Longing for the good old days of ‘our country’: Understanding the triggers, functions and consequences of national nostalgia

Abstract

Research indicates that national nostalgia thrives across the world and is harnessed by populist radical-right parties (PRRPs) to mobilize people for their exclusionary standpoints. While national nostalgia is a timely issue, the topic has only recently started to get attention in social psychology. In this chapter, I investigate the triggers, functions and consequences of national nostalgia for present day group dynamics by integrating social psychological theories on intergroup relations, group-based emotions, and identity motivation with sociological and anthropological work on collective nostalgia and political scientific research on PRRPs. I demonstrate that, on the one hand, national nostalgia can be seen as functional and constructive for native majority members, in the sense that it helps them protect to national identity continuity in times of uncertainty and change. On the other hand, national nostalgia can be seen as a destructive force, as it results in exclusionary understandings of national identity based on historical roots and in antiimmigrant and anti-Muslim sentiments. I demonstrate that the stronger endorsement of this nativist ideology forms an important explanation for why national nostalgia is related to a greater likelihood of PRRP voting in the Netherlands.