Function & Clinical Uses
Now we examine some of the functional uses of nostalgia as well as applying them in clinical settings. The main functions of nostalgia that will be discussed include an: increase in optimism, counteracting loneliness, and maintain physiological comfort. Starting with a paper from Zhou (2008) that looked at nostalgia being used to counteract loneliness. Over the course of four studies, they hypothesized that induced nostalgia could counteract perceived social support caused by loneliness. The reported results showed that loneliness is associated with decreased perceived social support along with a reported increase in feelings of nostalgia-itself associated with increased perceived social support. This relation shows
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1492). These findings are congruent with previous studies that showed nostalgia is related to a generally pleasurable feeling. Further observations showed that nostalgia is directly correlated to heightened self-esteem, which, in turn, heightens optimism. This serves as an important finding as it alleviates some of the original concerns that these higher levels of optimism are simply due to positive mood and not truly an effect of nostalgia. By showing the step-by-step process, we see that nostalgia increase self-esteem, which causes optimism to increase.
Further studies from Zhou (2012) looked at nostalgia’s effect as a homeostatic role along with the psychological benefits mentioned above. Their results from a set of conducted studies showed that:
Thermoregulatory discomfort triggered nostalgia: nostalgia was stronger on colder (vs. warmer) days and in a cold (vs. neutral or warm) room. Nostalgia induced patients reported an increase in physical warmth, music-evoked nostalgia participants predicted the physical sensation of warmth, and recalling a nostalgic [vs. ordinary autobiographical] event made a cold room feel warmer.
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While this paper served more as an all-encompassing literature review of the topic, the main ideas can be summarized as followed. First, nostalgia is most commonly induced during a negative mindset but is regarded as a positive emotion due to its increase in positive mood affects. Secondly, the limbic system, especially the hypothalamus and amygdala, are vital to the overall process as they are chiefly involved with attributing emotions to memories. Finally, due to all the positive associations correlated with nostalgia, it has potential to be used as a coping mechanism in clinical settings for patients dealing with social interactions and loneliness. For further clinical applications, research regarding induced nostalgia should become the forefront of the field. We see the positive benefits that nostalgia can have, now we must find better ways to induce that emotion in a clinical setting. Possible ways of doing may be patient exposure to potentially nostalgic stimuli such as music, movies, and television from the era they grew up along with photos and
Rendon, M. (2008). Psychoanalysis, a bridge between attachment research and neurobiology. The American Journal of Psychoanalysis, 68(2), 148-155.
The Hunger Games was a critically acclaimed movie when it came out; however, some critics would argue that the movie can be sometimes too violent for its intended audience. In this essay I would dissert Brian Bethune’s essay “Dystopia Now” in order to find its weaknesses and compare the movie Battle Royale with his essay.
In Incontinent Nostalgia, a 63 year old woman is living with Parkinson disease since she was 18 years old. She is using L-Dopa to treat her disease, which causes the nostalgia and joyful memories of the youthful past.
Webster has defined nostalgia as a “wistful or excessively sentimental, sometimes abnormal yearning for a return to or of some past period or irrecoverable condition.” Nostalgia is a psychological time machine that transplants adults to the good old days of another era. Once there, they will find that it is a state of mind, oblivious to actual or imagined barriers. For some it is a pleasant stroll through yesterday, a simple, less turbulent past.
Just as farmers brand their livestock in order to claim them as their own, humans do the same when it comes to important events. There are certain moments in one's life when an incident is so powerful, emotionally or physically, that it leaves a mark on a person forever. The branded symbol that is left could be positive or negative, but there is no doubt that it has caused a wave of all-encompassing feeling. And although when looking back at the past the majority of our memories tend to be viewed with a black and white perception, it is these rare occurrences when a certain event can be so distinct that it is like experiencing it once more. This experience that was once felt with the body and the mind is now felt forever in the heart and soul. The nostalgic memories are not always seen as the positive memories that one wishes to. However, sometimes those are the only ones that you can remember.
Wagner, U., Hallschmid, M., Rasch, B.H., & Born, J. (2006). Brief sleep after learning keeps emotional memories alive for years. Biological Psychiatry, 60, 788–790.
Nostalgia is described as sentimental feelings for the past. Things such as smell and touch can trigger nostalgia. Nostalgia is relating po...
Storbeck, J., & Clore, G. L. (2005). With sadness comes accuracy; with happiness, false memory. Psychological Science, 16(10), 785-791.
...ople may feel that they want to return to the past and relive moments that they cherish, despite this being virtually impossible.
Sadness is an important feeling various people have throughout their lifetime. Some experience it more than others causing it to become a disorder, or most commonly known as depression. The background to the fictional novel, “Where Things Come Back” by John Corey Whaley, is that the character go through many difficult conflicts such as isolation, sadness, and mortality.The perspective of sadness varies throughout different people, therefore it is important to understand others point of view.
Emotion can elicit false memories; past experiences can create ‘emotional’ experiences from trauma events. Some of these events may include seeing someone at gunpoint or seeing a building vandalized. These events may elicit emotion for an individual; they may not want to remember these
People thrived to experience life, and to seek out emotions, whether they were good or bad. This emotion and imagination of th...
Without nostalgia to remind us of the past, we would be lost in the tiresome hustle and bustle of our current society. Nostalgia is a source of hope and happiness for those who struggle with their day to day lives or merely wish to relive a memorable and enjoyable time from their past. Although burdensome, it is apparent that negativity is often present when one nostalgizes. However, one must look past the negatives as nostalgia functions best when channeled positively. Whatever the reason for recalling past events, it is evident that nostalgia brings with it a whirlwind of emotions that cannot be replicated through any other means.
Nostalgia is, by definition, a longing for another person. It is an idealized past, or a combination of many different memories; all integrated together, and in the process all negative emotions filtered out (google). I believe that nostalgia is a term that I believe to be overused, misunderstood, and often confused with the act of remembering or reminiscing. Nostalgia is the emotional attachment; longing to go back to that memory, it often overcomes one without warning. I believe we all have the capacity of nostalgia, but the over labeling has cheapened such a unique raw feeling. As a society, we have misrepresented nostalgia and the effects are a water downed replacement. We are muddling the true definition of nostalgia. This misuse will
Although, because I didn’t mourn then, as I got older, I became more vulnerable, it made me more sensitive about anything and everything. Controlling emotions was much easier then, than now. I learned that we tend to know how to keep ourselves in control, and in a healthy state of mind. I learned that it’s better to talk about the death of my father than avoiding the subject. I learned that eating ice cream after a breakup helps the emptiness of the heart and stomach. However, in overall, we cry, laugh and get angry, no matter what because our body needs to feel vulnerable to express how we truly feel, controlling our emotions makes us strong and gives us a higher chance of happiness but the feeling of loneliness too. Controlling emotions takes practice, it involves emotional empathy, which is the ability to concentrate and recognize mood both for themselves and