Combating Loneliness With Nostalgia: Nostalgic Feelings Attenuate Negative Thoughts and Motivations Associated With Loneliness
Open accessAbstract
Loneliness is difficult to overcome, in part because it is associated with negative social cognitions and social motivations. We argue that nostalgia, a positive emotional experience that involves reflecting on cherished memories, is a psychological resource that regulates these maladaptive intrapsychic tendencies associated with loneliness. We tested this hypothesis across 4 studies. Study 1 examined whether nostalgia mitigates the inverse relation between loneliness and social confidence. Studies 2, 3, and 4 examined nostalgia's potential to mitigate the inverse relation between loneliness and approach-oriented social goals and intentions. The results provided support that nostalgia mitigates reduced social confidence and low approach-oriented social goals/intentions associated with loneliness. The associations between loneliness and reduced social confidence, and loneliness and less approach-oriented social goals/intentions, respectively, were found to be weaker as a function of nostalgia. This weakening appeared to be due to nostalgia's positive effect on social confidence and approach-oriented social goals/intentions, respectively, particularly at high levels of loneliness.
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Loneliness is linked to adverse outcomes (lower social confidence, weaker intentions for conflict resolution).
“Loneliness was related to lower social con fi dence and weaker intentions for con fl ict resolution.”
From Nostalgia across cultures (2022) · cites this paper as Abeyta et al. (2020)
Nostalgia attenuates the relation between loneliness and adverse outcomes (social confidence, conflict resolution intentions).
“Nostalgia attenuated the relation between loneliness and either social con fi dence or intentions for con fl ict resolution.”
From Nostalgia across cultures (2022) · cites this paper as Abeyta et al. (2020)
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Cited by
Sorted by citations
Zhou, X., Sedikides, C., Mo, T., Li, W., Hong, E. K., & Wildschut, T. (2022) · Social Psychological and Personality Science · doi:10.1177/19485506211041830 · Cited by 107 · see citing works
Sedikides, C., & Wildschut, T. (2022) · Journal of Pacific Rim Psychology · doi:10.1177/18344909221091649 · Cited by 76 · see citing works
- Authors
- Abeyta, A. A., Routledge, C., & Kaslon, S.
- Affiliations
- Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey (US)
- North Dakota State University (US)
- Corresponding author
- Abeyta, Andrew A.
- ORCID
- Abeyta, Andrew A.
- Venue
- Frontiers in Psychology
- Publisher
- Frontiers Media SA
- Published
- 2020-06-23
- Volume
- 11
- Pages
- 1219-1219
- ISSN
- 1664-1078 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC7324708
- OpenAlex
- W3035930185
- Cited by
- 42
- References
- 18
- Citations by year
- 2026: 5 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 7 · 2023: 7 · 2022: 13 · 2021: 4
- FWCI
- 6.18
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Frontiers in Psychology (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Rutgers University Community Repository (Rutgers University) (submittedVersion)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Nostalgia and Consumer Behavior
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Death Anxiety and Social Exclusion
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Developmental and Educational Psychology › Identity, Memory, and Therapy
- Keywords
- loneliness, nostalgia, social confidence, social motivation, social cognition, maladaptive cognitions
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