A model-based analysis of music-evoked nostalgia without prior listening experience

Nostalgia is a complex emotional impression that involves autobiographical recall, with music serving as one of the key triggers. Previous studies have examined the factors of nostalgia evoked by music with prior listening experience from both personal and contextual perspectives using a psychological heuristic model. Although anecdotal evidence suggests that music-evoked nostalgia can occur even without prior listening experience, previous studies did not address the cognitive and emotional processing. Based on an existing model, this study quantitatively investigated the factors associated with nostalgic experience evoked by music without listening experience. Our results showed that music-evoked nostalgia without prior listening experience was associated with the same contextual features as nostalgia with prior listening experience, including familiarity, autobiographical salience, and mixed emotional responses. In contrast, low arousal and personality traits related to susceptibility to sadness were associated only with nostalgic experience, which differs from previous studies on nostalgic experience for music with listening experience. These results enhance our understanding of how music can evoke nostalgia not only through autobiographical memories but also through its comprehensive structural properties.