The Restorative Power of Nostalgia: Thwarting Loneliness by Raising Happiness During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Zhou, Xinyue; Sedikides, Constantine; Mo, Tiantian; Li, Wanyue; Hong, Emily; Sedikides, Constantine

doi:10.1177/19485506211041830

Cited by 70 publications

(50 citation statements)

References 73 publications

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“…Secondly, this study demonstrates that lack of social connectedness, loneliness, anxiety, fear, and uncertainty evoke organizational nostalgia in the pandemic era, which extends the literature on nostalgia and organizational nostalgia. For example, previous studies found that aversive states evoke nostalgia as loneliness [7], fear of death [8], lack of social connectedness [8], and anxiety [51]. Concordantly, Davis [30] also stated that nostalgia 'occurs in the context of present fears, discontents, anxieties, or uncertainties'.…”

Section: Romania Stating That They Have Not Yet Been Ablementioning

confidence: 99%

Throwback to pre-pandemic days: A photo-elicitation study on organizational nostalgia

Tatar

Müceldili

Erdil

2023

WOR

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BACKGROUND: As an unprecedented outbreak, the COVID-19 pandemic has restricted and dramatically changed several respects of life. In terms of working life, the transition to a remote working system has brought several changes and interrupted the continuity between past and present working life. In this case, this adversity has led people to past experiences and memories, and many people have used nostalgia as a crucial resource for alleviating the negative impact of the outbreak. OBJECTIVE: In this context, as a form of nostalgia, the current study particularly investigated memories eliciting organizational nostalgia and antecedents and consequences of organizational nostalgia in the pandemic era. METHODS: Photo-elicitation interview in general, and participant-driven photo-elicitation in particular, was used as a data collection method. A cross-sectional design was employed for this study. In total, 10 photo-elicitation interviews through 62 photos were carried out with participants in Turkey. The thematic analysis was used for coding and analyzing the interviews. RESULTS: The current study demonstrated that (1) participants feel nostalgic for managers, colleagues, events, job, and working environment-related memories; (2) lack of social connectedness, loneliness, anxiety, fear, and uncertainty triggers pandemic-induced nostalgia; and (3) pandemic-induced organizational nostalgia has an impact on the variety of emotions (regret, hope, pride, freedom, joy, peace, excitement, yearning, gratitude, sadness, and happiness) of employees in the pandemic era. CONCLUSIONS: This study contributes to overcoming the lack of studies investigating the nostalgic emotion of employees in the pandemic era and how this emotion might contribute to overcoming the effects of COVID-19.

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Section: Romania Stating That They Have Not Yet Been Ablementioning

confidence: 99%

Throwback to pre-pandemic days: A photo-elicitation study on organizational nostalgia

Tatar

Müceldili

Erdil

2023

WOR

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“…Nostalgia is considered to be a predominantly positive, approach‐oriented mindset which people typically mobilize under negatively valenced conditions. An increasing amount of evidence shows that aversive stimuli, such as loneliness (Loh et al, 2021; Wildschut et al, 2006; X. Zhou et al, 2021), social exclusion (Seehusen et al, 2013), boredom (van Tilburg et al, 2013), negative mood (Barrett et al, 2010; Wildschut et al, 2006), discontinuity between one's past and present (Sedikides et al, 2008; Sedikides et al, 2015), and meaninglessness (Routledge et al, 2011, 2012) all trigger a (need for) nostalgia. And not without a reason.…”

Section: Conceptual Backgroundmentioning

confidence: 99%

Saved by the past? Disease threat triggers nostalgic consumption

Barauskaitė

Gineikienė

Fennis

2022

Psychology and Marketing

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Recent research views nostalgia as a valuable resource that can be accessed in times of distress and discomfort. The present work complements this literature by examining novel and previously uncovered triggers and downstream consequences of nostalgia in the consumer domain: disease‐threat and protective behavior. The current paper argues that nostalgia functions as such a psychological resource with buffering qualities and is used as a coping mechanism to maintain comfort when experiencing disease threat—the perception of a potential threat posed by an infectious disease. Using an archival data set and five experiments, the authors demonstrate that when facing a disease threat, but not an actual occurrence of disease, consumers experience a higher need for nostalgia and show an increased preference for nostalgic products. That is, internet searches for nostalgic products rise during flu season as well as COVID‐19 pandemic (Study 1), disease threat induces increased levels of experienced nostalgia (Study 2), which translate into increased preferences for nostalgic products (Study 3 and Study 5), mediated by disgust (Study 4). Finally, the authors show the resource value of product‐induced nostalgia, demonstrating the ironic effect that it can compensate for disease‐protective behavior (Study 6). The results provide important practical implications for marketers and policy‐makers who could focus on promoting nostalgic products or incorporating nostalgic cues in product design and communication that would generate positive consumer evaluations when the threat of illness or disease is salient.

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“…The Regulatory Model was also tested in two correlational online studies conducted in Western samples during the COVID-19 pandemic (Zhou et al, 2021). Loneliness was positively associated with nostalgia, but negatively associated with well-being (e.g., happiness).…”

Section: Nostalgia As a Buffermentioning

confidence: 99%

Nostalgia across cultures

Sedikides

2022

Journal of Pacific Rim Psychology

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Nostalgia, a sentimental longing for one's past, has been garnering keen empirical attention in the psychological literature over the last two decades. After providing a historical overview, we place the emotion in cross-cultural context. Laypeople in many cultures conceptualize nostalgia similarly: as a past-oriented, social, self-relevant, and bittersweet emotion, but more sweet (positively toned) than bitter (negatively toned). That is, the nostalgizer reflects on a fond and personally important event—often their childhood or valued relationships—relives the event through rose-colored glasses, yearns for that time or relationship, and may even wish to return briefly to the past. Also, triggers of nostalgia (e.g., adverts, food, cold temperatures, loneliness) are similar across cultures. Moreover, across cultures nostalgia serves three key functions: it elevates social connectedness (a sense of belongingness or acceptance), meaning in life (a sense that one's life is significant, purposeful, and coherent), and self-continuity (a sense of connection between one's past and present self). Further, nostalgia acts as a buffer against discomforting psychological states (e.g., loneliness) similarly in varied cultural contexts. For example, (1) loneliness is positively related to, or intensifies, nostalgia; (2) loneliness is related to, or intensifies, adverse outcomes such as unhappiness or perceived lack of social support; and (3) nostalgia suppresses the relation between loneliness and adverse outcomes. Additionally, nostalgia facilitates one's acculturation to a host culture. Specifically, (1) nostalgia (vs. control) elicits a positive acculturation orientation toward a host culture; (2) nostalgia (vs. control) amplifies bicultural identity integration; and (3) positive acculturation orientation mediates the effect of host-culture nostalgia on bicultural identity integration. We conclude by identifying lacunae in the literature and calling for follow-up research.

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The Restorative Power of Nostalgia: Thwarting Loneliness by Raising Happiness During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Cited by 70 publications

References 73 publications

Throwback to pre-pandemic days: A photo-elicitation study on organizational nostalgia

Throwback to pre-pandemic days: A photo-elicitation study on organizational nostalgia

Saved by the past? Disease threat triggers nostalgic consumption

Nostalgia across cultures

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