Compulsive hoarding may be caused by problems in the following areas: information processing, beliefs about possessions, and emotional distress about discarding possessions. In information processing, people may have difficulty remembering and knowing what to do about their possessions.
Exaggerated belief in the value of possessions means that people may think of their possessions as an indispensable part of them, even if their possessions amount to nothing more than a pile of torn newspapers or paperclips. Emotional distress from discarding possessions also comes from having unnecessary value attached to them, and hence the possessor may have anxiety and worry when discarding his or her possessions.
People with compulsive hoarding disorder may also have difficulty socializing, as they are concerned about the embarrassment their often immense clutter could cause.
Compulsive hoarding can be said to eventually lead to isolation because of this embarrassment.