Clay Routledge, NDSU associate professor of psychology, has written a new book examining the intriguing subject of nostalgia. "Nostalgia: A Psychological Resource (Essays in Social Psychology)" looks at how view of nostalgia have changed over time and how social scientists have studied the complex phenomenon. 

"This book is the first to provide a comprehensive overview of the science of nostalgia," Routledge said, noting he was interviewed on National Public Radio's "Radio Times" to discuss the book. "It explains in detail what nostalgia is, what causes one to feel nostalgic, the complex emotional nature of nostalgia and how engaging in nostalgic reflection influences social and psychological health."

Routledge, who earned his doctorate in social psychology at the University of Missouri-Columbia, focuses his research on ways people gain and maintain perceptions of meaning in life and how such perceptions contribute to physical and psychological health.

His work has been featured in the New York Times, CBS News, ABC News, BBC News, CNN, MSNBC, Men's Health and The New Yorker. Routledge also writes a popular column, "More Than Mortal," for Psychology Today.

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