Why do we collect?

I have been thinking about why in the heck I love yo-yos and why I created a collection. I decided then to start researching. As you could imagine there are many different theories about the phsycology behind collecting things such as wanting to maintain strong feelings alive from the past particularly from childhood, other theories, such as Freud’s, states that collecting things is a necessity to have control of something we could not during the first years of life.

Those theories did not convince me 100% as, although I used to play and have one or two yo-yos during childhood, they do not bring me memories back or strong feelings from that part of my life neither the need to have control over something.

By keeping researching, I think I found the one that resonated with me:

“Humans are unique in the way we collect items purely for the satisfaction of seeking and owning them” – and this is back from prehistoric times.

I also found this TEDtalk that confirms the above:

https://youtu.be/J3ktgPQbUvo

Also, if you know where your collection is and take care of it, you are a collector (it does not matter if you have 3 or 1000+ items); otherwise, you might have something different.

So, keep enjoying collecting yo-yos!

6 Likes

When it comes to yoyos, I would not consider myself much of a collecter but recently I started to get all of the YYF Legend wing - like Gentry’s Icon, the Zipline, plain, engraved, finished, the one from another yoyo store, etc. I love the Legend wing so much and they are not expensive either. I love the variety of them and am afraid they will stop being made sooner or later. I only throw one of them and will continue to do so until the axle is worn too much to work. Then I will just put it away and start playing another one.

3 Likes