Do all coin collectors have addictive personalities ?

STEWARTBLAYNUMIS

or is it just me !

Stewart

Cladiator

i do

Myqqy

I bet many do... I kind of do......

Fletcher

High-end CC Morgan DMPLs are like CRACK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

RYK

Alison Frankel said so in her book, Double Eagle.

Steve27

Not all.

coincop

<< <i>or is it just me !

Stewart >>



I don't find your personality particularly addictive. I'm not saying you're not cute in your own way, but addictive you're not. Sorry.

JRocco

Add me to this list..........

ss350camaro

no, some of them are just outright elitist jerks

Michigan

Try to wean yourself off of numismatics for a week or two (no computer forums, Ebay, Coin World etc.) and if you turn into
a basketcase you will have your answer.

Lahcoin

yep, no doubt about it

elwood

Stewart the junkie.....are you jonezing Stewart??

Do you need to buy some red copper to scratch your itch??

Baley

I'm hooked on a number of purchasables and activities.... including, sometimes, coins.

edited to add: any one of which I could easily stop anytime... Really!

Regulated

Count me in.

1921obsession

I make no excuses for being a crack addict.

MikeKing

I think I took a hiatus from coin collecting for about 2 yrs after selling off my collection. I was as obsessive a buyer then, as I am now. I am nuts. I think all of you are nuts. Some more nuts than others and some even more nuts than I am. Hopefully this time around I'll do a better job at it than I did the last time. Hopefully I've taught myself and learned philosophically, s o m e t h i n g, that gives substance to my obsession, like good taste. That's why coming to the boards is a good thing. It stimulates learning and sharing with a bunch of nice people.

MikeInFL

I have many issues, an addictive personality is among those.

kiyote

I never drink, smoke or do any kind of illegal drugs. I even quit soda cold turkey a few years ago. Coins is my only real addiction.

saintguru

This is the first manifestation of my OCD that is good.

BECOKA

I know I am an addict and even after admiting it I cannot stop.

lkenefic

hmmmmm.....addicted?

I hadn't had significant funds for a while to either upgrade an IHC from that collection or fill a hole in my Morgan date/MM set so I took to culling through pocket change to look for pre-82 Lincolns. Is that bad???

Coindexter

I've been hooked on enough stuff to know when it's real. This is real. Yes, I'm addicted. Anybody got a spare square?

smiles72

<< <i>Alison Frankel said so in her book, Double Eagle. >>



Allison qouted a gentleman who basically said the that true collector is a little nuts.

Whether it be cards, coins or Yachts.

The true hoarder/collector/hobbyist cant resist the urge to collect.

Its a great book by the way. I will do a report when I finish.

JM

LindeDad

YES!!!!!

rabbitracks

BUY all means. I meant "coins"! Always on the lookout for coins of any kind to add to my collection!
That is truly addicting. Stewart you aren't having withdrawl symptoms are your? NOT

mcheath

i have about 100 dollars a week i allow myself to spend on coins. I plan big purchases but stick to my budget fairly well, but waiting four months between coins is killer. I usually buy widgets and blow my money. i cant help it, its a rush when a new coin arrives, be it $50 or 5k.
so yes i have it bad. ich ich ich!

Boothill40

Just because I would work tons of overtime just for coin cash and bought about seven coins in the last week does not make me a coin addict, at least thats what I tell the wife

Tarmac

Not only coin collectors but all collectors have this OCD to collect or more like hoard.

I've have turned my back on coins 3x, each time I said this is the last time. I keep coming back.

It's addictive.

saintguru

Alison quoted ME admitting to "his self diagnosed case of mild obsessive compulsive disorder".

I NEVER sad MILD!!

Mild would be circulated roosies.

BAJJERFAN

I don't know about the addictive personality thing but it sho is some addictive habit and/or behavior thats a fact.

KentuckyJ

No. Not all do. Many, yes. But not all. In any event, in the greater scheme of things, it's a pleasant but sometimes frustrating temporary diversion. The trick is to love the giver of the gifts, more than the gifts. The numismatic light is even greater when you behold the One in all.

KJ

fcloud

It is better to be addicted to a safe, fun hobbie than addicted to the alternatives.

ledzep87

OH yeah!!

Have you ever seen the TV show "Monk"? I am very similar to that character when it comes to everyday life.

mrearlygold

Yes

TorinoCobra71

<< <i>High-end CC Morgan DMPLs are like CRACK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! >>



Now if that Web-site ever gets off the ground we will ALL enjoy them!

TC71

Pushkin

The Collector (anonymous)

Recently, in the academic literature of both psychology and material culture theory, there has arisen a large body of work which attempts to define and place the social phenomenon of the "collector" into various taxonomies and theoretical standpoints that explain his or her behaviour. Since the Rigbys' classical approach, in which they laid out collector motivations in terms of "physical security,...a means to distinction,...a means to immortality...[and]...as means to knowledge," there has been no lack of theoretical attempts to explain collector behaviour.

In his essay "Of Toys and Treasures," Muensterberger proposes that, although there are various types of collectors based on personality difference, all generally partake in collecting in order to escape an overall sense of existential anxiety. A personal sense of helplessness combined with an inability to depend on others results "in seeking and reaching out for presumably protective objects." All collectors, Muensterberger argues, seek out objects in order to "overcome the reappearance of the notion of old feelings of abandonment, [and] of separation anxiety".

Similarly, for Russel Belk, although accepting the existence of different degrees and types of collectors, collecting as an activity is not without an addictive quality. In his case study, Belk identifies that like those who are addicted to chemical substances, the collector also undergoes "altered states of consciousness produced through the collectors search and acquisition. [They are]..described as mood swings resembling the euphoria and depression induced by chemicals." On the more positive side, for Danet and Katriel, in their study of collectors in Israel, collecting is viewed as "a form of play" in which the individual is capable of imagining themselves in "another time or place."

Still others, such as Helfgott, focus on the phenomenon of the historical collector and the tendency towards a blatant ethical disregard in their appropriation of artifacts from other cultures. Given the wide range of contributors in this area it would also be possible to look at work of Pearce, Clifford, Formanek, and Baekeland, among others.

Possible causes and known traits: Bad childhood, emotional insecurity, desire to escape from reality, need to be recognized (must have the best collection), obsessive/compulsive personality.