Why Do We Become So Attached to Mementos?

In 2020, humans reached a disturbing milestone: the total mass of things we’ve created—from skyscrapers to shoes, to hairpins—is now greater than the entire planet’s biomass, humans included.

There’s a lot to say about this from an environmental standpoint. But one thing is clear: we love stuff!

In fact, we love stuff so much that it’s psychologically painful to part ways with the objects we have, a phenomenon known as the "endowment effect." That is, we value objects more due to the simple fact that we already own them.

But what if this pain could be numbed? Would we be less attached to them, and feel less of a sense of psychological ownership? Would we be better able to say goodbye?

Recent research by Charlene Chu of Chapman University and Suzanne B. Shu or Cornell University recently explored this idea. Their findings suggest a powerful analgesic for this pain: mementos.

Their research asks two crucial questions: If people are allowed to keep a symbol of the product as a keepsake, would this help lessen the emotional aversion to losing it? That is, if you’re selling off your beloved car, would keeping the original license plate dull the pain?

Methodology: The Science of Mementos

The Psychology of Mementos (Study 1)

Study 1 was the first foray into the science of mementos. The researchers recruited a group of 250 participants who were randomly assigned to either the “memento” or “no memento” condition. They were both asked to think of their favorite piece of clothing, and then were asked for the lowest price they’d accept if someone wanted to buy it from them.

Things are commonplace. But emotional attachment is rare

Source: Joseph Two via UnSplash

In the memento group, they were also told that, if they were to sell the clothing item, they’d be allowed to take many pictures of it to keep as a memento.

Participants were also presented with a different scenario in which they lost the item and had the option of buying it back. Similarly, those in the memento group were offered to take pictures of it to keep.

Consistent with the endowment effect, selling prices were significantly higher than buying prices in both the no memento and memento conditions. Crucially, the difference between buying and selling prices was significantly smaller in the memento condition compared to the no memento condition, suggesting that the presence of a memento directly impacted the endowment effect and a reduced sense of ownership.

Mementos and Feelings of Ownership (Study 2)

Study 2 predicted that those with a memento would be more willing to trade an object they own, compared to those without a memento. They examined this by exploring this in the context of physical music.

Mementos influence our sense of ownership

Source: Liligance via UnSplash

950 participants were recruited online, and were asked to imagine that they owned a boxed CD set of their favorite band. The subjects were asked about their willingness to part with the boxed CD set in exchange for a DVD set of that same band.

Similarly to Study 1, participants were randomly assigned to either a memento or “no memento” condition. Here, however, the memento was either framed as something retained from the CD set, or as a segregated item.

The results suggest that a memento—either as a segregated item, or as a retained portion of the endowment, made sellers more willing to trade their endowed option. Overall, the findings indicate that mementos take the sting out of the endowment effect and make people more likely to part with their items.

Testing The Power of Mementos on an Actual Transaction (Study 3)

Study 3 extended these findings by exploring how mementos would impact an actual transaction. 121 undergraduate students were recruited to participate and were presented with a water bottle with a university decal on it. They were instructed to imagine owning it, and then asked how much they would sell it for.

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Similar to study 2, they were randomly assigned to either receive no memento, to keep the university decal from the water bottle as a memento if they sold the water bottle, or were told that they could have the university decal as a memento whether or not they sold it.

The results suggest that, even when factoring in the perceived cost of the decal itself, the mementos in both conditions significantly reduced the selling price of the item, suggesting that participants were more willing to part with it when they’d get to keep a memento.

In addition, the greater the sense of ownership, the less negatively participants felt at the idea of losing the water bottle.

Results: The Power of Mementos on The Endowment Effect

This research suggests that mementos can significantly modulate the endowment effect and make individuals more likely to part with their endowed objects.

Mementos may ultimately enable us to become less attached to big products

Source: Luca Laurence via UnSplash

Further, it indicates that this takes place through engendering a small sense of ownership with the product, which numbs the pain of losing it.

Overall, the research suggests that, above all, mementos can serve as powerful symbols, and can stand in for the specific items we own. While brands can benefit from these insights by appreciating mementos in calculating a consumer’s willingness to pay (WTP), the insights are also beneficial to consumers.

Many of us own an overabundance of household items we can never hope ever to use. The research has important implications for consumer psychology and, in particular, how we view second-hand clothing. When a consumer can keep a photo of that unused item, they’ll feel less pained at losing it and, therefore, more likely to donate it.

As we’ve seen, it's human nature to become attached to physical things; the world has no shortage of stuff.

This post also appears on the human nature blog.