Contents 
Acknowledgements 
To have is to be: is that the question? 
Private property and materialism 
Material symbols 
Self, other and material symbols of identity 
The rise of mass consumer society: we are what we have 
Identity through possessions 
Biological accounts of possessions and property: 
The ‘acquisitive instinct’ past and present 
The ‘acquisitive instinct’ SR 
Sociobiology: the ‘acquisitive instinct’ in modern disguise? 
Possession-related behaviour in different cultures 
Possessive behaviour and childhood 
Humans and other animals 
Social aspects of material possessions 
Instinct revisited 
Conclusion 
Notes 
The individual-centred approach: 
Material possessions as parts of the extended self 
Possessions as parts of the self 
A developmental perspective on possessions and self 
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