Trinket culture and the psychology of collecting

As featured in Tyla 11/07/2025

In recent years, there’s been a noticeable rise in what some call ‘trinket’ culture, small, often cute collectible items such as Sonny Angels, Jellycats, and other niche figurines or plush toys.

Psychological Needs and the Role of Collecting

Collecting can meet several core psychological needs that support wellbeing. According to positive psychology, our wellbeing is maintained and improved by positive emotions, engaging activities, meaningful relationships, a sense of purpose, and feelings of achievement.

At its most basic level, interacting with items we enjoy or find meaningful, like a favourite plush or figurine, can elicit feelings of pleasure, comfort and satisfaction. These positive emotional experiences are then positive reinforcement; when an activity makes us feel good, we’re more likely to repeat it. So, if owning or searching for a particular trinket brings joy, the desire to continue collecting grows.

Collecting also serves a social function. Research shows that shared interests and hobbies promote social connection and can lead to communities that offer emotional support, which is a key factor in coping with life’s challenges. Online platforms, in particular, have made it easier to connect with others who share the same niche interests, contributing to a sense of belonging.

Nostalgia, Identity and Emotion Regulation

Nostalgia likely plays an important role, too. Engaging with nostalgic objects or activities can help maintain a stable sense of identity and support emotional regulation, especially during periods of stress or uncertainty. For Gen Z, who’ve grown up during a time of global instability twinned with increasingly online lives, these small tokens of joy may offer comfort, grounding, and even a link to a simpler or idealised version of the past.

Potential Downsides of Collecting

While collecting can be beneficial, it’s not without its risks. When a hobby begins to dominate someone’s life, either taking up significant space, becoming financially burdensome, or fostering unhealthy competition, it may negatively affect wellbeing. Social dynamics around collecting can become toxic if they shift from shared joy to comparison, competition, or status. In some cases, collecting may also serve as a form of avoidance, distracting from deeper emotional or psychological challenges, rather than helping to resolve them.

A Timeless Human Habit

The rise of online communities, social media, and digital marketplaces has made collecting more visible, more social, and more accessible. Trends may shift, and the specific items collected will evolve, but collecting, whether for joy, comfort, meaning, or connection, is likely here to stay. Trinket culture may just be the latest expression of a long-standing human habit.