l es, a s expect ed , since f ema l es ca t h ect
bod y pa rt s t o a grea t er d egree t h a n d o ma l es; S ecord
a nd Joura rd 1953). Genera l l y t h en, t h e more a n ob-
ject is ca t h ect ed int o one's ext end ed sel f , t h e more
ca re a nd a t t ent ion it t end s t o receive. Ina smuch a s
consumer resea rch h a s d one l it t l e t o invest iga t e con-
sumpt ion (a s opposed t o purch a se or inf orma t ion a c-
quisit ion), not ions of ext end ed sel f ma y be especia l l y
usef ul in suggest ing promising d irect ions f or such re-
sea rch .
Orga n Dona t ion
Th e d ona t ion of bl ood a nd kid neys a nd promises
t o a l l ow one's ot h er orga ns t o be "h a rvest ed " upon
d ea t h a re vol unt a ry d ecisions t h a t seem l ikel y t o be
a f f ect ed by ca t h exis of t h e pa rt icul a r bod y pa rt s in-
vol ved . Pessemier, Bemma or, a nd Ha nssens (1977)
f ound t h a t t h ose wh o ra t e t h eir genera l bod y ima ge a s
l ess import a nt a re more wil l ing t o d ona t e bod y or-
ga ns. For specif ic bod y orga ns sough t in ca d a ver d o-
na t ions, Ful t on, Ful t on, a nd S immons (1977) re-
port ed t h a t t h ose orga ns genera l l y seen a s more cen-
t ra l t o id ent it y a re l ess l ikel y t o be a pproved f or
remova l by surviving rel a t ives. Among l ive pot ent ia l
d onors, Wil ms et a l . (1987) f ound t h a t peopl e a re l ess
wil l ing t o d ona t e orga ns seen a s more sa cred , emo-
t iona l , myst erious, a nd not wel l und erst ood . In t h e
Unit ed S t a t es, wh ere t h eir resea rch wa s cond uct ed ,
t h e more sa crosa nct orga ns a re t h e eyes, bra in, a nd
h ea rt , wh ich a re most of t en vet oed wh en t h e f a mil y
a pproves ot h er orga ns f or t ra nspl a nt a t ion. In con-
t ra st , Th ukra l a nd Cummins (1987) suggest t h a t Bud -
d h ist s ma y f ind it a h igh h onor t o d ona t e t h eir eyes,
beca use t h ey bel ieve t h a t t h is a l l ows t h em t o l ive on
a f t er d ea t h .
Ot h er evid ence sh ows t h a t t ra nspl a nt a t ion of im-
port a nt bod y orga ns ca n be psych ol ogica l l y t ra uma t ic
f or t h e d onor a nd t h e recipient . For d onors, t h e f ea r
is t h a t a signif ica nt pa rt of one's sel f wil l be l ost (S im-
mons, Kl ein, a nd S immons 1977). Ba rnet t et a l .
(1987) cit e such f ea rs a s a rea son wh y t h ey f ound t h a t
orga n d ona t ion a ppea l s st ressing benef it s t o sel f (e.g.,
peopl e wil l t h ink of you a s a good a nd ca ring person)
a re more successf ul t h a n a l t ruist ic a ppea l s t o h el p
ot h ers (t h e t ra d it iona l l y cit ed rea son f or orga n d ona -
t ions-e.g., Cl evel a nd 1975; Fel l ner a nd Ma rsh a l l
1981; McInt yre et a l . 1987). For t ra nspl a nt recipient s,
POS S ES S IONS AND THE EXTENDED S ELF 159
t h e f ea r is t wof ol d . First , recipient s f ea r a l oss of sel f
beca use t h eir d ef ect ive orga ns must be removed a nd
d isca rd ed . Resea rch using t h e Dra w-a -Person t est
f ind s t h a t t ra nspl a nt recipient s d ra w more d ist ort ed
a nd sma l l er f igures t h a n ot h ers d o (of t en wit h bod y
pa rt s missing), ref l ect ing a l oss of sel f -est eem, inse-
curit y, a nxiet y, a nd poor bod y ima ge (Ch a t urved i a nd
Pa nt 1984). S econd , t h ere is a f ea r of cont a mina t ing
sel f wit h t h e orga n of a not h er person. Tra nspl a nt ed
orga ns f rom a n opposit e sex sibl ing of t en l ea d t o f ea rs
of becoming a h omosexua l (Ba sch 1973; Ca st el -
nuovo-Ted esco 1973). S imil a rl y, bl a cks express f ea rs
of cont a mina t ion by receiving orga ns f rom wh it es
(Ca l l end er et a l . 1982). In some ca ses, t h e orga n recip-
ient expect s t o a cquire t h e d onor's t ra it s a nd skil l s
(such a s a rt ist ic a nd l a ngua ge skil l s or a l t ruism). Gen-
era l l y, h owever, t h e t ra uma of a cquiring bod y orga ns
f rom a not h er person brings a bout a d epression t h a t is
a t t ribut a bl e a t l ea st pa rt l y t o d if f icul t y in psych ol ogi-
ca l l y a ccept ing t h e orga n t h a t d rugs h a ve h el ped t h e
bod y t o ph ysiol ogica l l y a ccept (e.g., Biorck a nd Ma g-
nusson 1968; Ca st el nuovo-Ted esco 1971; Kl ein a nd
S immons 1977).
From t h e point of view of und erst a nd ing wil l ing-
ness t o d bna t e bod y orga ns, a f urt h er consid era t ion
d erives f rom t h e f a ct t h a t persons a nd groups a l so
ma y be seen a s a pa rt of one's ext end ed sel f (ref er t o
sect ions on l evel s of sel f a nd peopl e a s possessions).
For exa mpl e, one sh oul d be more wil l ing t o d ona t e
bod y orga ns t o t h ose seen a s more cent ra l t o one's ex-
t end ed sel f . Th is expect a t ion is support ed by invest i-
ga t ions of va rious f a mil y members a pproa ch ed t o d o-
na t e a kid ney, in t h a t t h ose wit h cl oser rel a t ionsh ips
t o t h e pa t ient in need of t h e kid ney a re more wil l ing t o
submit t o t est ing a nd ul t ima t el y t o d ona t e t h eir own
kid neys (S immons, Bush , a nd Kl ein 1977). Th ose
wh o ca t h ect communit y t o a grea t er d egree a re ex-
pect ed t o be more wil l ing t o d ona t e bod y orga ns t o
ot h ers wit h in t h eir communit y. Th is expect a t ion is
borne out f or bl ood d ona t ions (Tit mus 1970) a s wel l
a s f or d ona t ions of t issue orga ns (Bel k a nd Aust in
1986; Prot t a s 1983). Th us, a l t h ough ca t h exis of bod y
orga ns a nd ot h er persons a re not necessa ril y a nt it h et -
ica l t o one a not h er, t h ey a re t h ough t t o crea t e oppo-
sit e ba rriers a nd incent ives t o orga n d ona t ion. Bel k
a nd Aust in (1986) a l so f ound t h a t t h ose wh o a re more
ma t eria l ist ic (i.e., wh o a t t a ch more import a nce t o
possessions-Bel k 1984a , p. 291) see bod y orga ns a s
more cent ra l t o t h eir id ent it ies a nd a re l ess wil l ing t o
pa rt wit h t h em.
Prod uct Disposit ion a nd Disuse
Consumer beh a vior h a s d one l it t l e t o invest iga t e
t h e d isposit ion a nd d isuse of d ura bl e possessions (see
Bel k, S h erry, a nd Wa l l end orf 1988 f or a n except ion
a nd a review of ext a nt l it era t ure). Korosec-S erf a t y
(1984) f ound t h a t in Fra nce peopl e t end t o "irra t io-
na l l y" h a ng ont o possessions beca use "t h ey migh t
come in h a nd y some d a y," a nd in f a ct event ua l l y l ose
t ra ck of t h e a ccumul a t ed possessions in t h eir a t t ics.
La Bra nch e (1973) suggest ed t h a t such ret ent ion of
possessions is d ue t o "t h e f ea r of a nnih il a t ion of our
current h ist ories." Th a t is, ma t eria l possessions f orm-
ing pa rt s of our ext end ed sel ves seem t o f orm a n a n-
ch or f or our id ent it ies t h a t red uces our f ea r t h a t t h ese
id ent it ies wil l someh ow be wa sh ed a wa y. We ma y
specul a t e t h a t t h e st ronger t h e ind ivid ua l 's unex-
t end ed or core sel f , t h e l ess t h e need t o a cquire, sa ve,
a nd ca re f or a number of possessions f orming a pa rt
of t h e ext end ed sel f .
Conversel y, one of t h e point s in our l ives wh en we
sh oul d be incl ined t o d isca rd possessions t h a t f orm a
pa rt of ext end ed sel f is wh en t h e unext end ed sel f h a s
grown in st rengt h a nd ext ent so t h a t t h e buf f er of ex-
t end ed sel f becomes l ess necessa ry. S uch t imes a re
l ikel y wh en key l if e st a ges a nd rit es of pa ssa ge h a ve
occurred , such a s sch ool gra d ua t ions, new jobs, ma r-
ria ge, moving resid ences, a nd ret irement . Anot h er in-
st a nce wh en consumers sh oul d sh ed or negl ect pos-
sessions is wh en possessions no l onger f it consumers'
id ea l sel f -ima ges. Th is ca n occur eit h er beca use t h e
id ea l sel f -ima ge h a s ch a nged or beca use t h e ima ges of
t h e object s f ormerl y incorpora t ed in ext end ed sel f
h a ve ch a nged . As La Bra nch e (1973) not ed , we a re
our own h ist oria ns. S o, a not h er f a ct or in t h e ret ent ion
or d isca rd ing of possessions t h a t no l onger f it our view
of oursel ves is t h eir f it wit h our percept ions of our en-
t ire persona l h ist ory. Possessions ma y sh ow wh ere we
h a ve come f rom a nd t h ereby rema in va l ua bl e a s a
point of cont ra st t o present ext end ed sel f . As wit h t h e
ot h er a rea s of consumer impl ica t ions not ed in t h is
sect ion, much work rema ins t o be d one rega rd ing d is-
posit ion, ret ent ion, a nd object negl ect .
Ext end ed S el f a nd Mea ning in Lif e
Th e preced ing subsect ion sh oul d not be t a ken t o
suggest t h a t possessions a re merel y a crut ch t o sh ore
up wea k or sa gging persona l it ies. Th e possessions in-
corpora t ed in ext end ed sel f serve va l ua bl e f unct ions
t o h ea l t h y persona l it ies. One such f unct ion is a ct ing
a s a n object ive ma nif est a t ion of t h e sel f . As Dougl a s
a nd Ish erwood (1979) not ed , such possessions a re
"good f or t h inking." Possessions h el p us ma nipul a t e
our possibil it ies a nd present t h e sel f in a wa y t h a t ga r-
ners f eed ba ck f rom ot h ers wh o a re rel uct a nt t o re-
spond so openl y t o t h e unext end ed sel f .
Th e possessions in our ext end ed sel f a l so give us a
persona l a rch ive or museum t h a t a l l ows us t o ref l ect
on our h ist ories a nd h ow we h a ve ch a nged . Th rough
h eirl ooms, t h e f a mil y is a bl e t o buil d a simil a r a rch ive
a nd a l l ow ind ivid ua l f a mil y members t o ga in a sense
of perma nence a nd pl a ce in t h e worl d t h a t ext end s
beyond t h eir own l ives a nd a ccompl ish ment s. Com-
munit ies, na t ions, a nd ot h er group l evel s of sel f a re
simil a rl y const it ut ed via monument s, buil d ings,
books, music, a nd ot h er crea t ed works. Th e a ssocia -
160 THE JOURNAL OF CONS UMER RES EARCH
t ion of t h ese a rt if a ct s wit h va rious group l evel s of sel f
provid es a sense of communit y essent ia l t o group h a r-
mony, spirit , a nd coopera t ion. In a d d it ion, na t ura l
wond ers ca n be incorpora t ed int o ext end ed sel f such
t h a t we enh a nce f eel ings of immort a l it y a nd h a ving a
pl a ce in t h e worl d . Th is is not t o suggest t h a t ext end -
ing sel f int o ma t eria l possessions h a s onl y posit ive
ef f ect s. Resea rch on ma t eria l ism suggest s some of t h e
nega t ive consequences of rel ying on possessions t o
provid e mea ning in l if e. But t h e const ruct of ex-
t end ed sel f a l so suggest s t h a t possessions ca n ma ke a
posit ive cont ribut ion t o our id ent it ies.
Resea rch invol ving l evel s of ext end ed sel f seems
l ikel y t o provid e a more ma cro perspect ive t h a t re-
l a t es consumer beh a vior t o a broa d er port ion of h u-
ma n l if e (Bel k 1987a ). By consid ering t h e rol e of con-
sumpt ion in provid ing mea ning in l if e, we ma y d e-
vel op a st ronger vision of t h e signif ica nce of
consumer resea rch . Consumpt ion is a cent ra l f a cet of
cont empora ry l if e, but it h a s sel d om been consid ered
f rom t h is broa d er perspect ive. Th e const ruct of ex-
t end ed sel f of f ers some promise f or cul t iva t ing such a
broa d ened a pprecia t ion of t h e pot ent ia l signif ica nce
of consumer resea rch .
CONCLUS IONS
Th is a rt icl e bega n by suggest ing t h a t we a re wh a t we
h a ve a nd t h a t t h is ma y be t h e most ba sic a nd powerf ul
f a ct of consumer beh a vior. A number of l ines of evi-
d ence were present ed in support of t h is cont ent ion.
Th e l imit ed resea rch t h a t h a s a d d ressed d irect l y t h e
"t h ings" t h a t a re viewed t o comprise sel f genera l l y
h a s f ound t h a t possessions f ol l ow bod y pa rt s a nd
mind in t h eir cent ra l it y t o sel f . Evid ence support ing
t h e genera l premise t h a t possessions cont ribut e t o
sense of sel f is f ound in a broa d a rra y of invest iga -
t ions, incl ud ing rea ct ions t o t h e l oss of possessions,
t rea t ment of gra ve good s, sel f -percept ion, a nd t h eo-
ries of propert y righ t s.
In consid ering t h e f unct ions of ext end ed sel f , d is-
cussion wa s d irect ed t owa rd t h e rel a t ive rol es t h a t
h a ving, d oing, a nd being pl a y in our l ives a nd id ent i-
t ies. It seems a n inesca pa bl e f a ct of mod ern l if e t h a t
we l ea rn, d ef ine, a nd remind oursel ves of wh o we a re
by our possessions. Devel opment a l evid ence suggest s
t h a t t h is id ent if ica t ion wit h our t h ings begins quit e
ea rl y in l if e a s t h e inf a nt l ea rns t o d ist inguish sel f f rom
environment a nd t h en f rom ot h ers wh o ma y envy our
possessions. Emph a sis on ma t eria l possessions t end s
t o d ecrea se wit h a ge, but rema ins h igh t h rough out l if e
a s we seek t o express oursel ves t h rough possessions
a nd use ma t eria l possessions t o seek h a ppiness, re-
mind oursel ves of experiences, a ccompl ish ment s,
a nd ot h er peopl e in our l ives, a nd even crea t e a sense
of immort a l it y a f t er d ea t h . Our a ccumul a t ion of pos-
sessions provid es a sense of pa st a nd t el l s us wh o we
a re, wh ere we h a ve come f rom, a nd perh a ps wh ere we
a re going.
S el f -ext ension occurs t h rough cont rol a nd ma st ery
of a n object , t h rough crea t ion of a n object , t h rough
knowl ed ge of a n object , a nd t h rough cont a mina t ion
via proximit y a nd h a bit ua t ion t o a n object . Th e ex-
t end ed sel f opera t es not onl y on a n ind ivid ua l l evel ,
but a l so on a col l ect ive l evel invol ving f a mil y, group,
subcul t ura l , a nd na t iona l id ent it ies. Th ese a d d it iona l
l evel s of sel f were posit ed t o a ccount f or cert a in be-
h a viors t h a t migh t be seen a s sel f l ess in t h e na rrower
ind ivid ua l sense of sel f .
In a d d it ion t o t h e use of commonl y purch a sed con-
sumer good s a s possessions comprising ext end ed sel f ,
severa l f requent l y used but sel d om resea rch ed t ypes
of possessions were consid ered : col l ect ions, money,
ot h er peopl e, pet s, a nd bod y pa rt s. In ea ch ca se, t h ere
is evid ence of a rel a t ionsh ip bet ween t h ese posses-
sions a nd one's sense of sel f . Impl ica t ions were t h en
d erived invol ving gif t -giving, vica rious consumpt ion,
ca re of possessions, orga n d ona t ion, prod uct d isposi-
t ion a nd d isuse, a nd t h e rol e of ext end ed sel f in crea t -
ing mea ning in l if e.
A broa d a rra y of evid ence a nd t h eory, d ra wing on
a va riet y of f iel d s of invest iga t ion, support t h e impor-
t a nce of ext end ed sel f a s a cent ra l const ruct t h a t ca n
expl a in a va riet y of consumer a nd h uma n beh a viors.
Th e const ruct of f ers a wa y t o a ccount f or gif t -giving
wit h out necessa ril y resort ing t o t h e cynica l premises
of t h e exch a nge pa ra d igm, a nd a l so of f ers perspec-
t ives on t h e rel a t ivel y unexpl ored consumpt ion a rea s
of pet s, ca re a nd ma int ena nce of consumpt ion good s,
prod uct l oss a nd d isposit ion, orga n d ona t ion, sh a r-
ing, col l ect ive consumpt ion of object s, a nd col l ect ion
of consumpt ion object s. It ra ises import a nt issues
concerning t h e rol e of possessions a t ea ch st a ge of t h e
l if e course. And , it of f ers a more promising wa y of
consid ering t h e symbol ic import a nce of consumpt ion
in our l ives t h a n d oes prior prod uct a nd sel f -concept
resea rch . In l igh t of t h e scope a nd import a nce of such
issues, t h eir rel a t ive negl ect in consumer beh a vior re-
sea rch , a nd t h e d iverse a nd compel l ing evid ence sup-
port ing t h e rol e t h a t ext end ed sel f ma y pl a y in sh ed -
d ing l igh t on t h ese issues, t h e concept of possessions
a s ext end ed sel f h a s much t o of f er t h e quest f or a n
und erst a nd ing of consumer beh a vior.
[Received April 198 7. Revised Februa ry 1988.]
REFERENCES
Abel son, Robert P. (1986), "Bel ief s a re Like Possessions,"
Journa l f or t h e Th eory of S ocia l Beh a viour, 16 (3), 223-
250.
a nd Debora h A. Prent ice (f ort h coming), "Bel ief s a s
Possessions-a Funct iona l Perspect ive," At t it ud e
S t ruct ure a nd Funct ion, ed s. Ant h ony R. Pra t ka nis et
a l ., Hil l sid e, NJ: La wrence Erl ba um Associa t es, in
press.
Al bury, Rebecca (1984), "Wh o Owns t h e Embryo?" Test -
Tube Women: Wh a t Fut uref or Mot h erh ood ?, ed s. Rit a
Ard it t i et a l ., Lond on: Pa nd ora , 54-67.
POS S ES S IONS AND THE EXTENDED S ELF 161
Al eksh in, V.A. (1983), "Buria l Cust oms a s a n Ant h ropo-
l ogica l S ource," Current Ant h ropol ogy, 24 (April ),
137-150.
Al l port , Gord on W. (1937), Persona l it y: A Psych ol ogica l
Int erpret a t ion, New York: Henry Hol t .
(1955), Becoming, New Ha ven, CT: Ya l e Universit y
Press.
Ames, Kennet h L. (1984), "Ma t eria l Cul t ure a s Nonverba l
Communica t ion: A Hist orica l Ca se S t ud y," America n
Ma t eria l Cul t ure: Th e S h a pe of Th ings Around Us, ed .
Ed it h Ma yo, Bowl ing Green, OH: Bowl ing Green Uni-
versit y Popul a r Press, 25-47.
At kin, Ron (1981), Mul t id imensiona l Ma n, Mid d l esex, En-
gl a nd : Ha rmond swort h .
Ausubel , Da vid P., Ed mund V. S ul l iva n, a nd S . Wil l ia m
Ives (1980), Th eory a nd Probl ems of Ch il d Devel op-
ment , New York: Grune & S t ra t t on.
Ba kker, Cornel ius B. a nd Ma ria nne K. Ba kker-Ra bd a u
(1973), No Trespa ssing! Expl ora t ions in Huma n Terri-
t oria l it y, S a n Fra ncisco, CA: Ch a nd l er a nd S h a rp.
Ba rnet t , Ma rk A., Mich a el Kl a ssen, Vera McMinimy, a nd
La urel S ch wa rz (1987), "Th e Rol e of S el f - a nd Ot h er-
Orient ed Mot iva t ion in t h e Orga n Dona t ion Deci-
sion," Ad va nces in Consumer Resea rch , Vol . 14, ed s.
Mel a nie Wa l l end orf a nd Pa ul And erson, Provo, UT:
Associa t ion f or Consumer Resea rch , 335-337.
Ba sch , S a muel H. (1973), "Th e Int ra psych ic Int egra t ion of
a New Orga n: A Cl inica l S t ud y of Kid ney Tra nspl a nt a -
t ion," Psych oa na l yt ic Qua rt erl y, 42 (3), 364-384.
Ba t eson, Gregory (1982), "Dif f erence, Doubl e Descript ion
a nd t h e Int era ct ive Designa t ion of S el f ," S t ud ies in
S ymbol ism a nd Cul t ura l Communica t ion, ed . F. Al l a n
Ha nson, Ma nh a t t a n, KS : Universit y of Ka nsa s Publ i-
ca t ions in Ant h ropol ogy, 3-8.
Ba t t in, M. Pa bst (1979), "Exa ct Repl ica t ion in t h e Visua l
Art s," Journa l of Aest h et ics a nd Art Crit icism, 38 (2),
153-158.
Bea gl eh ol e, Ernest (1932), Propert y: A S t ud y in S ocia l Psy-
ch ol ogy, New York: Ma cmil l a n.
Bel k, Russel l W. (1978), "Assessing t h e Ef f ect s of Visa bl e
Consumpt ion on Impression Forma t ion," Ad va nces in
Consumer Resea rch , Vol . 5, ed . H. Keit h Hunt , Ann
Arbor, MI: Associa t ion f or Consumer Resea rch , 39-
47.
(1982a ), "Acquisit iveness a nd Possessiveness: Crit i-
cisms a nd Issues," Proceed ings of t h e 1982 Convent ion
of t h eAmerica n Psych ol ogica l Associa t ion, ed . Mich a el
B. Ma zis, Wa sh ingt on, D.C.: America n Psych ol ogica l
Associa t ion (Division 23), 70-73.
(1982b), "Acquiring, Possessing, a nd Col l ect ing:
Fund a ment a l Processes in Consumer Beh a vior," Ma r-
ket ing Th eory: Ph il osoph y of S cience Perspect ives, ed s.
Rona l d F. Bush a rd a nd S h el by D. Hunt , Ch ica go, IL:
America n Ma rket ing Associa t ion, 185-190.
(1 982c), "Ef f ect s of Gif t -Giving Invol vement on Gif t
S el ect ion S t ra t egies," Ad va nces in Consumer Resea rch ,
Vol . 9, ed . And rew Mit ch el l , Ann Arbor, MI: Associa -
t ion f or Consumer Resea rch , 408-412.
(1984a ) "Th ree S ca l es t o Mea sure Const ruct s Re-
l a t ed t o Ma t eria l ism: Rel ia bil it y, Va l id it y, a nd Rel a -
t ionsh ips t o Mea sures of Ha ppiness," Ad va nces in Con-
sumer Resea rch , Vol . 11, ed . Th oma s Kinnea r, Ann
Arbor, MI: Associa t ion f or Consumer Resea rch , 291-
297.
(1984b), "Expl a na t ions f or Congruence Bet ween Pa -
t ron S t ereot ypes a nd Pa t ron S el f -Concept s," Proceed -
ings of t h e 1983 Convent ion of t h eAmerica n Psych ol og-
ica l Associa t ion, ed . Dennis And erson, Wa sh ingt on,
D.C.: America n Psych ol ogica l Associa t ion (Division
23), 93-95.
(1984c), "Cul t ura l a nd Hist orica l Dif f erences in t h e
Concept of S el f a nd Th eir Ef f ect s on At t it ud es Towa rd
Ha ving a nd Giving," Ad va nces in Consumer Resea rch ,
Vol . 1, ed . Th oma s Kinnea r, Ann Arbor, MI: Associa -
t ion f or Consumer Resea rch , 291-297.
(1985), "Ma t eria l ism: Tra it Aspect s of Living in t h e
Ma t eria l Worl d ," Journa l of Consumer Resea rch , 13
(December), 265-280.
(1986a ), "S ymbol ic Consumpt ion of Art a nd Cul -
t ure," Art ist s a nd Cul t ura l Consumers, ed s. Dougl a s V.
S h a w et a l ., Akron, OH: Associa t ion f or Cul t ura l Eco-
nomics, 168-178.
(1986b), "Yuppies a s Arbit ers of t h e Emerging Con-
sumpt ion S t yl e," Ad va nces in Consumer Resea rch ,
Vol . 13, ed . Rich a rd J. Lut z, Provo, UT: Associa t ion
f or Consumer Resea rch , 514-519.
(1987a ), "ACR Presid ent ia l Ad d ress: Ha ppy
Th ough t ," Ad va nces in Consumer Resea rch , Vol . 14,
ed s. Mel a nie Wa l l end orf a nd Pa ul And erson, Provo,
UT: Associa t ion f or Consumer Resea rch , 1-4.
(1 987b), "Possessions a nd Ext end ed S ense of S el f ,"
Ma rket ing a nd S emiot ics: New Direct ions in t h e S t ud y
of S ignsf or S a l e, ed . Jea n Umiker-S ebeok, Berl in, Ger-
ma ny: Mout on d e Gruyt er, 151-164.
(1988), "Propert y, Persons, a nd Ext end ed S ense of
S el f ," Proceed ings of t h e Division of Consumer Psy-
ch ol ogy, America n Psych ol ogica l Associa t ion 1987 An-
nua l Convent ion, New York, ed . Lind a F. Al wit t , Wa sh -
ingt on, D.C.: America n Psych ol ogica l Associa t ion, 28-
33.
a nd Ma rk Aust in (1986), "Orga n Dona t ion Wil l ing-
ness a s a Funct ion of Ext end ed S el f a nd Ma t eria l ism,"
Ad va nces in Hea l t h Ca re Resea rch , 1986 Proceed ings,
ed s. M. Venka t esa n a nd Wa d e La nca st er, Tol ed o, OH:
Associa t ion f or Hea l t h Ca re, 84-88.
, Kennet h Ba h n, a nd Robert Ma yer (1982), "Devel -
opment a l Recognit ion of Consumpt ion S ymbol ism,"
Journa l of Consumer Resea rch , 9 (June), 4-17.
, Joh n S h erry, a nd Mel a nie Wa l l end orf (1988), "A
Na t ura l ist ic Inquiry int o Buyer a nd S el l er Beh a vior a t
a S wa p Meet ," Journa l of Consumer Resea rch , 14
(Ma rch ), 449-470.
a nd Mel a nie Wa l l end orf (1988), "S a cred a nd Pro-
f a ne Aspect s of Money," pa per present ed a t S ociol ogy
of Consumpt ion Conf erence, Osl o, Norwa y.
, Mel a nie Wa l l end orf , Joh n S h erry, Morris Hol -
brook, a nd S cot t Robert s, (1988), "Col l ect ors a nd Col -
l ect ing," Ad va nces in Consumer Resea rch , Vol . 15, ed .
Mich a el Houst on, Provo, UT: Associa t ion f or Con-
sumer Resea rch , Vol . 15, ed . Mich a el Houst on, Provo,
UT: Associa t ion f or Consumer Resea rch , 548-553.
Bel l ow, S a ul (1975), Humbol t 's Gif t , New York: Viking.
Benja min, Wa l t er (1955), "Unpa cking My Libra ry: A Ta l k
a bout Book Col l ect ing," Il l umina t ions, ed . Ha nna h
Arend t , t ra ns. Ha rry Zoh n, New York: Ha rcourt , Bra ce
&Worl d , 59-67.
Berg, Rich a rd L. (1975), "La nd : An Ext ension of t h e Pea s-
a nt 's Ego," Ant ropol ogica l Qua rt erl y, 48 (Ja nua ry), 4-
13.
162 THE JOURNAL OF CONS UMER RES EARCH
Bergl er, Ed mund (1959), Money a nd Emot iona l Conf l ict s,
New York: Pa gea nt .
Bersch eid , El l en a nd Ja ck Fei (1977), "Roma nt ic Love a nd
S exua l Jea l ousy," Jea l ousy, ed s. Gord on Cl a nt on a nd
Lynn G. S mit h , Engl ewood Cl if f s, NJ: Prent ice-Ha l l ,
101-109.
Biorck, Gunna r a nd Gost a Ma gnusson (1968), "Th e Con-
cept of S el f a s Experienced by Pa t ient s wit h a Tra ns-
pl a nt ed Kid ney," Act a Med ica S ca nd ina via , 183, 191 -
192.
Bl och , Pet er (1982), "Invol vement Beyond t h e Purch a se
Process: Concept ua l Issues a nd Empirica l Invest iga -
t ion," Ad va nces in Consumer Resea rch , Vol .9, ed . An-
d rew Mit ch el l , Ann Arbor, MI: Associa t ion f or Con-
sumer Resea rch , 413-417.
Boorst in, Da niel (1973), Th e America ns: Th e Democra t ic
Experience, New York: Ra nd om House.
Bord ewich , Fergus M. (1986), "Dowry Murd ers," Th e At -
l a nt ic, 258 (1),,21-27.
Bornema n, Ernest (1976), "Int rod uct ion," Th e Psych o-
a na l ysis of Money, New York: Urizen, 1-70.
Bowl by, Joh n (1969), At t a ch ment a nd Loss, Vol . 1, Lon-
d on: Hoga rt h .
Bremer, Fra nces a nd Emil y Vogl (1984), Coping Wit h His
S uccess: A S urvivor's Guid e f or Wives, New York,
Ha rper & Row.
Brinberg, Da vid a nd Pa t Ca st el l (1982), "A Resource Ex-
ch a nge Th eory Approa ch t o Int erpersona l Int era c-
t ions," Journa l of Persona l it y a nd S ocia l Psych ol ogy,
43 (8), 260-269.
a nd Rona l d Wood (1983), "A Resource Exch a nge
Th eory Ana l ysis of Consumer Beh a vior," Journa l of
Consumer Resea rch , 10 (December), 330-338.
Brown, Ba rba ra B. (1982), "House a nd Bl ock a s Territ ory,"
pa per present ed a t t h e 1982 Conf erence of t h e Associa -
t ion f or Consumer Resea rch , S a n Fra ncisco, CA.
a nd Ca rol M. Werner (1985), "S ocia l Coh esiveness,
Territ oria l it y, a nd Hol id a y Decora t ions: Th e Inf l uence
of Cul -d e-S a cs," Environment a nd Beh a vior, 17 (S ep-
t ember), 539-565.
Brownmil l er, S usa n (1975), Aga inst Our Wil l : Men,
Women, a nd Ra pe, New York: S imon & S ch ust er.
Burgess, Ann a nd Lynd a Hol mst rom (1976), "Coping Be-
h a vior of t h e Ra pe Vict im," America n Journa l of Psy-
ch ia t ry, 133 (4), 413-417.
Ca in, Ann 0. (1985), "Pet s a s Fa mil y Members," in Pet s
a nd t h e Fa mil y, ed . Ma rvin B. S ussma n, New York:
Ha wort h , 5-10.
Ca l l end er, Cl ive O., Ja mes A. Ba yt on, Curt is Yea ger, a nd
Joh n E. Cl a rk (1982), "At t it ud es Among Bl a cks To-
wa rd Dona t ing Kid neys f or Tra nspl a nt a t ion," Journa l
of t h e Na t iona l Med ica l Associa t ion, 74 (8), 807-809.
Ca meron, Pa ul (1977), Th e Lif e Cycl e: Perspect ive a nd
Comment a ry, Ocea nsid e, NY: Da bor S cience Publ ica -
t ions.
, Ca rol Conra d , Da ve D. Kirkpa t rick, a nd Robert Ba -
t een (1966), "Pet Ownersh ip a nd S ex a s Det ermina nt s
of S t a t ed Af f ect Towa rd Ot h ers a nd Est ima t es of Ot h -
ers' Rega rd of S el f ," Psych ol ogica l Report s, 19 (3, Pa rt
I), 884-886.
a nd Mich a el Ma t t son (1972), "Psych ol ogica l Corre-
l a t es of Pet Ownersh ip," Psych ol ogica l Report s, 30
(Februa ry), 286.
Ca mpbel l , Col in (1987), Th e Roma nt ic Et h ic a nd t h e S pirit
of Mod ern Consumerism, Oxf ord , Engl a nd : Ba sil
Bl a ckwel l .
Ca mpbel l , Keit h (1984), Bod y a nd Mind , Not re Da me, IN:
Universit y of Not re Da me Press.
Ca pl ow, Th eod ore, Howa rd M. Ba h r, Bruce A. Ch a d wrick,
Reuben Hil l , a nd Ma rga ret H. Wil l ia mson (1982),
Mid d l et own Fa mil ies: Fif t y Yea rs of Ch a nge a nd Con-
t inuit y, Minnea pol is, MN: Universit y of Minnesot a
Press.
Ca rma ck, Bet t y J. (1985), "Th e Ef f ect s on Fa mil y Members
a nd Funct ioning Af t er t h e Dea t h of a Pet ," in Pet s a nd
Fa mil y, Ma rvin B. S ussma n, New York: Ha wort h ,
149-162.
Ca rrit h ers, Mich a el , S t even Col l ins, a nd S t even Lukes, ed s.
(1985), Th e Ca t egory of t h e Person: Ant h ropol ogy, Ph i-
l osoph y, Hist ory, Ca mbrid ge, MA: Ca mbrid ge Univer-
sit y Press.
Ca st el neovo-Ted esco, Piet ro, ed . (1971), "Ca rd ia c S ur-
geons Look a t Tra nspl a nt a t ion-Int erviews wit h Drs.
Cl evel a nd , Cool ey, DeBa key, Ha l l ma n, a nd Roch el l e,"
in Psych ia t ric Aspect s of Orga n Tra nspl a nt a t ion, New
York: Grune & S t ra t t on, 5-16.
(1973), "Orga n Tra nspl a nt , Bod y Ima ge, Psych o-
sis," Psych oa na l yt ic Qua rt erl y, 42 (3), 349-363.
Ch a l f en, Rich a rd (1987), S na psh ot Versions of Lif e, Bowl -
ing Green, OH: Bowl ing Green S t a t e Universit y Press.
Ch a t urved i, S h a il end ra K. a nd V. L. Pa nt (1984), "Objec-
t ive Eva l ua t ion of Bod y-Ima ge of Rena l Tra nspl a nt
Recipient s," Journa l of Psych ol ogica l Resea rch es, 28
(1),
4-7.
Ch ea l , Da vid J. (1986), "Th e S ocia l Dimensions of Gif t Be-
h a vior," Journa l of S ocia l a nd Persona l Rel a t ionsh ips,
3 (December), 423-439.
(1987), "'S h owing Th em You Love Th em': Gif t
Giving a nd t h e Dia l ect ic of Int ima cy," S ociol ogica l Re-
view, 35 (1),150-169.
Ch est er, C. Rona l d (1976), "Perceived Rel a t ive Depriva -
t ion a s a Ca use of Propert y Crime," Crime & Del in-
quency, 22 (1), 17-30.
Cia l d ini, Robert B., Rich a rd J. Bord en, Avril Th orne, Ma r-
cus R. Wa l ker, S t eph en Freema n, a nd Ll oyd R. S l oa n
(1976), "Ba sking in Ref l ect ed Gl ory: Th ree (Foot ba l l )
Fiel d S t ud ies," Journa l of Persona l it y a nd S ocia l Psy-
ch ol ogy, 34 (S ept ember), 366-375.
Cl a nt on, Gord on a nd Lynn G. S mit h (1977), "Th e S el f -In-
f l ict ed Pa in of Jea l ousy," Psych ol ogy Tod a y, 3
(Ma rch ), 45-47.
Cl evel a nd , S id ney (1975), "Persona l it y Ch a ra ct erist ics,
Bod y Ima ge a nd S ocia l At t it ud es of Orga n Tra nspl a nt
Donors versus Nond onors," Psych oma t ic Med icine, 37
(Jul y/August ), 313-319.
Cl if f ord , Ja mes (1985), "Object s a nd S el ves-An Af t er-
word ," Object s a nd Ot h ers: Essa ys on Museums a nd
Ma t eria l Cul t ure, Hist ory of Ant h ropol ogy, Vol . 3,
Ma d ison, WI: Universit y of Wisconsin Press, 236-246.
Cl od d , Ed wa rd (1920), Ma gic in Na mes a nd Ot h er Th ings,
Lond on: Ch a pma n & Ha l l .
Cod ere, Hel en (1950), Figh t ing wit h Propert y, New York:
August in.
Cooper, Cl a re (1972), "Th e House a s S ymbol ," Design a nd
Environment , 3 (Fa l l ), 3-37.
(1974), "Th e House a s a S ymbol of t h e S el f ," in
Designing f or Huma n Beh a vior, ed s. Jon La ng et a l .,
POS S ES S IONS AND THE EXTENDED S ELF 163
S t roud sburg, PA: Dowd en, Hut ch inson & Ross, 130-
146.
Cot t l e, Th oma s J. (1981), "Two Aga inst t h e Tid e," Psy-
ch ol ogy Tod a y, 1 (Ja nua ry), 18.
Cowl es, Ka t h l een V. (1985), "Th e Dea t h of a Pet : Huma n
Responses t o t h e Brea king of t h e Bond ," Pet s a nd t h e
Fa mil y, ed . Ma rvin B. S ussma n, New York: Ha wort h ,
135-148.
Csikszent mih a l yi, Mih a l y (1982), "Th e S ymbol ic Funct ion
of Possessions: Towa rd s a Psych ol ogy of Ma t eria l ism,"
pa per present ed a t 90t h Annua l Convent ion of t h e
America n Psych ol ogica l Associa t ion, Wa sh ingt on,
D.C.
a nd Eugene Roch berg-Ha l t on (1981), Th e Mea ning
of Th ings: Domest ic S ymbol s a nd t h e S el f , Ca mbrid ge,
MA: Ca mbrid ge Universit y Press.
Da vis, Fred (1979), Yea rning f or Yest erd a y: A S ociol ogy of
Nost a l gia , New York: Free Press.
Da vis, Kingsl ey (1949), "Jea l ousy a nd S exua l Propert y: An
Il l ust ra t ion," Huma n S ociet y, New York: Ma cmil l a n,
175-194.
Da vis, Na ncy J. a nd Robert V. Robinson (1988), "Cl a ss
Id ent if ica t ion of Men a nd Women in t h e 1970s a nd
1980s," America n S ociol ogica l Review, 53 (Februa ry),
103-112.
Derd eyn, And re P. (1979), "Ad opt ion a nd Ownersh ip of
Ch il d ren," Ch il d Psych ia t ry a nd Huma n Devel opment ,
9 (S ummer), 215-226.
Dich t er, Ernest (1964), Ha nd book of Consumer Mot iva -
t ions: Th e Psych ol ogy of Consumpt ion, New York: Mc-
Gra w-Hil l .
Diener, Ed (1984), "S ubject ive Wel l -Being," Psych ol ogica l
Bul l et in, 95 (3), 542-575.
Diet ze, Got t f ried (1963), In Def ense of Propert y, Ch ica go,
IL: Henry Regnery.
Dil l on, Wil t on (1968), Gif t s a nd Na t ions: Th e Obl iga t ion t o
Give, Receive, a nd Repa y, Th e Ha gue, Th e Net h er-
l a nd s: Mout on.
Dixon, Joh n W., Jr. (1973), "Th e Erot ics of Knowing," An-
gl ica n Th eol ogica l Review, 56 (1), 3-16.
Dixon, S .C. a nd J.W. S t reet (1975), "Th e Dist inct ion Be-
t ween S el f a nd Non-S el f in Ch il d ren a nd Ad ol escent s,"
Journa l of Genet ic Psych ol ogy, 127, 157-162.
Doka , Kennet h J. (1986), "Loss Upon Loss: Th e Impa ct of
Dea t h Af t er Divorce," Dea t h S t ud ies, 10 (5), 441-449.
Donne, Joh n (1623), "Med ia t ion XVII," in Th e Nort on An-
t h ol ogy of Engl ish Lit era t ure, Vol . 1 (1962) ed . M.H.
Abra ms, New York: W.W. Nort on, 794-796.
Donner, Dory (1985), "Bike Th eives Ta ke More Th a n Just
Met a l ; Th ey S t ea l a Big Pa rt of S omeone's Lif e," Da il y
Ut a h Ch ronicl e, 94 (Oct ober 30), 11.
Dougl a s, Ma ry (1966), Purit y a nd Da nger: An Ana l ysis of
Pol l ut ion a nd Ta boo, Lond on: Rout l ed ge & Kega n
Pa ul .
a nd Ba ron Ish erwood (1979), Th e Worl d of Good s:
Towa rd s a n Ant h ropol ogy of Consumpt ion, New York:
W.W. Nort on.
Dunca n, Ot is D. (1975), "Does Money Buy S a t isf a ct ion?"
S ocia l Ind ica t ors Resea rch , 2 (2), 267-274.
Dunca n, Ja mes S . (1976), "La nd sca pe a nd t h e Communi-
ca t ion of S ocia l Id ent it y," Th e Mut ua l Int era ct ion of
Peopl e a nd Th eir Buil t Environment , ed s. Ja mes S .
Dunca n a nd Na ncy C. Dunca n, Th e Ha gue, Th e Net h -
erl a nd s: Mout on, 391-401.
a nd Na ncy G. Dunca n (1976), "House a s Present a -
t ion of S el f a nd t h e S t ruct ure of S ocia l Net works," in
Environment a l Knowing: Th eories, Resea rch , a nd
Met h od s, ed . Regina l d G. Gol l ege, S t roud sburg, PA:
Dowd en, Hut ch inson, & Ross, 247-253.
Dworkin, And rea (1981), Pornogra ph y: Men Possessing
Women, New York: Perigee.
Dyke, C. (1981), Ph il osoph y of Economics, Engl ewood
Cl if f s, NJ: Prent ice-Ha l l .
Ed ney, Jul ia n J. (1972), "Propert y, Possession a nd Perf or-
ma nce: A Fiel d S t ud y of Huma n Territ oria l it y," Jour-
na l of Appl ied S ocia l Psych ol ogy, 2 (3), 27 5-282.
(1975), "Territ oria l it y a nd Cont rol : A Fiel d Experi-
ment ," Journa l of Persona l it y a nd S ocia l Psych ol ogy,
31 (6), 1108-1115.
El l is, Lee (1985), "On t h e Rud iment s of Possessions a nd
Propert y," S ocia l S cience Inf orma t ion, 24 (Ma rch ),
113-143.
Engl eh a rd t , H. Trist ra m, Jr. (1973), Mind -Bod y: A Ca t egor-
ica l Rel a t ion, Th e Ha gue, Th e Net h erl a nd s: Ma rt inus
Nijh of f .
Erikson, Erik (1959), "Id ent it y a nd t h e Lif e Cycl e," Psych o-
l ogica l Issues, 1 (1), 1-17 1.
Erikson, Ka i T. (1976), Everyt h ing in It s Pa t h : Dest ruct ion
of Communit y in t h e Buf f a l o Creek Fl ood , New York:
S imon & S ch ust er.
Va n Est erick, Penny (1986), "Genera t ing S t a t us S ymbol s:
You Are Wh a t You Own," pa per present ed a t Annua l
Conf erence of t h e Associa t ion f or Consumer Resea rch ,
Toront o, Ont a rio, Ca na d a .
Fa rb, Pet er a nd George Armel a gos (1980), Consuming Pa s-
sions: Th e Ant h ropol ogy of Ea t ing, Bost on, MA:
Hough t on Mif f l in.
Feibl ema n, Ja mes K. (1975), Th e S t a ges of Huma n Lif e: A
Biogra ph y of Ent ire Ma n, Th e Ha gue, Th e Net h er-.
l a nd s: Ma rt inus Nijh of f .
Fa rmer, Va l (1986), "Broken Hea rt l a nd ," Psych ol ogy To-
d a y, 20 (4), 54-63.
Feirst ein, Bruce (1986), "Me, My Th ings a nd I," New York
Times Ma ga zine, (Ma y 4), 18.
Fel d ma n, S a ul D. (1979), "Nest ed Id ent it ies," in S t ud ies in
S ymbol ic Int era ct ion, ed . Norma n K. Denzin, Green-
wich , CT: JAI, 399-418.
Fel l ner, Ca rl H. a nd Joh n R. Ma rsh a l l (1981), "Kid ney Do-
nors Revisit ed ," in Al t ruism a nd Hel ping Beh a vior,
ed s. J. Ph il l ipe Rush t on a nd Rich a rd M. S orrent ino,
Hil l sd a l e, NJ: La wrence Erl ba um Associa t es, 351-366.
Ferenczi, S a nd or (1914), "Th e Ont ogenesis of Money," in
Th e Psych oa na l ysis of Money, ed . Ernest Bornema n,
New York: Urizen, 81-90.
Fingert , Hyma n M. (1952), "Comment s on t h e Psych oa na -
l yt ic S ignif ica nce of t h e Fee," Bul l et in of t h eMenninger
Cl inic, 16 (2), 98-104.
Fish er, Jef f rey D. a nd Reuben M. Ba ron (1982), "An Eq-
uit y-Ba sed Mod el of Va nd a l ism," Popul a t ion a nd En-
vironment , 5 (Fa l l ), 182-200.
Foa , Ed na a nd Uriel G. Foa (1974), S ociet a l S t ruct ures of
t h e Mind , S pringf iel d , IL: Ch a rl es C Th oma s.
Fogl e, Bruce (1981), Int errel a t ions Bet ween Peopl e a nd
Pet s, S pringf iel d , IL: Ch a rl es C Th oma s.
Foot e, Nel son (1956), "A Negl ect ed Member of t h e Fa m-
il y," Ma rria ge a nd Fa mil y Living, 28 (3), 213-218.
Fried , Ma rc (1963), "Grieving f or a Lost Home," in Th e
Urba n Cond it ion: Peopl e a nd Pol icy in t h e Met ropol is,
ed . Leona rd J. Duh l , New York: Ba sic Books, 151-171.
164 THE JOURNAL OF CONS UMER RES EARCH
Fried ma nn, Erika a nd S ue A. Th oma s (1985), "Hea l t h Ben-
ef it s of Pet s f or Fa mil ies," Pet s a nd t h e Fa mil y, ed .
Ma rvin B. S ussma n, New York: Ha wort h , 191-204.
Fromm, Erich (1976), To Ha ve or To Be, New York: Ha rper
& Row.
Ful t on, Jul ie, Robert Ful t on, a nd Robert a S immons (1977),
"Th e Ca d a ver Donor a nd t h e Gif t of Lif e," Gif t of Lif e:
Th e S ocia l a nd Psych ol ogica l Impa ct of Orga n Tra ns-
pl a nt a t ion, ed s. Robert a G. S immons et a l ., New York:
Joh n Wil ey, 338-376.
Furby, Lit a (1978), "S h a ring: Decisions a nd Mora l Jud g-
ment s About Let t ing Ot h ers Use One's Possessions,"
Psych ol ogica l Report s, 43 (2), 595-609.
(1980), "Th e Origins a nd Ea rl y Devel opment of Pos-
sessive Beh a vior," Pol it ica l Psych ol ogy, 2 (1), 30-42.
(1982), "S ome Aspect s of Possessive Beh a vior Dur-
ing t h e S econd Yea r of Lif e," pa per present ed a t Asso-
cia t ion f or Consumer Resea rch Annua l Conf erence,
S a n Fra ncisco, CA.
a nd Ma ry Wil ke (1982), "S ome Ch a ra ct erist ics of
Inf a nt s' Pref erred Toys," Journa l of Genet ic Psych ol -
ogy, 140 (June), 207-219.
Furnh a m, Ad ria n a nd Al a n Lewis (1986), Th e Economic
Mind : Th e S ocia l Psych ol ogy of Economic Beh a vior,
New York: S t . Ma rt in's.
Geist , Ch rist oph er D. (1978), "Hist oric S it es a nd Monu-
ment s a s Icons," in Icons of America , ed s. Ra y B.
Browne a nd Ma rsh a l l Fish wick, Bowl ing Green, OH:
Bowl ing Green Universit y Popul a r Press, 57-66.
Gerson, K., C.A. S t ueve, a nd Cl a ud e S . Fisch er (1977), "At -
t a ch ment t o Pl a ce," in Net work a nd Pl a ces: S ocia l Re-
l a t ions in t h e Urba n S et t ing, ed s. Cl a ud e S . Fisch er et
a l ., New York: Free Press.
Gof f ma n, Erving (1961), Asyl ums, New York: Doubl ed a y.
(1971), Rel a t ions in Publ ic: Microst ud ies of t h e Pub-
l ic Ord er, New York: Ba sic Books.
Gol d berg, Herb a nd Robert T. Lewis (1978), Money Ma d -
ness: Th e Psych ol ogy of S a ving, S pend ing, Loving, a nd
Ha t ing Money, New York: New America n Libra ry.
Gol d ner, Fred N. (1982), "Pronoia ," S ocia l Probl ems, 30
(Oct ober), 82-9 1.
Gol d st ein, Jud it h L. (1987), "Lif est yl es of t h e Rich a nd Ty-
ra nnica l ," America n S ch ol a r, 56 (2), 235-247.
Gra ves, Robert (1965), Ma mmon a nd t h e Bl a ck God d ess,
Ga rd en Cit y, NY: Doubl ed a y.
Greenba um, Pa ul E. a nd S usa n D. Greenba um (1965),
"Territ oria l Persona l iza t ion: Group Id ent it y a nd S o-
cia l Int era ct ion in a S l a vic-America n Neigh borh ood ,"
Environment a nd Beh a vior, 13 (S ept ember), 574-589.
Grubb, Ed wa rd L. a nd Gregg Hupp (1968), "Percept ion of
S el f , Genera l ized S t ereot ypes, a nd Bra nd S el ect ion,"
Journa l of Ma rket ing Resea rch , 5 (1), 5 8-63.
Ha nsen, Wil l ia m B. a nd Irwin Al t ma n (1976), "Decora t ing
Persona l Pl a ces: A Descript ive Ana l ysis," Environment
a nd Beh a vior, 8 (December), 491-504.
Ha rt , Roger (1979), Ch il d ren's Experience of Pl a ce, New
York: Irvingt on.
Heima n, Ma rcel (1967), "Ma n a nd His Pet ," in Mot iva -
t ions in Pl a y, Ga mes, a nd S port s, ed s. Ra l ph S l ovenko
a nd Ja mes A. Knigh t , S pringf iel d , IL: Ch a rl es C
Th oma s, 329-348.
Herskovit z, Mel vil l e J. (1952), Economic Ant h ropol ogy:
Th e Economic Lif e of Primit ive Ma n, New York: W.W.
Nort on.
Hickrod , Lucy J. a nd Ra ymond L. S ch mit t (1982), "A Na t -
ura l ist ic S t ud y of Int era ct ion a nd Fra me: Th e Pet ," Ur-
ba n Lif e, 11 (April ), 5 5-77.
Hoba rt , Ch a rl es W. (1975), "Ownersh ip of Ma t rimonia l
Propert y: A S t ud y of Pra ct ices a nd At t it ud es," Review
a nd Ana l ysis of S ociol ogy a nd Ant h ropol ogy, 12 (4),
Pa rt I, 440-452.
Hol ma n, Rebecca (1981), "Prod uct Use a s Communica -
t ion," in Review of Ma rket ing, ed s. Ben M. Enis a nd
Kennet h J. Roering, Ch ica go, IL: America n Ma rket ing
Associa t ion, 106-119.
Horn, Ja ck C. a nd Jef f Meer (1984), "Th e Pl ea sure of Th eir
Compa ny," Psych ol ogy Tod a y, 18 (August ), 52-58.
Horney, Ka ren (1964), Th e Neurot ic Persona l it y of Our
Time, New York: W.W. Nort on.
Howel l , S a nd ra C. (1983), "Th e Mea ning of Pl a ce in Ol d
Age," in Aging a nd Mil ieu: Environment a l Perspect ives
on Growing Ol d , ed s. Gra h a m D. Rowl es a nd Russel l J.
Oh t a , New York: Aca d emic Press, 97-107.
Isa a cs, S usa n (1933), S ocia l Devel opment in Young Ch il -
d ren, Lond on: Rout l ed ge & Kega n Pa ul .
(1935), "Propert y a nd Possessiveness," Brit ish Jour-
na l of Med ica l Psych ol ogy, 15 (1), 69-78.
Ja cobson, Eugene a nd Jerome Kossof f (1963), "S el f -Per-
cept a nd Consumer At t it ud es Towa rd S ma l l Ca rs,"
Journa l of Appl ied Psych ol ogy, 47 (August ) 242-245.
Ja ger, Bernd (1983), "Bod y, House, Cit y or t h e Int ert win-
ings of Embod iment , In Ha bit a t ion," in Th e Ch a nging
Rea l it y of Mod ern Ma n, ed . Dreyer Kruger, Pit t sburgh ,
PA: Dusquene Universit y Press, 51-59.
Ja mes, Wil l ia m (1890), Th e Principl es of Psych ol ogy, Vol .
1, New York: Henry Hol t .
Jones, Ernest (1948), "Ana l -Erot ic Ch a ra ct er Tra it s," Pa -
pers on Psych o-Ana l ysis, Lond on: Ma resf iel d Reprint s,
413-437.
Ka nt , Imma nuel (1798), Ant h ropol ogie in Pra gma t ish er
Hinsich t , I. XXXII., Konigsberg: F. Nicol ovins.
Ka st enba um, Robert (1977), "Memories of Tommorrow:
On t h e Int erpret a t ions of Time in La t er Lif e," in Th e
Persona l Experience of Time, ed s. Berna rd S . Gorma n
a nd Al d en E. Wessma n, New York: Pl enum, 193-214.
Ka t es, Don B., Jr. a nd Nicol e Va rzos (1987), "Aspect s of
t h e Pria pic Th eory of Gun Ownersh ip," pa per pre-
sent ed a t t h e 1987 Popul a r Cul t ure Associa t ion Meet -
ings, Mont rea l , Quebec, Ca na d a .
Ka t z, Jud it h M. (1976), "How Do You Love Me? Let Me
Count t h e Wa ys (Th e Ph enomenol ogy of Being
Loved )," S ociol ogica l Inquiry, 46 (1), 17-22.
Ked d ie, Kennet h (1977), "Pa t h ol ogica l Mourning a f t er t h e
Dea t h of a Domest ic Pet ," Brit ish Journa l of Psych ia -
t ry, 131 (1), 21-25.
Kid d , Al ine H. a nd Robert M. Kid d (1980), "Persona l it y
Ch a ra ct erist ics a nd Pref erences in Pet Ownersh ip,"
Psych ol ogica l Report s, 46 (3, Pa rt I), 939-949.
Kl ein, Mel a nie (1957), Envy a nd Gra t it ud e, Lond on: Ta vis-
t ock.
Kl ein, S usa n D. a nd Robert a G. S immons (1977), "Th e
Psych osocia l Impa ct of Ch ronic Kid ney Disea se in
Ch il d ren," in Gif t of Lif e: Th e S ocia l a nd Psych ol ogica l
Impa ct of Tra nspl a nt a t ion, ed s. Robert a G. S immons
et a l ., New York: Joh n Wil ey, 89-118.
Kl ine, Linus W. a nd C.J. Fra nce (1899), "Th e Psych ol ogy
of Ownersh ip," Ped a gogica l S emina ry, 6 (4), 421-470.
POS S ES S IONS AND THE EXTENDED S ELF 165
Knigh t , Ja mes A. (1968), For Love of Money: Huma n Be-
h a vior a nd Money, Ph il d el ph ia , PA: J.B. Lippincot t .
Kopyt of f , Igor (1986), "Th e Cul t ura l Biogra ph y of Th ings:
Commod it iza t ion a s Process," in Th e S ocia l Lif e of
Th ings: Commod it ies in Cul t ura l Perspect ive, ed . Ar-
jun Appa d ura i, Ca mbrid ge, Engl a nd : Ca mbrid ge Uni-
versit y Press, 64-91.
Korosec-S erf a t y, Perl a (1984), "Th e Home From At t ic t o
Cel l a r," Journa l of Environment a l Psych ol ogy, 4 (2),
303-321.
Kron, Joa n (1981), Home Psych : Th e S ocia l Psych ol ogy of
Home a nd Decor, New York: Cl a rkson N. Pot t er.
Krueger, Da vid W., ed . (1986), Th e La st Ta boo: Money a s
S ymbol a nd Rea l it y in Psych ot h era py a nd Psych oa na l -
ysis, New York: Brunner/Ma zel .
Kut a sh , Irwin L., S a muel B. Kut a sh , Louis B. S ch l esinger,
a nd Associa t es (1978), Viol ence: Perspect ives on Mur-
d er a nd Aggression, S a n Fra ncisco, CA: Jossey-Ba ss.
La Bra nch e, Ant h ony (1973), "Negl ect ed a nd Unused
Th ings: Na rra t ive Encount er," Review of Exist ent ia l
Psych ol ogy a nd Psych ia t ry, 12 (2), 163-168.
Lea ch , Robin (1986), Lif est yl es of t h e Rich a nd Fa mous,
Ga rd en Cit y, NY: Doubl ed a y.
Lea ky, Rich a rd E. (1981), Th e Ma king of Ma nkind , New
York: E.P. Dut t on.
Lessing, Al f red (1965), "Wh a t is Wrong wit h Forgery?,"
Journa l of Aest h et ics a nd Art Crit icism, 23 (S ummer),
461-471.
Levi-S t ra uss, Cl a ud e (1963), Tot emism, Bost on, MA: Bea -
con.
Levinson, Borris M. (1972), Pet s a nd Huma n Devel opment ,
S pringf iel d , IL: Ch a rl es C Th oma s.
Lewinsky, Ja n, S t . (1913), Th e Origin of Propert y: a nd t h e
Forma t ion of t h e Vil l a ge Communit y, Lond on: Con-
st a bl e .
Lewis, Mich a el a nd Jea nne Brooks (1978), "S el f , Ot h er,
a nd Fea r: Inf a nt s' Rea ct ions t o Peopl e," in Th e Origins
of Fea r, ed s. Mich a el Lewis a nd Leona rd A. Rosen-
ba um, New York: Joh n Wil ey, 165-194.
Ley, Da vid a nd Roma n Cybriwsky (1974), "Urba n Gra f f it i
a s Territ oria l Ma rkers," Anna l s of t h e Associa t ion of
America n Geogra ph ers, 6 (December), 491-505.
Lif t on, Robert J. (1973), "Th e S ense of Immort a l it y: On
Dea t h a nd t h e Cont inuit y of Lif e," America n Journa l
of Psych oa nl a ysis, 33 (1), 3-15.
Lind gren, Henry C. (1980), Grea t Expect a t ions: Th e Psy-
ch ol ogy of Money, Los Al t os, CA: Wil l ia m Ka uf ma nn.
Lit winski, Leon (1956), "Bel ongingness a s a Unif ying Con-
cept in Persona l it y Invest iga t ion," Act a Psych ol ogica ,
12 (Jul y), 130-135.
Locke, Joh n (1690), Two Trea t ises of Government , Oxf ord ,
Engl a nd : Oxf ord Universit y Press.
Lowent h a l , Da vid (1975), "Pa st Time, Present Pl a ce: La nd -
sca pe a nd Memory," Geogra ph ica l Review, 65 (1), 1-
36.
Luf t , Joseph (1957), "Monet a ry Va l ue a nd t h e Percept ion
of Persons," Journa l of S ocia l Psych ol ogy, 46 (Novem-
ber), 245-25 1.
Lurie, Al ison (1981), Th e La ngua ge of Cl ot h es, New York:
Ra nd om House.
Lyma n, S t a nf ord M. a nd Ma rvin B. S cot t (1967), "Territ o-
ria l it y: A Negl ect ed S ociol ogica l Dimension," S ocia l
Probl ems, 15 (Fa l l ), 236-249.
Lynes, Russel l (1980), Th e Ta st ema kers: Th e S h a ping of
America n Popul a r Ta st e, New York: Dover.
Ma cf a rl a ne, Al l a n (1978), Th e Origin of Engl ish Ind ivid u-
a l ism: Th e Fa mil y, Propert y a nd S ocia l Tra nsit ions,
Oxf ord , Engl a nd : Bl a ckwel l .
Ma cke, Anne S ., George W. Boh rnst ed t , a nd Il ene N. Bern-
st ein (1979), "Housewives' S el f -Est eem a nd Th eir Hus-
ba nd s' S uccess: Th e Myt h of Vica rious Invol vement ,"
Journa l of Ma rria ge a nd t h e Fa mil y, 41 (Februa ry),
51-57.
Ma guire, Mike (1980), "Th e Impa ct of Burgl a ry Upon Vic-
t ims," Brit ish Journa l of Criminol ogy, 20 (Jul y), 261-
275.
Ma ines, Da vid H. (1978), "Bod ies a nd S el ves: Not es on a
Fund a ment a l Dil emma in Demogra ph y," in S t ud ies in
S ymbol ic Int era ct ion, ed . Norma n K. Denzen, Green-
wich , CT: JAI, 241-265.
Ma rch a nd , Rol a nd (1985), Ad vert ising a nd t h e America n
Drea m: Ma king Wa y f or Mod ernit y, 1920-1940,
Berkel ey, CA: Universit y of Ca l if ornia Press.
Ma ringer, Joh a nnes (1960), Th e God s of Preh ist oric Ma n,
t ra ns. Ma ry Il f ord , New York: Al f red A. Knopf .
Ma rris, Pet er (1986), Loss a nd Ch a nge, Lond on: Rout l ed ge
& Kega n Pa ul .
Ma rt inez, Robin L. a nd Al ine H. Kid d (1980), "Two Per-
sona l it y Ch a ra ct erist ics of Ad ul t Pet Owners," Psych o-
l ogica l Report s, 47 (S ept ember), 318.
Ma rx, Ka rl (1964; origina l 1848), Communist Ma nif est o,
New York: Wa sh ingt on S qua re Press.
(1967; origina l 1842), "Th e Cent ra l iza t ion Ques-
t ion," Writ ings of t h e Young Ma rx on Ph il osoph y a nd
S ociet y, t ra ns. Ll oyd D. Ea st on a nd Kurt Gud d a t , Ga r-
d en Cit y, NY: Anch or.
(1975; origina l 1844), "Crit ique of Hegel ia n Ph il os-
oph y of t h e Righ t (Int rod uct ion)," Deut sch -Fa u-
zoeisch we Ya h rbuech er/Ka rl Ma rx: Ea rl y Writ ings,
New York: Va nt a ge.
(1978; origina l 1867), Ca pit a l : A Crit ique of Pol it ica l
Economy, Vol . 1, t ra ns. Ben Fa wkes, Ha rmond swort h ,
Engl a nd : Penguin.
Ma son, Roger (1981) Conspicuous Consumpt ion: A S t ud y
of Except iona l Consumer Beh a vior, West mea d , En-
gl a nd : Gower.
Ma zur, Rona l d (1977), "Beyond Jea l ousy a nd Possessive-
ness," Jea l ousy, ed s. Gord on Cl a nt on a nd Lynn G.
S mit h , Engl ewood Cl if f s, NJ: Prent ice-Ha l l , 181-189.
McCa rt h y, E. Doyl e (1984), "Towa rd a S ociol ogy of t h e
Ph ysica l Worl d : George Herbert Mea d on Ph ysica l Ob-
ject s," in S t ud ies in S ymbol ic Int era ct ion, ed . Norma n
K. Denzen, Greenwich , CT: JAI, 105-12 1.
McCl el l a nd , Da vid (1951), Persona l it y, New York: Hol t ,
Rineh a rt , & Winst on.
McCra cken, Gra nt (1986), "Cul t ure a nd Consumpt ion: A
Th eoret ica l Account of t h e S t ruct ure a nd Movement
of t h e Cul t ura l Mea ning of Consumer Good s," Journa l
of Consumer Resea rch , 13 (June), 71-84.
(1 987a ), "Cul t ure a nd Consumpt ion Among t h e El -
d erl y: Th ree Resea rch Object ives in a n Emerging
Fiel d ," Aging a nd S ociet y, 7 (2), 203-224.
(1987b), "'Homeyness' Cul t ure Ma d e -Ma t eria l in
t h e Mod ern Nort h America n Home," Working Pa per
No. 87-105, Depa rt ment of Consumer S t ud ies, Uni-
versit y of Guel ph , Guel ph , Ont a rio, Ca na d a NIG
2W 1.
166 THE JOURNAL OF CONS UMER RES EARCH
(ed .), "Th e Evoca t ive Power of Th ings: Consumer
Good s a nd t h e Preserva t ion of Hopes a nd Id ea l s," in
Cul t ure a nd Consumpt ion: New Approa ch es t o t h e
S ymbol ism of Consumer Good s a nd Act ivit ies, Bl oom-
ingt on, IN: Ind ia na Universit y Press, 104-107.
McInt yre, Pa t , Ma rk A. Ba rnet t , Rich a rd J. Ha rris, Ja mes
S h a nt ea u, Joh n S kowronski, a nd Mich a el Kl a ssen
(1987), "Psych ol ogica l Fa ct ors Inf l uencing Decisions
t o Dona t e Orga ns," in Ad va nces in Consumer Re-
sea rch , Vol . 14, ed s. Mel a nie Wa l l end orf a nd Pa ul An-
d erson, Provo, UT: Associa t ion f or Consumer Re-
sea rch , 331-334.
McLeod , Beverl y (1984), "In t h e Wa ke of Disa st er," Psy-
ch ol ogy Tod a y, 18 (Oct ober), 54-57.
Meer, Jef f (1984), "Pet Th eories," Psych ol ogy Tod a y, 18
(August ), 60-67.
Mil gra m, S t a nl ey (1976), "Th e Ima ge-Freezing Ma ch ine,"
S ociet y, 14 (1),7-12.
Mont ema yor, Ra ymond a nd Ma rvin Eisen (1977), "Th e
Devel opment of S el f -Concept ions f rom Ch il d h ood t o
Ad ol escence," Devel opment a l Psych ol ogy, 13 (4), 314-
319.
Muel l er, Ed wa rd (1978), "(Tod d l ers + Toys) = (An Aut on-
omous S yst em)," in Th e S ocia l Net work of t h e Devel op-
ing Inf a nt , ed s. Mich a el Lewis a nd Leona rd A. Rosen-
bl um, New York: Pl enum, 169-194.
a nd Jef f rey Brenner (1977), "Th e Origins of S ocia l
S kil l s a nd Int era ct ion Among Pl a ygroup Tod d l ers,"
Ch il d Devel opment , 48 (S ept ember), 854-861.
Mukerji, Ch a nd ra (1978), "Art work: Col l ect ion a nd Con-
t empora ry Cul t ure," America n Journa l of S ociol ogy,
84 (8), 348-365.
Myers, El iza bet h (1985), "Ph enomenol ogica l Ana l ysis of
t h e Import a nce of S pecia l Possessions: An Expl ora t ory
S t ud y," in Ad va nces in Consumer Resea rch , Vol . 12,
ed s. El iza bet h C. Hirsch ma n a nd Morris B. Hol brook,
Provo, UT: Associa t ion f or Consumer Resea rch , 560-
565.
New Yorker (1975), "Ma l e Pot ency a nd t h e Dow Jones In-
d ust ria l Avera ge," New Yorker, 51 (Oct ober 20), 10-
12.
Nied erl a nd , Wil l ia m G. (1967), "Cl inica l Aspect s of Cre-
a t ivit y," America n Ima go, 24 (1-2), 6-34.
a nd Ba h ma n S h ol eva r (1981), "Th e Crea t ive Pro-
cess-A Psych oa na l yt ic Discussion," Th e Art s in Psy-
ch ot h era py, 8 (1), 7 1-101.
Nut t in, Jozef M., Jr. (1987), "Af f ect ive Consequences of
Mere Ownersh ip: Th e Na me Let t er Ef f ect in Twel ve
Europea n La ngua ges," Europea n Journa l of S ocia l
Psych ol ogy, 17 (4), 381-402.
Ol son, Cl a rk D. (1981), "Art if a ct s in t h e Home a nd Rel a -
t iona l Communica t ion: A Prel imina ry Report ," ma s-
t er's t h esis, Depa rt ment of Psych ol ogy, Universit y of
Ut a h , S a l t La ke Cit y, UT 84060.
(1985), "Ma t eria l ism in t h e Home: Th e Impa ct of
Art if a ct s on Dya d ic Communica t ion," in Ad va nces in
Consumer Resea rch , Vol . 12, ed s. El iza bet h C. Hirsch -
ma n a nd Morris B. Hol brook, Provo, UT: Associa t ion
f or Consumer Resea rch , 388-393.
O'Reil l y, Lynn, Ma rga ret Rucker, Rh ond a Hugh es, Ma rge
Gora ng, a nd S usa n Ha nd (1984), "Th e Rel a t ionsh ip of
Psych ol ogica l a nd S it ua t iona l Va ria bl es t o Usa ge of a
S econd -Ord er Ma rket ing S yst em," Journa l of t h e
Aca d emy of Ma rket ing S cience, 12 (3), 5 3-76.
Pa a p, Wa rren R. (1981), "Being Burgl a rized : An Account
of Vict imiza t ion," Vict imol ogy: An Int erna t iona l Jour-
na l , 6 (1-4), 297-305.
Pa rker, Robert (1982), "Th e Bra nd Fina l e," America n Wa y
(Jul y), 37-40.
Pa rkes, Col in M. (1972), Berea vement : S t ud ies of Grief in
Ad ul t Lif e, New York: Int erna t iona l Universit ies Press.
Pa ul , El l en F. a nd Jef f rey Pa ul (1979), "S el f -Ownersh ip,
Abort ion, a nd Inf a nt a cid e," Journa l of Med ica l Et h ics,
5 (2),133-138.
Pia get , Jea n (1932), Th e Mora l Jud gment of t h e Ch il d , Lon-
d on: Rout l ege & Kega n Pa ul .
Pessemier, Ed ga r A., Al bert C. Bemma or, a nd Dominique
M. Ha nssens (1977), "Wil l ingness t o S uppl y Huma n
Bod y Pa rt s: S ome Empirica l Resul t s," Journa l of Con-
sumer Resea rch , 4 (December), 131-140.
Pl ugge, Herbert (1970), "Th e Ambiguit y of Ha ving a nd Be-
ing a Bod y," Huma n Inquiries, 10 (1-3), 132-139.
Pogrebin, Ma rk R., Eric D. Pool e, a nd Robert M. Regol i
(1986), "Na t ura l Dea t h a nd Unknown Persons: Th e
Process of Crea t ing Id ent it y," S ocia l S cience Journa l ,
23 (4), 391-396.
Prel inger, Ernst (1959), "Ext ension a nd S t ruct ure of t h e
S el f ," Journa l of Psych ol ogy, 47 (Ja nua ry), 13-23.
Prosh a nsky, Ha rol d W. (1978), "Th e Cit y a nd S el f -Id en-
t it y," Environment a nd Beh a vior, 10 (June), 147-169.
Prot t a s, Jef f rey M. (1983), "Encoura ging Al t ruism: Publ ic
At t it ud es a nd t h e Ma rket ing of Orga n Dona t ion,"
Hea l t h a nd S ociet y, 61 (2), 278-306.
Ra t h je, Wil l ia m L. a nd Ra nd a l l H. McGuire (1982), "Rich
Men. . . Poor Men," America n Beh a viora l S cient ist ,
25 (6), 705-715.
Ra poport , Amos (1981), "Id ent it y a nd Th e Environment :
A Cross-Cul t ura l Perspect ive," in Housing a nd Id en-
t it y: Cross Cul t ura l Perspect ives, ed . Ja mes Dunca n,
Lond on: Croom Hel m, 6-35.
Rich ins, Ma rsh a a nd Pet er Bl och (1986), "Af t er t h e New
Wea rs Of f : Th e Tempora l Cont ext of Prod uct Invol ve-
ment ," Journa l of Consumer Resea rch , 13 (S ept em-
ber), 280-285.
Rigby, Dougl a s a nd El iza bet h Rigby (1949), Lock, S t ock
a nd Ba rrel : Th e S t ory of Col l ect ing, Ph il a d el ph ia , PA:
J.B. Lippincot t .
Robin, Mich a el a nd Robert Bensel (1985), "Pet s a nd t h e
S ocia l iza t ion of Ch il d ren," in Pet s a nd t h e Fa mil y, ed .
Ma rvin B. S ussma n, New York: Ha wort h , 63-78.
Roch berg-Ha l t on, Eugene (1984), "Object Rel a t ions, Rol e
Mod el s, a nd Cul t iva t ion of t h e S el f ," Environment a nd
Beh a vior, 16 (3), 335-368.
- - (1985), "Lif e in t h e Treeh ouse: Pet Th era py a s Fa m-
il y Met a ph or a nd S el f -Dia l ogue," in Pet s a nd t h e Fa m-
il y, ed . Ma rvin B. S ussma n, New York: Ha wort h , 175-
190.
(1986), Mea ning a nd Mod ernit y, Ch ica go, IL: Uni-
versit y of Ch ica go Press.
Rook, Dennis (1985), "Bod y Ca t h exis a nd Ma rket S egmen-
t a t ion," Th e Psych ol ogy of Fa sh ion, ed . Mich a el R.
S ol omon, Lexingt on, MA: Lexingt on, 233-242.
Rooney, And rew A. (1984), Pieces of My Mind , New York:
At h eneum, 3-42.
Rosenba um, Jea n (1972), Is Your Vol kswa gen a S ex S ym-
bol ? New York: Ha wt h orn.
Rosenbl a t t , Pa ul C., R. Pa t ricia Wa l sh , a nd Dougl a s A.
Ja ckson (1976), Grief a nd Mourning in Cross-Cul t ura l
POS S ES S IONS AND THE EXTENDED S ELF 167
Perspect ive, New Ha ven, CT: Huma n Rel a t ions Area
Fil es.
Rozin, Pa ul , Lind a Mil l ma n, a nd Ca rol Nemerof f (1986),
"Opera t ion of La ws of S ympa t h et ic Ma gic in Disgust
a nd Ot h er Doma ins," Journa l of Persona l it y a nd S o-
cia l Psych ol ogy, 50 (April ), 703-712.
Rubinst ein, Ca rin (1981), "Money & S el f -Est eem, Rel a -
t ionsh ips, S ecrecy, Envy, S a t isf a ct ion," Psych ol ogy
Tod a y, 15 (Ma y), 29-32 a nd a d d it iona l pa ges.
Rud min, Fl oyd , Russel l W. Bel k, a nd Lit a Furby (1987),
S ocia l S cience Bibl iogra ph y on Propert y, Ownersh ip
a nd Possession: 1580 Cit a t ions f rom Psych ol ogy, An-
t h ropol ogy, S ociol ogy, a nd Rel a t ed Discipl ines, Mont i-
cel l o, IL: Va nce Bibl iogra ph ies.
S a a rinen, Al ine B. (1958), Th e Proud Possessors, New
York: Ra nd om House.
S a cks, Ol iver (1985), Th e Ma n Wh o Mist ook His Wif e f or a
Ha t a nd Ot h er Cl inica l Ta l es, New York: S ummit
Books.
S a il e, Da vid G. (1985), "Th e Rit ua l Est a bl ish ment of t h e
Home," in Home Environment s, ed s. Irwin Al t ma n
a nd Ca rol Werner, New York: Pl enum, 87-1 11.
S a nd ers, Cl int on (1988), "Ma rks of Misch ief : Becoming
a nd Being a Ta t t ooed Person," Journa l of Cont empo-
ra ry Et h nogra ph y, 16 (Ja nua ry), 395-432.
S a rt re, Jea n-Pa ul (1943), Being a nd Not h ingness: A Ph e-
nomenol ogica l Essa y on Ont ol ogy, New York: Ph il o-
soph ica l Libra ry.
S ch il d er, Pa ul (1950), Th e Ima ge a nd Appea ra nce of t h e
Huma n Bod y, New York: Int erna t iona l Universit ies
Press.
S ecord , Pa ul F. (1968), "Consist ency Th eory a nd S el f -Ref -
erent Beh a vior," Th eories of Cognit ive Consist ency: A
S ourcebook, ed s. Robert P. Abl eson et a l ., Ch ica go, IL:
Ra nd McNa l l y, 349-354.
a nd S id ney M. Joura rd (1953), "Th e Appra isa l of
Bod y-Ca t h exis: Bod y-Ca t h exis a nd t h e S el f ," Journa l
of Consul t ing Psych ol ogy, 17 (5), 343-347.
S el igma n, Ma rt in E.P. (1975), Hel pl essness, S a n Fra ncisco,
CA: Freema n.
S h erma n, Ed mund a nd Evel yn S . Newma n (1977), "Th e
Mea ning of Ch erish ed Persona l Possessions f or t h e El -
d erl y," Int erna t iona l Journa l of Aging a nd Huma n De-
vel opment , 8 (2), 18 1-192.
S immel , Georg (1950), Th e S ociol ogy of Georg S immel ,
t ra ns. Kurt H. Wol f f , Gl encoe, IL: Free Press.
S immons, Robert a L., Dia ne Bush , a nd S usa n Kl ein (1977),
"Th e Nond onor: Mot ives a nd Ch a ra ct erist ics," in Gif t
of Lif e: Th e S ocia l a nd Psych ol ogica l Impa ct of Orga n
Tra nspl a nt a t ion, ed s. Robert a G. S immons et a l ., New
York: Joh n Wil ey, 198-232.
, S usa n D. Kl ein, a nd Rich a rd L. S immons, ed s.
(1977), "S ocia l a nd Psych ol ogica l Reh a bil it a t ion of t h e
Ad ul t Tra nspl a nt Pa t ient ," Gif t of Lif e: Th e S ocia l a nd
Psych ol ogica l Impa ct of Orga n Tra nspl a nt a t ion, New
York: Joh n Wil ey, 48-70.
S irgy, Joseph (1982), "S el f -Concept in Consumer Beh a vior:
A Crit ica l Review," Journa l of Consumer Resea rch , 9
(December), 287-300.
S mit h , Ja net F. (1983), "Pa rent ing a nd Propert y," in Mot h -
ering: Essa ys in Feminist Th eory, ed . Joyce Trebil cot ,
Tot owa , NJ: Rowma n & Al l a nh el d , 199-212.
S nyd er, C.R. a nd Howa rd L. Fromkin (1981), Uniqueness:
Huma n Pursuit of Dif f erence, New York: Pl enum.
S nyd er, El d on E. (1972), "High S ch ool S t ud ent Percept ions
of Prest ige Crit eria ," Ad ol escence, 7 (S pring), 129-136.
S nyd er, Ma rk, El l en Bersch eid , a nd Pet er Gl ick (1985),
"Focusing on t h e Int erior a nd t h e Ext erior: Two Inves-
t iga t ions of Persona l Rel a t ionsh ips," Journa l of Per-
sona l it y a nd S ocia l Psych ol ogy, 48 (6), 1427-1439.
S ol omon, Mich a el (1986a ), "Deep-S ea t ed Ma t eria l ism:
Th e Ca se of Levi's 501 Jea ns," in Ad va nces in Con-
sumer Resea rch , Vol 13, ed . Rich a rd J. Lut z, Provo,
UT: Associa t ion f or Consumer Resea rch , 520-521.
(1986b), "Th e Missing Link: S urroga t e Consumers
in t h e Ma rket ing Ch a in," Journa l of Ma rket ing, 50 (4),
208-218.
a nd Puna m Ana nd (1985), "Rit ua l Cost umes a nd
S t a t us Tra nsit ion: Th e Fema l e Business S uit a s To-
t emic Embl em," in Ad va nces in Consumer Resea rch ,
Vol . 12, ed s. El iza bet h C. Hirsch ma n a nd Morris B.
Hol brook, Provo, UT: Associa t ion f or Consumer Re-
sea rch , 315-318.
a nd Henry Assa el (1988), "Th e Forest or t h e Trees?
A Gest a l t Approa ch t o S ymbol ic Communica t ion," in
Ma rket ing a nd S emiot ics: New Direct ions in t h e S t ud y
of S igns f or S a l e, ed s. Jea n Umiker-S ebeok a nd S id ney
J. Levy, Bl oomingt on, IN: Ind ia na Universit y Press,
189-218.
S ommer, Robert (1971), "S pa t ia l Pa ra met ers in Na t ura l is-
t ic S ocia l Resea rch ," in Beh a vior a nd Environment :
Th e Use of S pa ce by Anima l s, ed . Arist id e H. Esser,
New York: Pl enum, 281-290.
S ont a g, S usa n (1973), On Ph ot ogra ph y, New York: Fa rra r,
S t ra us, a nd Giroux.
S t a robinski, Jea n (1966), "Th e Id ea of Nost a l gia ," Dio-
genes, 54 (S ummer), 81-103.
S t ein, Benja min (1985), "Th e Ma ch ine Ma kes Th is Ma n,"
Wa l l S t reet Journa l , 205 (June 13), 30.
S t einbeck, Joh n (1939), Gra pes of Wra t h , New York: Vik-
ing.
S t ewa rt , S usa n (1984), On Longing: Na rra t ives of t h e Min-
ia t ure, t h e Giga nt ic, t h e Col l ect ion, Ba l t imore, MD:
Joh n Hopkins.
Ta na y, Ema nuel wit h Lucy Freema n (1976), Th e Murd er-
ers, Ind ia na pol is, IN: Bobbs-Merril l , 25-43.
Th ukra l , Vinod K. a nd Ga yl ord Cummins (1987), "Th e Vi-
t a l Orga n S h ort a ge," in Ad va nces in Nonprof it Ma rket -
ing, Vol . 2, ed . Russel l W. Bel k, Greenwich , CT: JAI,
159-174.
Tit comb, Ma rga ret (1969), Dog a nd Ma n in t h e Ancient Pa -
cif ic, Honol ul u, HI: Bernice P. Bish op Museum S pecia l
Publ ica t ion, 59.
Tit mus, Rich a rd M. (1970), Th e Gif t Rel a t ionsh ip, Lon-
d on: Al l en a nd Unwin.
Tonnies, Ferd ina nd (1957), Communit y a nd S ociet y, t ra ns.
C. Loomis, Ea st La nsing, MI: Mich iga n S t a t e Univer-
sit y Press.
Tournier, Pa ul (1957), Th e Mea ning of Persons, t ra ns. Ed -
win Hud son, New York: Ha rper & Row.
Trea s, Ch a rl es E. a nd Da l t on E. Bra nnen (1976), "Th e
Growing Col l ect or Ma rket ," Proceed ings, ed s. Henry
W. Na sh a nd Dona l d P. Robin, Mississippi S t a t e, MS :
S out h ern Ma rket ing Associa t ion, 234-236.
Trivers, Robert L. (1971), "Th e Evol ut ion of Reciproca l Al -
t ruism," Th e Qua rt erl y Review of Biol ogy, 46 (4), 35-
39.
168 THE JOURNAL OF CONS UMER RES EARCH
Tua n, Yi-Fu (1978), S pa ce a nd Pl a ce: Th e Perspect ive of
Experience, Minnea pol is, MN: Universit y of Minne-
sot a Press.
(1980), "Th e S ignif ica nce of t h e Art if a ct ," Geo-
gra ph ica l Review, 70 (4), 462-472.
(1984), Domina nce & Af f ect ion: Th e Ma king of Pet s,
New Ha ven, CT: Ya l e Universit y Press.
Turner, Brya n S . (1984), Th e Bod y a nd S ociet y: Expl ora -
t ions in S ocia l Th eory, Oxf ord , Engl a nd : Ba sil Bl a ck-
wel l .
Unruh , Da vid R. (1983), "Dea t h a nd Persona l Hist ory:
S t ra t egies of Id ent it y Preserva t ion," S ocia l Probl ems,
30 (3), 340-351.
Vebl en, Th orst ein (1898), "Th e Beginnings of Ownersh ip,"
America n Journa l of S ociol ogy, 4 (3), 352-365.
(1899), Th e Th eory of t h e Leisure Cl a ss, New York,
Ma cMil l a n.
Veevers, Jea n E. (1985), "Th e S ocia l Mea ning of Pet s: Al -
t erna t ive Rol es f or Compa nion Anima l s," Pet s a nd
Fa mil y, ed . Ma rvin B. S ussma n, New York: Ha wort h ,
11-30.
Vol ka n, Va nik D. (1974), "Th e Linking Object s of Pa t h o-
l ogica l Mourners," Norma l a nd Pa t h ol ogica l Re-
sponses t o Berea vement , ed s. Joh n El l a rd et a l ., New
York: MS S Inf orma t ion Corpora t ion, 186-202.
Wa l l end orf , Mel a nie a nd Eric Arnoul d (1988), "My Fa vor-
it e Th ings: A Cross-Cul t ura l Inquiry int o Object At -
t a ch ment , Possessiveness a nd S ocia l Linka ge," Journa l
of Consumer Resea rch , 14 (Ma rch ), 531-547.
a nd Russel l Bel k (1987), "Deep Mea ning in Posses-
sions," vid eo, Ca mbrid ge, MA: Ma rket ing S cience In-
st it ut e.
Wa sson, R. Gord on (1972), S oma a nd t h e Fl y-Aga ric,
Ca mba rid ge, MA: Bot a nica l Museum of Ha rva rd Uni-
versit y.
Wea t h ers, Ma ry B. (1978), "Percept ions of Prest ige Bor-
rowing in Rel a t ionsh ip t o Occupa t iona l Aspira t ion a nd
Ca reer Commit ment in Col l ege S enior Women," un-
publ ish ed d issert a t ion, Universit y of Mia mi, Cora l Ga -
bl es, FL 33124.
Weil a nd , J. Hyma n (1955), "Th e Ad ol escent a nd t h e Aut o-
mobil e," Ch ica go Review, 9 (Fa l l ), 61-64.
Weisberg, Pa ul a nd Ja mes E. Russel l (1971), "Proximit y
a nd Int era ct iona l Beh a vior of Young Ch il d ren t o Th eir
'S ecurit y' Bl a nket s," Ch il d Devel opment , 42 (Novem-
ber), 1575-1579.
Weisner, Th oma s a nd Joa n C. Weibel (1981), "Home Envi-
ronment s a nd Lif est yl es in Ca l if ornia ," Environment
a nd Beh a vior, 13 (Jul y), 417-460.
Wh it e, Robert W. (1959), "Mot iva t ion Reconsid ered : Th e
Concept of Compet ence," Psych ol ogica l Review, 66
(5),
297-333.
Wh it eh urst , Robert N. (1977), "Jea l ousy a nd America n
Va l ues," in Jea l ousy, ed s. Gord on Cl a nt on a nd Lynn
G. S mit h , Engl ewood Cl if f s, NJ: Prent ice-Ha l l , 136-
139.
Wh it ing, Joh n W. (1960), "Resource Med ia t ion a nd Lea rn-
ing by Id ent if ica t ion," Persona l it y Devel opment in
Ch il d ren, ed s. Ira Iscoe a nd Ha rol d W. S t evenson, Aus-
t in, TX: Universit y of Texa s Press, 113-125.
Wickl und , Robert A. a nd Pet er M. Gol l wit zer (1982), S ym-
bol ic S el f Compl et ion, Hil l sd a l e, NJ: La wrence Erl -
ba um Associa t es.
Wiggins, Ja mes W. (1974), "Th e Decl ine of Priva t e Prop-
ert y a nd t h e Diminish ed Person," in Propert y in a Hu-
ma ne Economy, ed . S a muel L. Bl umenf el d , La S a l l e,
IL: Open Court , 71-84.
Wikse, Joh n R. (1977), About Possession: Th e S el f a s Pri-
va t e Propert y, Universit y Pa rk, PA: Pennsyl va nia S t a t e
Universit y Press.
Wil ms, Gra nt , S t eph en W. Kief er, Ja mes S h a nt ea u, a nd Pa -
t ricia McInt yre (1987), "Knowl ed ge a nd Ima ge of
Bod y Orga ns: Impa ct on Wil l ingness t o Dona t e," in
Ad va nces in Consumer Resea rch , Vol . 14, ed s. Mel a nie
Wa l l end orf a nd Pa ul And erson, Provo, UT: Associa -
t ion f or Consumer Resea rch , 338-341.
Winicot t , D.W. (1953), "Tra nsit iona l Object s a nd Tra nsi-
t iona l Ph enomena ," Int erna t iona l Journa l of Psych o-
a na l ysis, 34 (2), 89-97.
Wisema n, Th oma s (1974), Th e Money Mot ive, New York:
Ra nd om House.
Ya ma uch i, Kent T. a nd Dona l d I. Templ er (1982), "Th e
Devel opment of a Money At t it ud e S ca l e," Journa l of
Persona l it yAssessment , 46 (5), 522-528.