Nostalgia proneness and acceptance of AI-designed cultural products: the mediating role of perceived authenticity and the moderating role of need for uniqueness
Year: 2026
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Artificial intelligence is increasingly used to design cultural and creative products, yet consumer acceptance varies considerably. Personality traits may play a key role in shaping these responses, but research has not examined how nostalgia proneness - an individual's dispositional tendency to long for the past - influences attitudes toward AI-designed cultural products. This study investigated whether nostalgia proneness predicts lower acceptance of such products through reduced perceived authenticity, and whether need for uniqueness moderates this indirect pathway A cross-sectional survey was conducted with 291 Chinese university students. Participants viewed images of museum cultural products explicitly labeled as AI-designed and completed measures of nostalgia proneness (Southampton Nostalgia Scale, 7 items), perceived authenticity (8 items), need for uniqueness (8 items), and acceptance of AI-designed cultural products (5 items). A moderated mediation model (PROCESS Model 14) was tested using bias-corrected bootstrap confidence intervals with 5,000 resamples. Nostalgia proneness negatively predicted acceptance of AI-designed cultural products (B = - 0.29, p < 0.001). Perceived authenticity partially mediated this relationship; the indirect effect was significant (ab = - 0.129, 95% CI [- 0.198, - 0.071]), accounting for 44.6% of the total effect. Need for uniqueness moderated the second stage of the mediation path: the positive effect of perceived authenticity on acceptance was stronger among individuals with low need for uniqueness (B = 0.50) than among those with high need for uniqueness (B = 0.22). The index of moderated mediation was significant (index = 0.061, 95% CI [0.013, 0.124]), confirming that the negative indirect effect was attenuated as need for uniqueness increased. Consumers higher in nostalgia proneness are less accepting of AI-designed cultural products, largely because they perceive such products as less authentic. However, this negative pathway is attenuated among consumers with a stronger need for uniqueness, who are less reliant on authenticity judgments when evaluating AI-designed offerings. These findings extend nostalgia psychology to the domain of AI acceptance and provide actionable insights for culturally sensitive AI product marketing strategies.
Source: BMC Psychology
Authors: Hua Jia, Pinmeng Zhou, YongLi Wang
Language: English
Subfield: Social Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $1,990
OpenAlex ID: W7160715134