What does "home" really mean? For most of us, it’s that one place—a singular, solid ground where we feel safe, where we belong, where our well-being thrives. But what happens when life isn’t anchored to one place? When you’re constantly crossing borders, living out of suitcases, and redefining where you lay your head?
In today’s episode, we explore the lives of globally mobile consumers—people who juggle multiple homes, each with its own emotional weight. Through an in-depth study of 40 such individuals, the authors discovered that "home" isn’t just one place—it’s a collection of four types: the emotional home that provides comfort, the home away from home, the practical base of operations, and the transient home on the road. Each serves a different need: belonging, functioning, productivity, flexibility. But what happens when these homes contradict each other? How do people navigate this complex web of homes without losing their sense of identity?
So here’s the big question—when home becomes a portfolio of places, can it still provide the sense of stability we crave, or does it become something else entirely?

Reference
Sharifonnasabi, Z., Mimoun, L., & Bardhi, F. (2024). Home and psychological well‐being in global consumer mobility. Journal of Consumer Psychology.
First published: 17 September 2024 https://doi.org/10.1002/jcpy.1440
Accepted by David B. Wooten, Editor; Associate Editor, Eileen Fischer.

Thanks to Journal of Consumer Psychology to make this paper open access. Journal of Consumer Psychology is an ABDC A* and FT50 listed academic journal published by Wiley.

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