Midnight in Paris on heritage and nostalgia

Heritage tourism has attracted attention academically and in the industry. We study how preference for heritage tourism is motivated by individuals' need to belong, which varies as a result of differential impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. In two studies, we measure this natural manipulation of need to belong and study its impact in a quasi-experimental manner. We find that need to belong affects preference for heritage tourism through its effect on nostalgic feeling. Individuals with higher need to belong have higher state nostalgia and prefer heritage tourism that may help satisfy their nostalgic yearning. In addition, we identify the moderating role of trait nostalgia proneness. Individuals who are more nostalgia-prone are more susceptible to this need-to-belong effect. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Which mediated social interactions satisfy the need to belong?

This investigation uses the two-process model of needs to explore differences between face-To-face communication and interpersonal media in terms of belongingness need satisfaction. Using experience sampling methods, Study 1 (N = 117) explored change in feelings of loneliness and connection from interpersonal media use within a day. Study 2 (N = 1,747) examined the association between loneliness and life satisfaction as mediated by patterns of interpersonal media use in the year following the COVID-19 outbreak. Study 3 (N = 303) experimentally manipulated social belonging to examine changes in interpersonal media use and resulting feelings of connection and disconnection. Overall, when individuals were more connected, their behaviors were more consistent with the two-process model, compared to when they felt disconnected. Additionally, although some interpersonal media use was better than no social contact at all, interpersonal media are not equally capable of satisfying belongingness needs. © 2022 The Author(s). Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of International Communication Association.

Which mediated social interactions satisfy the need to belong?

This investigation uses the two-process model of needs to explore differences between face-to-face communication and interpersonal media in terms of belongingness need satisfaction. Using experience sampling methods, Study 1 (N = 117) explored change in feelings of loneliness and connection from interpersonal media use within a day. Study 2 (N = 1,747) examined the association between loneliness and life satisfaction as mediated by patterns of interpersonal media use in the year following the COVID-19 outbreak. Study 3 (N = 303) experimentally manipulated social belonging to examine changes in interpersonal media use and resulting feelings of connection and disconnection. Overall, when individuals were more connected, their behaviors were more consistent with the two-process model, compared to when they felt disconnected. Additionally, although some interpersonal media use was better than no social contact at all, interpersonal media are not equally capable of satisfying belongingness needs. Lay Summary This study looks at whether face-to-face communication, telephone calls, video calls (like Zoom, FaceTime), texting/DM, email, and social media make people feel more connected to one another and less lonely. The three studies compare each way of communicating at different time periods-within a day, over a year following the pandemic, and at a particularly lonely or connected time of life. The study finds that face-to-face communication makes people feel connected and less lonely. It also finds that voice calls are connecting. Texting and video calls were less beneficial in general;video calls may have been beneficial in the year following the pandemic. Social media and email did not promote connection or decrease loneliness.

Standing with our hometowns? The relationship between residents' perceived threat from COVID-19 and intention to support tourism recovery in their hometown

A hometown is the place to which an individual has an affective bond resulting from either being born there or living there for lived for a long time. This article investigates people's intention to support the revival of tourism in their hometowns post-COVID-19. The research hypothesises that individuals are affected by the threat to ontological security, freedom of movement, and freedom of information, and this synthetic threat will affect their intention to support their hometown. Based on compensatory control theory and psychological reactance theory, the study investigates how the need to belong, combined with psychological reactance, reveals the underlying mechanisms of perceived threat on intention to support one's hometown. The survey responses from 658 residents in China were analysed using a structural equation model. The results showed that the perceived threat has a positive effect on intention to support one's hometown and need to belong mediates that relationship. Instead, despite perceived threat to their freedom, residents did not report psychological reactance when faced with hometown appeals. These results could help destinations to revive in the post-pandemic era;destination management organisations, especially in China, should be able to appeal to residents for promotional support without expecting psychological reactance.

Can Acting Out Online Improve Adolescents' Well-Being During Contact Restrictions? A First Insight Into the Dysfunctional Role of Cyberbullying and the Need to Belong in Well-Being During COVID-19 Pandemic-Related Contact Restrictions.

Connecting with peers online to overcome social isolation has become particularly important during the pandemic-related school closures across many countries. In the context of contact restrictions, feelings of isolation and loneliness are more prevalent and the regulation of these negative emotions to maintain a positive well-being challenges adolescents. This is especially the case for those individuals who might have a high need to belong and difficulties in emotional competences. The difficult social situation during contact restrictions, more time for online communication and maladaptive emotion regulation might lead to aggressive communication patterns in the form of cyberbullying perpetration. In an online study with N = 205 adolescents aged 14-19 (M = 15.83, SD = 1.44; 57% girls), we assessed the frequency of online and offline contacts, need to belong, emotion regulation problems, feelings of loneliness, and cyberbullying perpetration as predictors of adolescents' well-being. In particular, we explored whether cyberbullying perpetration might function as a maladaptive strategy to deal with feelings of loneliness and therefore predicts well-being. This effect was expected to be stronger for those with a higher need to belong and with higher emotion regulation problems. Results of a hierarchical regression analysis revealed that well-being was significantly predicted by less emotion regulation difficulties, less feeling isolated and more cyberbullying perpetration. We also tested whether the need to belong or emotion regulation problems moderated the association between cyberbullying and well-being. While the results for emotion regulation problems were not significant, the moderation effect for the need to belong was significant: For students with a high need to belong, well-being was more strongly related to cyberbullying perpetration than for students with a medium need to belong. For students with a low need to belong, cyberbullying was not significantly associated with well-being. That cyberbullying perpetration predicted well-being positively is rather surprising in the light of previous research showing negative psychosocial outcomes also for cyberbullying perpetrators. The moderation analysis provides a hint at underlying processes: In times of distance learning and contact restrictions, cyberbullying may be a way of coming into contact with others and to regulate loneliness maladaptively.

Staying happy even when staying 6 ft apart: The relationship between extroversion and social adaptability

COVID-19-related social distancing guidelines pose challenges that may be particularly distressing for those high in extroversion, who tend to experience greater happiness when in social situations (Costa & McCrae, 1980;Emmons & Diener, 1985). Our research sought to examine if extroversion was related to greater use of COVID-19-compliant, nontraditional social strategies (e.g. collective effervescent experiences, social surrogate use, and video-chatting) when social options were limited. We examined residents of New York State before the start of the pandemic, during the peak of the pandemic, and one year after the peak of the pandemic. Using a variety of analytical strategies, we found that extroversion was associated with greater use of nontraditional social strategies during the pandemic, and that use of some of these strategies partly explained a relationship between extroversion and maintaining happiness during the pandemic. Furthermore, extroversion was associated with greater use of some of these strategies only when traditional social opportunities were limited. These findings suggest that extroverts are likely to seek out and utilize unorthodox forms of connection to maintain wellbeing, particularly when other social options are unavailable. This work makes novel contributions to our understanding of extroversion and the flexibility of the need to belong.

The Influence of Infectious Disease Cues on Purchase Intention for Environmentally Friendly Products.

Consumers often come across cues of infectious disease in daily life, such as diners coughing in restaurants, commuters sneezing on the bus, or recent news reports about the spread of infectious diseases. In this study, four experiments were conducted to explore the role of infectious disease cues on consumers' purchase intention for environmentally friendly products (eco-friendly products), as well as the moderating effects of consumers' sense of power and anti-disease intervention. According to the results, infectious disease cues enhance consumers' intent to purchase eco-friendly products, and perceived uncertainty and need to belong played a chain-mediated role in the relationship between infectious disease cues and this purchase intention. Consumers' sense of power moderated the relationship between infectious disease cues and purchase intention. The purchase intention of consumers with a low sense of power (vs. high sense of power) was significantly enhanced when the infectious disease cues were highlighted. Anti-disease interventions also have a moderating effect on the relationship between infectious disease cues and purchase intention. When anti-disease intervention (such as wearing an anti-bacterial mask against airborne diseases) was adopted, consumers' willingness to purchase eco-friendly products decreased.

Perceived Strain Due to COVID-19-Related Restrictions Mediates the Effect of Social Needs and Fear of Missing Out on the Risk of a Problematic Use of Social Networks.

The occurrence of the COVID-19-virus led to drastic short-term measures to reduce its spread and influence. Regulations such as "physical distancing," mentioned as "social distancing," and the closure of public facilities during the lockdown could be perceived as burdensome especially by individuals who feel a strong need for social exchange and belonging. These components such as need to belong and the fear of missing out also play a major role in the development and maintenance of a problematic use of social networks. Researchers have argued recently that an increase of addictive (online) behaviors may be a likely consequence of subjectively experienced restrictions in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. The current study investigates the interplay of perceived strain due to COVID-19-related restrictions and the fear of missing out (FoMO) as well as of symptoms of problematic social-networks use. We hypothesized that perceived strain due to COVID-19-related restrictions mediates the effect of specific predisposing variables related to social needs on the symptom severity of a problematic use. To assess the perceived strain due to COVID-19-related restrictions, we developed a specific questionnaire asking for perceived COVID-19-related strain in several domains of everyday-life. An exploratory factor analysis identified five factors: perceived strain related to restrictions of (1) social contacts, (2) travel, (3) childcare, (4) work, and (5) own health. In a sample of 719 German participants and data collection during the first COVID-19 lockdown (March 30th until April 3rd 2020), a structural equation model was calculated showing that higher levels of need to belong and FoMO increase perceived COVID-19-related strain, which is related to symptoms of a problematic social-networks use. The effect of need to belong on problematic social-networks use is mediated by experienced COVID-19-related strain and FoMO-online. Even if the use of social networks is not pathological per se, it may be associated with suffering for a vulnerable part of users. We conclude that specific needs and fear-associated predisposing variables contribute to experiencing physical distance and other pandemic-related restrictions as more stressful, which may increase problematic social-networks use and potentially other addictive behaviors as well in the context of the COVID-19-related lockdown.

The Impact of COVID-19 and Public Health Emergencies on Consumer Purchase of Scarce Products in China.

Objectives: During public health emergencies, people often scramble to buy scarce goods, which may lead to panic behavior and cause serious negative impacts on public health management. Due to the absence of relevant research, the internal logic of this phenomenon is not clear. This study explored whether and why public health emergencies such as the COVID-19 pandemic stimulate consumers' preference for scarce products. Methods: Applying the questionnaire survey method, two online surveys were conducted on the Credamo data platform in China. The first survey was launched in February and collected psychological and behavioral data from 1,548 participants. Considering the likelihood of population relocation due to the pandemic, a follow-up survey was conducted in August with 463 participants who had participated in the first survey and had not relocated to other cities between February and August. The hypotheses were tested with these data through stepwise regression analysis, bootstrapping, and robustness testing. Results: Pandemic severity was found to positively affect scarce consumption behavior and the effect was found to be situational; this indicates that the impact of the pandemic on scarce consumption was only significant during the pandemic. Further, it was found that materialism plays a mediating role in the relationship between pandemic severity and scarce consumption. Finally, the need to belong was found to play a moderating role between pandemic severity and materialism. Conclusion: This study findings imply that the scarce consumption behavior during public health emergencies can be reduced by decreasing materialism and increasing the need to belong. These findings may aid government leaders in managing public health emergencies.

Will Buying Follow Others Ease Their Threat of Death? An Analysis of Consumer Data during the Period of COVID-19 in China.

How to overcome informational conformity consumer behavior when faced with threats of death is a social problem in response to COVID-19. This research is based on the terror management theory, the need to belong theory and the materialism theory. It uses a theoretical model to determine the relationships between threats of death and informational conformity consumer behavior. From 1453 samples collected during outbreak of COVID-19 in China, we used a structural equation model to test multiple research hypotheses. The result shows that threats of death are positively associated with a need to belong, materialism and informational conformity consumer behavior. The need to belong and materialism can play a mediating role between threats of death and information conformity consumption behavior, and perceived social support can play a moderating role between threats of death and information conformity consumption behavior.