Take me back to the past: the impact of social identity conflict on nostalgic consumption

Social identity conflict (SIC) is a common experience that evokes undesirable emotions. Considerable research has examined how consumers think and behave in light of SIC, but it remains unclear how people cope with SIC as a negative experience. In this research, we examine whether nostalgic consumption can compensate for SIC as a means to restore threatened self-authenticity. In three experiments with real behavioral consequences, we find that SIC increases nostalgic consumption. This effect is mediated by self-authenticity threat and negatively moderated by consumers’ dialectical thinking. Our research advances knowledge about how SIC shapes consumer behavior and provides actionable suggestions for nostalgia marketing.