Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones · chapter 5 · id atomic-habits-c5-03-the-diderot-effect-describes-h

“The Diderot Effect describes how acquiring one new possession creates a cascade of additional purchases to match, named after Denis Diderot's 1769 essay.”

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Receipts

Denis Diderot, "Regrets on Parting with My Old Dressing Gown" (1769)source alive

Diderot received a beautiful new scarlet dressing gown and felt compelled to replace his other possessions to match its elegance, regretting the cascade of consumption.

Grant McCracken 1988, Culture and Consumption (Indiana University Press)source alive

McCracken coined the term "Diderot Effect" in Chapter 8, defining Diderot Unities (cultural consistency among goods) and the Diderot Effect (the force maintaining this consistency).

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