Department of Psychology, College of Charleston, Charleston, SC, USA.
Department of Psychology, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA.
Cogn Emot. 2021 Mar;35(2):256-268. doi: 10.1080/02699931.2020.1825339. Epub 2020 Sep 23.
Nostalgia, a sentimental longing for one's past, can serve as a resource for individuals coping with discomforting experiences. The experience of bereavement poses psychological and physical risks. In a longitudinal study, we examined whether dispositional nostalgia predicted reductions in distress associated with the death of a loved one. Undergraduate students ( = 133) provided information regarding their loss (time elapsed since loss, expectedness) and levels of initial grief, nostalgia, and distress (hyperarousal, intrusion, avoidance) at three time points over a one-month period (Times 2 and 3 occurred one week and one month after the initial session, respectively). Individuals experiencing higher nostalgia reported a decrease in intrusive thoughts across time, whereas those experiencing lower nostalgia reported no change in intrusive thoughts across time. Hyperarousal (physical symptoms, negative feelings) decreased across time among individuals with higher initial grief who experienced greater nostalgia, but increased across time among those with higher initial grief who experienced lesser nostalgia. No changes occurred in avoidance. Nostalgia can palliate bereavement.
怀旧，即对过去的一种多愁善感的怀念，可以作为个体应对不适经历的资源。丧亲之痛会带来心理和生理上的风险。在一项纵向研究中，我们研究了性格怀旧是否可以预测与所爱之人去世相关的痛苦减轻。大学生（ = 133）在一个月的时间内分三个时间点提供了有关他们的损失（自损失以来的时间、预期）和初始悲伤、怀旧和痛苦（过度警觉、闯入、回避）水平的信息（第 2 次和第 3 次分别在初始会话后的一周和一个月进行）。怀旧程度较高的个体报告说，侵入性思维随时间减少，而怀旧程度较低的个体报告说，侵入性思维随时间没有变化。初始悲伤程度较高但经历更多怀旧的个体的过度警觉（身体症状、负面情绪）随时间减少，而初始悲伤程度较高但经历较少怀旧的个体的过度警觉随时间增加。回避行为没有变化。怀旧可以缓解丧亲之痛。
