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Nostalgia: The Gift That Keeps on Giving

Author

Listed:
  • Xinyue Zhou
  • Tim Wildschut
  • Constantine Sedikides
  • Kan Shi
  • Cong Feng

Abstract

Nostalgia, a sentimental longing for a personally experienced and valued past, is a social emotion. It refers to significant others in the context of momentous life events and fosters a sense of social connectedness. On this basis, the authors hypothesized that (1) nostalgia promotes charitable intentions and behavior, and (2) this effect is mediated by empathy with the charity's beneficiaries. Five studies assessed the effect of nostalgia on empathy, intentions to volunteer and donate, as well as tangible charitable behavior. Results were consistent with the hypotheses. Study 1 found that nostalgia increases charitable intentions. Study 2 showed that this salutary effect of nostalgia on charitable intentions is mediated by empathy (but not by personal distress). Studies 3 and 4 corroborated these finding for different charities and in diverse samples. Finally, study 5 demonstrated that nostalgia increases tangible charitable behavior. By virtue of its capacity to increase empathy, nostalgia facilitates prosocial reactions.

Suggested Citation

  • Xinyue Zhou & Tim Wildschut & Constantine Sedikides & Kan Shi & Cong Feng, 2012. "Nostalgia: The Gift That Keeps on Giving," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 39(1), pages 39-50.
    • Handle: RePEc:oup:jconrs:doi:10.1086/662199
    DOI: 10.1086/662199
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    Cited by:

    1. Septianto, Felix & Tjiptono, Fandy, 2019. "The interactive effect of emotional appeals and past performance of a charity on the effectiveness of charitable advertising," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 50(C), pages 189-198.
    2. Hinsch, Chris & Felix, Reto & Rauschnabel, Philipp A., 2020. "Nostalgia beats the wow-effect: Inspiration, awe and meaningful associations in augmented reality marketing," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 53(C).
    3. Davis, Robert & McGinnis, Lee Phillip, 2016. "Conceptualizing excessive fan consumption behavior," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 28(C), pages 252-262.
    4. van Dijke, Marius & Wildschut, Tim & Leunissen, Joost M. & Sedikides, Constantine, 2015. "Nostalgia buffers the negative impact of low procedural justice on cooperation," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 127(C), pages 15-29.
    5. Hiroko Nakamura & Jun Kawaguchi, 2023. "Effect of Nostalgic Memory Retrieval on Anthropomorphism," SAGE Open, , vol. 13(4), pages 21582440231, December.
    6. van Dijke, Marius & Leunissen, Joost M. & Wildschut, Tim & Sedikides, Constantine, 2019. "Nostalgia promotes intrinsic motivation and effort in the presence of low interactional justice," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 150(C), pages 46-61.
    7. Xie, Yi (Fionna) & You, Yanfen, 2022. "The past is not perfect, but it’s good: nostalgia increases adoption of ugly food," 2022 Annual Meeting, July 31-August 2, Anaheim, California 322576, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    8. Sung Youl Jun & Hye Kyung Park & Kyung Ho Kim, 2022. "The effects of nostalgia marketing on consumers’ brand extension evaluation," Journal of Brand Management, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 29(3), pages 271-286, May.
    9. Mariana PEREIRA & Luis HOR-MEYLL, 2018. "Nostalgia of Memorable Experiences and the Revisit to Tourism Locations," Journal of Emerging Trends in Marketing and Management, The Bucharest University of Economic Studies, vol. 1(1), pages 210-220, November.
    10. Kee, Jennifer & Segovia, Michelle S. & Saboury, Piruz & Palma, Marco A., 2022. "Appealing to generosity to reduce food calorie intake: A natural field experiment," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 110(C).
    11. Bullard, Olya & Penner, Sara, 2017. "A regulatory-focused perspective on philanthropy: Promotion focus motivates giving to prevention-framed causes," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 79(C), pages 173-180.
    12. Kwan, Canice M.C. & Cheng, Shirley Y.Y. & Tsang, Alex S.L., 2023. "Societal reminiscence and decisions for a better society: A belief in progress explanation," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 154(C).
    13. Pilar Rojas Gaviria, 2012. "Three essays on how sharing and consuming support home place reconnection in contemporary liquid times," ULB Institutional Repository 2013/209597, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
    14. Kun Zhou & Xiaoyin Ye & Jun Ye, 2021. "Longing for the past and embracing the new: Does nostalgia increase new product adoption?," Marketing Letters, Springer, vol. 32(4), pages 477-498, December.
    15. Bin Li & Qin Zhu & Aimei Li & Rubo Cui, 2023. "Can Good Memories of the Past Instill Happiness? Nostalgia Improves Subjective Well-Being by Increasing Gratitude," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 24(2), pages 699-715, February.
    16. Yi Zhang & Hang Zhou & Jian Qin, 2022. "Research on the Driving Factors of Collective Nostalgia and the Impact of Collective Nostalgia on National Brand Consciousness," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(24), pages 1-19, December.
    17. Hartmann, Benjamin J. & Brunk, Katja H., 2019. "Nostalgia marketing and (re-)enchantment," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 36(4), pages 669-686.
    18. Xun (Irene) Huang & Zhongqiang (Tak) Huang & Robert S. Wyer, 2016. "Slowing Down in the Good Old Days: The Effect of Nostalgia on Consumer Patience," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 43(3), pages 372-387.
    19. Justina Gineikiene & Adamantios Diamantopoulos, 2017. "I hate where it comes from but I still buy it: Countervailing influences of animosity and nostalgia," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 48(8), pages 992-1008, October.
    20. Chae, Heeju & Baek, Minjung & Jang, Hyeonju & Sung, Sijun, 2021. "Storyscaping in fashion brand using commitment and nostalgia based on ASMR marketing," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 130(C), pages 462-472.

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