Sea or mountain: Which do we long for most?
This is the time of year when most of us want to be near the water or the countryside. It’s also a time to feel nostalgic about a certain place from our past, usually a country house or a family home where we spent carefree summers. This ‘place nostalgia’ is what drives us to visit our holiday home with a seaside view or nestled in a forest. But are we more nostalgic about green turquoise waters or green grass? A research team from several universities in the United Kingdom (UK) and Korea University set out to answer this question. Around 800 United States (US) residents and 200 UK residents between the ages of 18 and 94 took part in the study. They were asked to identify the places that evoked the most nostalgia for them and to give reasons.
Longing for the past
Blue places located near the sea, ocean, rivers or lakes emerged as the most nostalgic locations for the US residents (30 %) and UK residents (35 %). Green places (mountains and forests) only represented 10 % for both participant groups. Towns and cities accounted for over 20 % of nostalgic places identified by the US and UK participants, the majority of whom live in urban areas. Overall, the study revealed that blue landscapes are more likely to stimulate the positive effects of thinking about the past. The findings were published in the journal ‘Current Research in Ecological and Social Psychology’(opens in new window). Researchers published maps that showed the most nostalgic places in the UK and US according to 100 UK and around 400 US participants. “We expected people to be more often nostalgic for green places since so many studies emphasise the psychological benefits of green, natural environments. We were surprised to find that blue places are the hallmark feature of place nostalgia,” commented lead researcher Elisabeta Militaru in a news release(opens in new window). “Our findings add to the growing evidence that blue places are associated with increased psychological well-being.” They contrasted nostalgic places against ordinary ones with respect to their physical and psychological characteristics. “The idea that places serve as an emotional anchor is not new. Nearly 3,000 years ago, Homer wrote of Ulysses’ longing to return to his homeland, Ithaca. We wanted to understand what makes certain places more likely to evoke nostalgia than others. What are the physical and psychological features that give a place its nostalgic pull?” explained Militaru. “Back in the 17th century, nostalgia had a negative reputation, it was regarded as a disease of the mind,” she added. “Scientific investigation changed that. Now we know that nostalgia is a psychological resource; it emerges when we are faced with psychological discomfort, like feeling lonely or socially excluded.”
Powerful nostalgia triggers
There are psychological benefits to reminiscing about a nostalgic place. We feel more attached to others, our lives take on more meaning, and we gain a higher self-esteem and sense of authenticity. “Nostalgia brings places into focus, much like a magnifying glass,” Militaru concluded. “Meaningful places tend to be physically far away from us, yet nostalgia brings them back into focus and, in so doing, connects our past self to our present and future self.”