Dyadic Nostalgia in Couple Relationships

Romantic couple relationships are critical for wellbeing but face challenges and instability, especially in the current climate of economic strain, COVID-19, and for those separated for work, illness, or military service. Hence, finding ways for couples to support and maintain their relationship quality is essential and timely. We propose that an untapped resource couples can use is sharing the emotion of nostalgia. A "sentimental longing or wistful affection for the past," nostalgia is now well-established as a psychological resource for personal wellbeing. By drawing on fond memories that people carry around with them, nostalgia has the benefit of being accessible to almost everyone, any place and any time. Nostalgia is also inherently social (focusing on remembered social occasions or relationships) and has interpersonal benefits (increasing feelings of connectedness and empathy, motivating prosocial behaviour). However, nostalgia has never been examined as a shared or dyadic emotion. This project will establish a new concept—dyadic nostalgia—by examining its experience, links to relationship quality, and ability to buffer threats in general and vulnerable populations. We define dyadic nostalgia as sentimental longing or wistful affection for the relationship's past that is shared or communicated within a couple. For example, partners might reflect on shared fond memories of first dates, listen to "their song", or browse old photos. Based on the personal nostalgia literature, we expect dyadic nostalgia to be bittersweet: mostly positive (e.g., joyful, tender) with a wistful tone (e.g., longing for irretrievable good times). Importantly, we expect it to confer relational benefits. Specifically, we propose that dyadic nostalgia acts as a resource for couples with two key functions. First, it enhances and enriches the relationship by fostering positive perceptions (e.g., security, value) and motivating pro-relationship behaviour (e.g., caregiving, sacrifice). Second, it buffers and shields the relationship from threats by building resilience in difficult times (e.g., lower stress appraisals) and motivating constructive behaviour (e.g., support, conflict resolution). None of these proposals have been tested before. Informed by theory and our charity and practitioner-based Project Partners, we propose 7 studies across 3 Work-Packages (WPs). Overall, we aim to establish the construct of dyadic nostalgia and examine its benefits for enhancing and buffering couple relationship quality. WP1 focuses on naturalistic experiences and effects of dyadic nostalgia in three studies (qualitative, daily-diary, longitudinal). The longitudinal study will recruit couples who face specific threats to test nostalgia's buffer function: (a) military service-personnel and their partners, and (b) dissatisfied couples considering relationship support. WP2 examines the power of induced nostalgia in two experiments (online and in the lab while couples discuss a current stressor). WP3 will use our prior findings to design and test a dyadic nostalgia intervention for enhancing healthy relationships, and to test the acceptability of dyadic nostalgia in a counselling session. Our Project Partners will support us in producing freely-accessible resources for couples and practitioners. Overall, this project has potential to benefit couples in the general public, those facing separation or other stressors, and those seeking relationship support. We aim to provide a new way of enhancing or restoring the quality of their relationship by drawing on shared memories—a resource that even troubled couples can often access. Dyadic nostalgia could also provide a tool that professionals who work with couples can integrate into their practice, increasing the efficacy of interventions.