They almost always involve family, romantic partners, or close friends. In general, nostalgic memories are social memories. However, even seemingly minor social encounters can become sources of nostalgia if they are savored experiences that make people feel deeply connected. Nostalgic memories regularly feature cherished family experiences such as holidays, extended family gatherings, family vacations, weddings, the birth of child or grandchild, and religious rites of passage.
Positive emotion words were also very common.
Family was the most frequently used word among these participants. For example, below is a word cloud representing the content of nostalgia narratives from a sample of 452 primarily young adults who participated in recent studies conducted in my lab. Most people’s nostalgic memories involve intimate relationships, especially family, and they tend to focus on positive emotions, though they can also include expressions of loss and sadness.
#Nostalgic gift meaning software
After collecting these nostalgic narratives, we use a combination of computer text analysis software and trained human coders to quantify the content of nostalgic memories along a range of dimensions.Īre there common themes expressed in nostalgic memories? Yes. One way our research team has approached the study of nostalgia is by simply asking people to describe in writing an experience from their lives that makes them feel nostalgic. It is generated and sustained by close bonds with family and friends. Our study of nostalgia also bolsters other research that reveals that meaning is deeply social. This work has revealed that, far from being an experience that causes distress as it was seen in the past, nostalgia is a psychological resource that serves a vital role in helping people in their pursuit of a meaningful life. Our team was the first to launch a comprehensive program of empirical research on the psychology of nostalgia. 1 This research has involved a diverse range of methodologies, such as text analysis of nostalgia narratives, surveys examining the relation between nostalgic tendencies and other psychological characteristics, and experiments utilizing self-report, behavioral, and neuroscientific paradigms to identify what causes us to long for the past and how engaging in nostalgic reflection makes us feel and behave.
And yet, critical clues to finding and sustaining meaning in life are often tucked away within our most cherished memories.įor nearly 20 years, in collaboration with an international group of scholars, I have been studying the psychology of nostalgia, attempting to understand how it is experienced, what causes it, and how it influences our lives. These types of questions are always difficult to answer, but perhaps particularly so in our individualistic society, where people are increasingly disconnected from deep family and cultural networks and encouraged to distrust tradition and the guidance of elders. What makes life feel meaningful? What goals and choices lead to fulfillment? When tragedy and despair strike, how does one restore the sense that life is worth living?
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