How loneliness affects consumers' reluctance to let go of used possessions

Abstract We investigate the impact of loneliness on consumer disposition of used, yet still useful possessions. Both loneliness and how consumers handle used products have emerged as important societal and research topics. While existing literature primarily addresses how loneliness influences product acquisition, our research delves into its effect on the disposition of used products. Studies 1–3 demonstrate that lonely consumers are less willing to let go of their used possessions because they form stronger self‐product attachments. Study 4 further examines an unstudied factor that moderates the effect—the relational meanings of a product (whether the item was a gift from someone else or acquired by the owner themselves). Our work contributes to the loneliness literature by showing how lonely consumers attach to possessions with different relational meanings. We also contribute to the growing disposition literature by investigating the joint influence of the disposers' traits and product characteristics. Our findings suggest communication strategies to facilitate lonely consumers' decluttering and disposal decisions.