Publication (142 pages).

1) the acquisition of and failure
to discard a large number
of possessions that seem to be
useless or of limited value; 2)
living spaces sufficiently cluttered
so as to preclude activities
for which those spaces
were designed, and; 3) significant
distress or impairment
in functioning caused by the
hoarding. The following was
added to the definition to
make it more compatible with
entry criteria in the DSM:
1)difficulty discarding or parting
with personal possessions,
2)symptoms that result in accumulation
of a large number
of possessions that clutter
living space, 3)symptoms
causing clinically significant
distress or impairment in important
areas of functioning,
4)symptoms not due to a general
medical condition, and
5)symptoms not restricted
to the symptoms of another
mental disorder (Mataix-Cols
et al. 2010:558). The last two
criteria are a response to the
overlap of hoarding with other
mental health diseases such
as OCD or ADHD, thus isolating
hoarding as a separate
behaviour to belisted in the
DSM. After advocacy from
several researchers, including
hoarding specialists Randy
Frost, David Mataix-Cols,
David Tolin, and Alberto
Pertusa, the American Psychological
Association issued
a media release in December
of 2012 stating that they
would include what will now
be known as ‘hoarding disorder’
in the fifth edition of the
DSM. They advocated that
“Defining this disorder will
help [characterized] people
with persistent difficulty discarding
or parting with possessions”
noting that the behaviour
includes “emotional,
physical, social, financial, and
The American Psychological
Association issued a media
release in December of
2012 stating that they would
include what will now be
known as ‘hoarding disorder’
in the fifth edition of the
DSM.
even legal” harmful effects (Association
2012). The DSM-V
was published in May 2013.
This publication represents
the classification of hoarding
as a mental health disorder
and solidifies its presence
in the medical sphere. It is
much easier to draw attention
to a disorder in a medicalized
way if a behaviour has been
given formal classification in
the manual, which assists in
diagnosis as well as treatment.
Thus, the challenge to consider
hoarding from a non-medical
perspective becomes more
difficult. Although some of
the data results collected on
hoarding studies are useful in
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