[Ailist] Nostalgia: Content, Triggers, Functions

[Stephanie West Allen]

 >>Seven methodologically diverse studies addressed 3 fundamental  
questions about nostalgia. Studies 1 and
2 examined the content of nostalgic experiences. Descriptions of  
nostalgic experiences typically featured
the self as a protagonist in interactions with close others (e.g.,  
friends) or in momentous events (e.g.,
weddings). Also, the descriptions contained more expressions of  
positive than negative affect and often
depicted the redemption of negative life scenes by subsequent  
triumphs. Studies 3 and 4 examined
triggers of nostalgia and revealed that nostalgia occurs in response  
to negative mood and the discrete
affective state of loneliness. Studies 5, 6, and 7 investigated the  
functional utility of nostalgia and
established that nostalgia bolsters social bonds, increases positive  
self-regard, and generates positive
affect.<<

http://www.soton.ac.uk/~crsi/WildschutSedikidesArndtRoutledge2006.pdf

Stephanie