TY - JOUR
T1 - When past meets present
T2 - The relationship between website-induced nostalgia and well-being
AU - Cox, Cathy R.
AU - Kersten, Mike
AU - Routledge, Clay
AU - Brown, Erin M.
AU - Van Enkevort, Erin A.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
PY - 2015/5/1
Y1 - 2015/5/1
N2 - The present research examined whether social media websites increase feelings of nostalgia, and whether this nostalgic reverie promotes psychological and social health. Specifically, in comparison to control conditions, participants exposed to the websites Dear Old Love and Dear Photograph reported greater feelings of nostalgia (Studies 1-3), positive affect (Studies 1 and 3), life satisfaction (Study 1), and relationship need satisfaction (Study 2). Further, mediational analyses revealed that increased thoughts of nostalgia heightened subjective well-being and social connectedness. Study 3 showed that the relationship between nostalgia and positive affect was specific to the Dear Photograph website and did not generalize to any website focused on close relationships. The implications of this research for nostalgia, internet use, and well-being are further discussed.
AB - The present research examined whether social media websites increase feelings of nostalgia, and whether this nostalgic reverie promotes psychological and social health. Specifically, in comparison to control conditions, participants exposed to the websites Dear Old Love and Dear Photograph reported greater feelings of nostalgia (Studies 1-3), positive affect (Studies 1 and 3), life satisfaction (Study 1), and relationship need satisfaction (Study 2). Further, mediational analyses revealed that increased thoughts of nostalgia heightened subjective well-being and social connectedness. Study 3 showed that the relationship between nostalgia and positive affect was specific to the Dear Photograph website and did not generalize to any website focused on close relationships. The implications of this research for nostalgia, internet use, and well-being are further discussed.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84928210134&partnerID=8YFLogxK
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U2 - 10.1111/jasp.12295
DO - 10.1111/jasp.12295
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:84928210134
SN - 0021-9029
VL - 45
SP - 282
EP - 299
JO - Journal of Applied Social Psychology
JF - Journal of Applied Social Psychology
IS - 5
ER -