Loving and Owning: Psychological Aspects of Buying Music NFTs

Abstract

The main objective of this paper is to outline the psychological aspects of trading in the music NFT (non-fungible tokens) ecosystem, with special emphasis on the psychological background of buying NFTs. Since the most important feature of NFTs is the acquisition of ownership enabled by technological solutions, we assume that each purchase of a token does not only imply an economic exchange of ownership, but also the activation of psychological ownership. Having in mind that psychological ownership is a relative category that depends, among other factors, on the nature of the target to which it is attached, our investigation is conceptual rather than empirical. By connecting the already identified cores of psychological ownership to the characteristics of some of the most prominent music NFT drops, we aim to theoretically define general dimensions of psychological ownership through which emotional and social connections to music NFTs as objects of ownership emerge. We conclude that the NFT market reinforces psychological ownership by providing consumers valuable outcomes. In terms of music NFTs, the concept of psychological ownership can be explained by several intertwined dimensions that create emotional and social connections and motivate users to purchase these digital goods. These include a sense of unique possession, identity and self-expression, a sense of belonging to a community, and investment opportunities. The NFT drops discussed illustrate how leveraging different aspects of psychological ownership can transform a music release into a special experience that reshapes the relationship between fans and musicians. Examining fans’ purchases of music NFTs from a psychological perspective can help musicians better understand blockchain users’ behaviour towards music, which is essential for developing NFTs into a sustainable digital format for music revenue.