The Long Shadow of Addiction-Related Nostalgia: Nostalgia Predicts Ambivalence and Undermines the Benefits of Optimism in Recovery

Background: Previous research has shown that nostalgia for the pre-addicted self can motivate people living with addiction to engage in behavior change. Objective: Herein, we explored nostalgia for the addictive behavior-labeled addiction-related nostalgia (ARN)-among people in recovery from engaging in addictive behavior. We tested the novel idea that ARN is positively associated with ambivalence about recovery. We also hypothesized that ARN may counteract the positive influence of optimism on individuals' commitment to recovery. Results: In two studies involving individuals in recovery from a gambling (Study 1; N=301) or alcohol use disorder (Study 2; N=604), ARN was linked to increased ambivalence about recovery, while optimism was associated with decreased ambivalence. As expected, the interaction between optimism and ARN revealed that nostalgia either eliminated (Study 1) or reduced (Study 2) the negative relation between optimism and ambivalence. Conclusions: These findings underscore the challenges posed by ARN in the recovery process and emphasize the importance of interventions that address and mitigate its impact while considering the moderating role of optimism.

The utility of nostalgia for unhealthy populations: A systematic review and narrative analysis

Nostalgic reverie (i.e. sentimental longing) has received increased attention as a predictor of health and well-being, but only a handful of reviews have summarized this literature. The available reviews (Dementia: The International Journal of Social Research and Practice, 19, 2020, 330; Intimations of nostalgia: Multidisciplinary explorations of an enduring emotion, Bristol University Press, 2022) left a critical gap in explicating the function of nostalgia among people engaged in unhealthy behaviour. In the current systematic review and narrative analysis, we sought to answer whether and under what conditions emotion serves to help or hinder people engaged in unhealthy behaviours in terms of taking action to change. We identified 14 studies and categorized them into two themes. In Theme I, nostalgising about a time in one's life when one was healthier motivated both readiness to change and action to change unhealthy behaviour. In Theme II, nostalgizing about the perceived benefits of engaging in unhealthy behaviour (e.g. social connectedness related to drinking) was associated with the continuance or acceleration of the unhealthy behaviour. This review highlights not only the presence of a link between nostalgia and unhealthy behaviour but also that the content of one's nostalgising matters for understanding whether the unhealthy behaviour is undermined or bolstered.

Self-Continuity

Self-continuity is the subjective sense of connection between one's past and present selves (past-present self-continuity), between one's present and future selves (present-future self-continuity), or among one's past, present, and future selves (global self-continuity). We consider the motivational character of the three forms of self-continuity, their regulatory properties, and the internal or external factors that consolidate them. We also review their consequences for attitudes and judgments or decisions, motivation, intentions and behavior, and psychological and physical health. We further detail the psychological and behavioral benefits of self-discontinuity (i.e., a sense of disconnect among temporal selves). We next turn to the brain regions that are activated synchronously with self-continuity. We consider developmental perspectives on self-continuity, discuss collective self-continuity (along with its consequences and regulatory properties), and elaborate on cultural differences in self-continuity. This inaugural Annual Reviews chapter demonstrates the breadth, excitement, and sense of synergy among self-continuity researchers and points to promising research directions.

Longing for the Past and Longing for the Future: A Phenomenological Assessment of the Relation Between Temporal Focus and Readiness to Change Among People Living With Addiction

At present, the dominant motivational strategy to facilitate behavior change among those living with addiction is to focus one’s attention on the better possible future that may result from cutting down or cessation. However, research is now emerging that suggests nostalgic reverie (i.e., sentimental longing) for life lived before addiction can also motivate behavior change. In the current research, we explore the conditions in which longing for a better future free of addiction and longing for one’s past that was free of addition might motivate change. To this end, we assessed first-person experiential narratives of problem gamblers to better understand how they feel about their past or future without gambling, and how those feelings may relate to motivation to change. Problem gamblers were randomly assigned to either write about their lived past before gambling (n = 31) or their expected future without gambling (n = 26). Each narrative was systematically examined to identify recurrent themes and cluster these narratives according to similarly expressed themes. In the past condition, participants reported their life before gambling was either positive (Cluster P1) or difficult (Cluster P2). Gamblers with a positive past described how their life, character, close relationships, and the activities they engaged in before gambling were more meaningful. Importantly, these gamblers also reported feeling more nostalgic for life without gambling and were more ready to change their behavior than gamblers with a difficult past. In the future condition, participants were either positive (Cluster F1) or ambivalent (Cluster F2) about a future free from gambling. Gamblers who expected a positive future described how they expect their emotions, finances, and the activities they will engage in to be more positive without gambling. Compared to those ambivalent about their future, these gamblers also reported a future without addiction to be more vivid and had more desire to change their behavior, but there were no between-cluster differences in readiness to change. These findings demonstrate unique differences in how gamblers perceive their past and future without gambling, and shed a novel light on how each temporal focus might motivate behavior change among those living with addiction.