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HYPOTHESIS AND THEORY article

Front. Psychol.
Sec. Emotion Science
Volume 15 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1440536
This article is part of the Research Topic Exploring the interplay of interoception in emotion, cognition, and mental health View all 3 articles

Emotion and Cognition: On the Cognitive Processing Model of Nostalgia

Provisionally accepted
Shurong Cao Shurong Cao *
  • Shanghai International Studies University, Shanghai, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Nostalgia is a common emotional phenomenon, but its complexity has resulted in a limited understanding and interpretation. This study, grounded in emotional cognitive science, develops a cognitive processing model of nostalgia, encompassing its triggering mechanism, cognitive processes, and effects. The analysis indicates that nostalgia functions as an adaptive mechanism for individuals with deficiencies in belongingness and low-avoidance tendencies, helping them cope with disruptions in self-continuity by forging symbolic social bonds in a distant and idealized timespace.Essentially, nostalgia allows individuals to reconstruct alternate systems of meaning and value, which serve as references for defining self-worth and identity. This study advances the understanding of the complex cognitive processing involved in nostalgia and also provides an important reference for the study of complex emotions.

    Keywords: nostalgia, emotion, Cognition, TimeSpace, Social bonds, meaning

    Received: 29 May 2024; Accepted: 09 Sep 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Cao. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Shurong Cao, Shanghai International Studies University, Shanghai, China

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.