The role of emotional regulation, executive functioning, and aggression in hoarding behaviours

Abstract

Emotion regulation (ER), executive function (EF) and aggression have all been separately linked with hoarding behaviours. This study aimed to investigate whether difficulties with ER, deficits in EF, and an increase in aggression are linked with hoarding behaviours in a community sample, whilst controlling for anxiety, depression, age, and sex. Using a correlational design, we recruited 225 adults who completed questionnaires of anxiety and depression, hoarding severity, difficulties with ER, EF, and aggression. Two hierarchical multiple regressions were conducted to uncover which factors predicted an increase in hoarding behaviours, as well as the unique variance of these contributing factors. They revealed that difficulties with ER and physical aggression both contributed unique variance to hoarding severity scores. Further research is needed to fully uncover the relationship between aggression and HD, and the interconnection between EF and ER. The current study, although not without its limitations, has implications for further research in clinical samples.