Tamerlan Tserenov

ENG21003

Professor Zayas

Research Proposal

03.19.2025

Topic: Psychological and Social Effects of Nostalgia

In Greek, nostalgia means “nostos” – return home and “algos” – pain. Nowadays, nostalgia carries the concept of memories of the past. In half of the cases of nostalgia, a person experiences positive feelings, remembering the past as something that took place, while in the other half this feeling is longing for the past. The cognitive side of nostalgia relates to memories, while the emotional side is tied to the feelings those memories evoke. In everyday life, nostalgia tends to arise more often during negative social experiences or life disruptions, such as losing a loved one, feeling lonely, or going through a depressive episode. Therefore, there is an open question – Is nostalgia harmful or helpful for one’s mental and psychological well-being?

Why is this question important?

Social media is constantly reinforcing nostalgia through “revisiting the past” trends, reboots of old TV shows, and reminders of events. Politicians also use nostalgia to their advantage by appealing to emotions, such as saying “Make America great again!”. Since nostalgia is closely related to the emotional aspect of human memories, it can have both positive and negative effects. By studying the effect of nostalgia on humans, it could help us better understand whether it provides psychological benefits or contributes to emotional distress.

Methodology:

I still need to explore different perspectives from psychology, sociology, and media studies. It is important to know and understand the concept of work and the consequences of nostalgia from different angles. I will use scientific articles, journals and other accessible information which I’m planning to find on Google Scholar and CCNY Libraries sources, such as OneSearch.

Expected Outcomes:

Nostalgia is helpful in moderation, but harmful in excess. Most likely, nostalgia more often carries harmful consequences for a person’s well-being, since it often arises during difficult periods of time in attempts at self-defense, fueling negative emotions even more.

References (Works planned to be used):

Hussain, S. A., & Alhabash, S. (2022). Effect of nostalgia as a motivational force for depressed students to seek professional psychological help. Journal of American College Health, 70(2), 484–492. https://doi.org/10.1080/07448481.2020.1754838

Ye, Q., Turner, M. M., & Jang, Y. (2024). Examining the Psychological Mechanisms Underlying Nostalgia Appeals: A Comparative Experiment of Nostalgia and Regret. Health Communication, 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1080/10410236.2024.2355441

Wood, A. M., & Johnson, J. (Eds.). (2016). The Wiley Handbook of Positive Clinical Psychology. John Wiley & Sons, Incorporated. https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/ccny-ebooks/detail.action?docID=4513033

Lammers, J., Alaukik, A., & Baldwin, M. (2025). When longing goes wrong: Nostalgia can cause a preference for harmful aspects of the past. Analyses of Social Issues and Public Policy, 25, e70000. https://doi.org/10.1111/asap.70000