WP2
Part 1: What is Nostalgia?
“A Blast from the Past: Why We’re Hooked on Nostalgia.” SCL Health, www.sclhealth.org/blog/2019/05/why-we-are-hooked-on-nostalgia/#:~:text=Although%20any%20of%20our%20senses,the%20two%20most%20powerful%20triggers. Accessed 28 Sep. 2023.
The article explores nostalgia as an emotional state similar to a "screen memory," mixing past memories with the deletion of negative emotions. It posits that nostalgia triggers a positive feedback loop by idealizing memories and relying on memories with emotional significance. The article does a good job of discussing the connection to the amygdala and how our nerves can trigger a nostalgic response from the memory portion of the brain. Despite offering a clear explanation and linking sensory triggers to the nostalgic experience, the article could be strengthened by exploring the drawbacks of dwelling on the past excessively.
Brooks, Arthur C. “Nostalgia Is a Shield against Unhappiness.” The Atlantic, Atlantic Media Company, 10 Mar. 2023, www.theatlantic.com/family/archive/2023/03/nostalgia-defense-unhappiness-happy-memories/673320/.
The text examines how we perceive places, using the example of Lincoln City from the author's personal experiences and how his wife’s view of the same location was not as memorable. It defines nostalgia as a self-conscious, social emotion characterized by a blend of happy memories and a yearning for the past. The argument emphasizes how nostalgia can reform perceptions, even turning negative into pleasurable ones. The article draws research from the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology and the Journal of Cognition and Emotion. It suggests practical ways to nurture nostalgia and emphasizes its positive effects on social bonds, well-being, and overall outlook on life. This article does a great job of providing a concise definition of nostalgia and anecdotes. However, it could benefit from a more diverse range of examples.
“Does Nostalgia Have a Psychological Purpose? With Krystine Batcho, Phd.” American Psychological Association, American Psychological Association, www.apa.org/news/podcasts/speaking-of-psychology/nostalgia#:~:text=Nostalgia%20by%20motivating%20us%20to,the%20road%20in%20the%20future. Accessed 29 Sep. 2023.
This is a podcast article that portrays nostalgia as a complex emotional experience and highlights its positive role in our self-expression, reconciliation of the past, and human connection. It describes historical and personal nostalgia and their nature of providing comfort in times of discomfort. It further explains that this can occur due to major life events and it’s our defense mechanism to change. This was a very insightful article because it was very academic but also personal. However, it lacked a broader cultural viewpoint on nostalgia.
FioRito, Taylor A., and Clay Routledge. “Is Nostalgia a Past or Future-Oriented Experience? Affective, Behavioral, Social Cognitive, and Neuroscientific Evidence.” Frontiers, Frontiers, 4 May 2020, www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.01133/full.
The article explores nostalgia as a sentimental longing for the past, contending that it's a future-oriented emotional experience rather than a past-oriented experience. Supported by studies, it argues nostalgia motivates future well-being, behavior, and social goals. The article's strength lies in its comprehensive details, though more recent research could boost its argument and address study limitations.
Gallarde, Cheyne. “The Power of Nostalgia.” Youtube, uploaded by TEDx Talks, 24 April, 2015
Hastings, Colel. “Why Is Nostalgia So Painful?” Youtube, uploaded by Cole Hastings, 22 February, 2021
This is a video journal where he talks about how he is experiencing a lot of nostalgia for his life in 2016 by listening to old music and viewing old Snapchat stories. He explains that the cause of this could be his life change of graduating college. He goes on to explain how his past feels much more significant now that it is no longer here even though at the time it felt ordinary. This was personal and contained real examples that allowed viewers to feel sentimental. However, it could’ve been better with a more direct approach to its audiences.
“How a Dose of Nostalgia Could Boost Your Self-Esteem.” HuffPost, HuffPost, 5 Oct. 2013, www.huffpost.com/entry/benefits-of-nostalgia_n_4031759.
The text delineates nostalgia as a warm, comforting emotion evoked by cherished memories from the past, often tinged with a hint of melancholy due to their loss. It notes common triggers like scents, music, and old photos, and the frequency of nostalgizing, prevalent in both young adults and those over 50. Nostalgia, experienced as early as age 8, yields numerous benefits, enhancing mood, reducing stress, and fostering social connections, happiness, and self-esteem. The text advocates for leveraging nostalgia to inform future goals, encourage group reminiscing, and create present-day meaningful experiences, amplifying its positive impact on well-being and interpersonal relationships. While the text effectively extols the virtues of nostalgia, a broader exploration of potential downsides could enrich its perspective. Additionally, including references to studies would bolster its credibility.
Huang, Kuan-Ju, et al. “Pandemic Nostalgia: Reduced Social Contact Predicts Consumption of Nostalgic Music during the COVID-19 Pandemic.” Social Psychological and Personality Science, SAGE Publications, 18 Jan. 2023, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9892812/#:~:text=It%20is%20likely%20that%2C%20during,et%20al.%2C%202021).
Kincaid, Laken. “That Funny Feeling: The Science Behind Nostalgia.” The Carroll News, carrollnews.org/195934/arts-and-life/that-funny-feeling-the-science-behind-nostalgia/. Accessed 29 Sep. 2023.
Li, Bin, et al. “Can Good Memories of the Past Instill Happiness? Nostalgia Improves Subjective Well-Being by Increasing Gratitude.” Journal of Happiness Studies, U.S. National Library of Medicine, 2023, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9826762/.
This text was to investigate how nostalgia influences subjective well-being, particularly focusing on positive affect, negative affect, and satisfaction with life. Strengths of the text include a clear articulation of hypotheses, a thorough explanation of the experimentation process, and a thoughtful exploration of the associations between nostalgia, gratitude, and emotional well-being. However, limitations are acknowledged that they were only able to study college students which could have an effect on the findings.
“Nostalgic Depression: What It Is & How to Cope.” Healthline, Healthline Media, 15 July 2021, www.healthline.com/health/depression/nostalgic-depression.
The article explains how negative nostalgia can leave feelings of dissatisfaction with the present. It highlights how fixating on the idealized past can lead to emotional distress, contributing to depression. The article's strength lies in its balanced exploration of nostalgia's emotional impact, using relatable examples and research to substantiate its argument. However, it can be strengthened with a broader range of research studies.
Proust, Marcel, et al. In Search of Lost Time. Vintage, 2005.
Sotelo-Duarte, Manuel, and Rajagopal. “Experiencing Time Elapse Phenomenon in Nostalgia: Effect on Consumption Behavior in Adulthood.” Qualitative Research Journal, Emerald Publishing Limited, 12 July 2022, www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/QRJ-03-2022-0052/full/html?skipTracking=true.
Stevens, Michael. “Why Do We Feel Nostalgia?” Youtube, uploaded by Vsauce, 27 May, 2013
This YouTube video dives deep into why we feel nostalgia. It talks about the Lifespan Retrieval curve which is a graph that represents the number of autobiographical memories encoded at various ages during the lifespan span. From the age of 15 to thirty, there is a phenomenon called the Reminiscence Bump where we tend to remember memories from this period the most. The video references a study from Sage Journals talking about the false memory experiment which I thought was a little irrelevant to the topic of the video and couldn’t understand how it related to nostalgia. However, it does a very good job of going in-depth into why we have nostalgia for the first half of the video.
“The Surprising Power of Nostalgia at Work.” Harvard Business Review, 27 Aug. 2021, hbr.org/2021/04/the-surprising-power-of-nostalgia-at-work.
This article advocates using nostalgia as a powerful psychological tool in the workplace. The author suggests three practical ways managers can integrate nostalgia: fostering stronger relationships, infusing meaning at work, and inspiring creativity. The article provides actionable strategies for managers to use nostalgia effectively within their organizations, creating a bridge between the past and present to focus on future goals. However, it tends to highlight the positive aspects of nostalgia and lacks a critique.
Turner, R. N., Wildschut, T., and Sedikides, C. (2018) Fighting ageism through nostalgia. Eur. J. Soc. Psychol., 48: 196–208. https://doi-org.libproxy1.usc.edu/10.1002/ejsp.2317.
This is a research experiment that showed how nostalgia influences attitudes towards older adults. It tells us that nostalgia strengthens social connectedness and inclusion of one's self-concept, ultimately reducing ageism. They used intergroup out-group similarity and social connectedness. Strengths include methodological clarity and practical implications for reducing ageism. However, limitations include a limited participant demographic and a focus on the short-term effects rather than long-term effects.
University, Santa Clara. “Why Nostalgia Is on the Rise.” Home - Santa Clara University, www.scu.edu/illuminate/thought-leaders/david-b-feldman/why-nostalgia-is-on-the-rise.html#:~:text=As%20a%20result%20of%20engaging,useful%20as%20a%20psychotherapeutic%20technique. Accessed 1 Oct. 2023.
Walsh, Colleen. “How Scent, Emotion, and Memory Are Intertwined - and Exploited.” Harvard Gazette, Harvard Gazette, 27 Feb. 2020, news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2020/02/how-scent-emotion-and-memory-are-intertwined-and-exploited/.
The article explores the "Proustian moment," revealing the powerful link between smell and memory as evidenced by Marcel Proust's "In Search of Lost Time”. It explains why smell is a powerful component for our memories while highlighting the path from olfactory signals to the emotional and memory limbic system and how companies use this to create brand connections with consumers. The text is effective at seamlessly integrating literary, scientific, and branding perspectives, providing a comprehensive understanding of smell's multifaceted significance. However, it could include more case studies of the olfactive branding in other industries.
Watson, Galadriel. It’s natural to feel happy and sad at the same time. Here’s when it can become a problem.: Feeling ambivalence, which includes nostalgia and bittersweetness, is part of the complexity of being human. But it can be unhealthy if you lean too much toward the negative. ProQuest, Aug 04, 2021, http://libproxy.usc.edu/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/blogs-podcasts-websites/s-natural-feel-happy-sad-at-same-time-here-when/docview/2557940789/se-2.
“What Nostalgia Is and What It Does.” What Nostalgia Is and What It Does | Nostalgia | University of Southampton, www.southampton.ac.uk/nostalgia/what-nostalgia-is.page#:~:text=When%20engaging%20in%20nostalgic%20reflection,self%2Desteem%20and%20positive%20mood. Accessed 2 Oct. 2023.
Part 2: What I Learned and Why Nostalgia?
Prior to this exploration, my knowledge of nostalgia was straightforward, only viewing it as a sentimental yearning for the past. However, after scavenging through the libraries and the internet to help me write this essay on nostalgia it opened a lot of new thinking and realization on my part. The mediums of sources I used have illuminated nostalgia’s historical roots, psychosocial implications, as well its role in society. I want to talk about my knowledge of nostalgia prior to embarking on this journey and then summarize what I had learned and any misconceptions I had. Finally, I want to talk more in-depth about why I chose to pick this topic.
In terms of what nostalgia is, I would have to confidently say that I was a complete novice. The only reason that I decided to choose nostalgia as a topic of interest was due to my fascination with it rather than my academic expertise on this subject. Nonetheless, as I immersed myself more in the research I have learned that nostalgia has deeper implications and applications than I had thought. From the sources I had found, I learned that nostalgia originally was treated as a mental illness that affected Swiss mercenaries during the war. Further research was done to learn more about this phenomenon and eventually, Swiss physician Johannes Hofer coined the term nostalgia which stands for “return home” and “pain” in Latin.
The sources that I had put together varied from research papers, and articles, to youtube videos. I found that the research appears to be really helpful in providing new knowledge to my research handbook whereas the articles were helpful but I noticed that most of the articles were very similar in information. So after a couple of articles, I felt a little blocked in learning. The YouTube videos were the most creative and easiest to digest. They were crucial in bringing in a new perspective to nostalgia which was different from the research papers, where the research papers found new hypotheses for neurological indications while the YouTube videos focused more on why nostalgia happens and how it affects our lives in a societal and cultural definition.
The most insightful information I gained from researching nostalgia, was that nostalgia allows us to remember neutral or even negative memories in a positive light. This was very eye-opening because as soon as I read that, I immediately thought of memories that weren’t significant or happy but elicited a similar response to memories that were happy. Another insightful information was that too much nostalgia can be detrimental. As someone who views nostalgia as one of the little things in life, I have never approached it in a negative manner. Participating in “too much” nostalgia can lead to dissatisfaction with your current life and it can lead us to experience depression. On top of that, it can stunt our personal growth and our motivation to encounter new life experiences. Finally, I learned that smell and music are the biggest triggers of nostalgia. Although I had assumed this with an educated guess prior to this paper, reading about the brain functions of memory association and our olfactory nerves was super interesting and made me think of what could have caused humans to evolve to need nostalgia. After researching nostalgia, my view on it has grown from a more humanitarian view to a neurological standpoint.
I hope that my knowledge on nostalgia will continue to grow, nonetheless after venturing into this project, I want to write an op-ed where I can explore the many scientific suggestions that I have newly gained while combining my personal take and experience with nostalgia and how it affects my life. I feel that an op-ed will be the most palatable to most audiences because of its vulnerability. Especially in my case since nostalgia is a phenomenon that everyone from all cultures can relate to.
This experience of self-discovery in a topic that I always felt was fascinating was a very gratifying experience. I feel that I have experienced nostalgia in greater magnitudes and frequency as I entered college. It could be due to my covid time perception or simply that I am slowly approaching the end of “childhood”. Rather than going through pictures of myself in grade school, I found myself looking at pictures and stories from within a couple of years. A tremendous mix of happiness and sorrow overcame me and I often found myself wishing if there were a way I could stop time.