Esha Naidu
Biographic Data
| ID | 7836150 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Esha Naidu |
| GIVEN NAMES | Esha |
| FAMILY NAME | Naidu |
| SIGNATURE | NAIDU E |
| AFFILIATIONS | Duke University, Durham, NC, USA |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-4061-0773 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 7 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 0 |
| WORKS AS AUTHOR | 7 |
| WORKS AS EDITOR | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2020 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 0 |
Random Roommates, Broader Minds
As U.S. campuses grow more diverse, university policy choices determine whether cross-group encounters produce connection or division. Drawing on decades of intergroup contact research, this paper highlights randomized roommate assignments as a scalable institutional policy to increase meaningful cross-group contact. We show that intergroup contact decreases prejudice, increases belonging, and boosts cognitive benefits to both students in the roo…
Thank you for the music
Social need fulfillment is imperative to well-being, leading to a strong motivation to ensure that social needs are met. The social surrogacy hypothesis proposes that individuals may use non-human social targets, including television characters, books, or comfort foods, to address social needs. The current work sought to examine the social surrogacy hypothesis in the domain of music. Utilizing both correlational (Study 1) and experimental (Study …
Let the Music Play
This work examined the power of live music events to enhance wellbeing through collective effervescence (CE)—the sense of sacredness and connection felt when in large groups. Four studies ( N = 789) using both university and community samples examined the relationship between live music events and CE and how this relationship contributes to positive, lasting outcomes. Results suggest that CE is highly related to positive outcomes associated with …
When Do Real-World Rejections Motivate People to Seek out Symbolic Social Bonds? Insights From the Risk-Regulation Model
Lack of belonging can negatively affect mental and physical health, but experiences with social rejection are routine. Two studies examined whether being unable to mitigate the risk of rejection in real-world relationships motivates people to defensively immerse themselves in symbolic social bonds with celebrities and fictional characters. Study 1 (four daily diary samples) and Study 2 (cross-sectional sample) operationalized the ability to mitig…
Reliving the Good Old Days
Nostalgia, a sentimental longing for one’s past, is associated with, or confers, psychological wellbeing (PWB). We identified a mechanism for this link: collective effervescence, a potent sense of connection to those present in an assembly and a sensation of transcendence (i.e., feeling that an experience is special or sacred). In six studies, involving measurement-of-mediation and experimental-causal-chain designs, nostalgia was associated with,…
How Parasocial Relationships Affect Our Self-Concepts
The chapter surveys the effects of parasocial relationships (PSRs; one-sided relationships with media figures, including celebrities and fictional characters) on individuals’ self-concept, self-esteem, and self-discrepancies. The chapter begins by examining the effects of PSRs on self-esteem and body esteem. After reviewing the literature in these areas, the chapter explores how people use self-expanding properties of PSRs to regulate affect and …
From “love actually” to love, actually
Belongingness needs have generally been thought to be filled through traditional strategies, but recent research suggests that nontraditional strategies (e.g., parasocial relationship partners, TV shows) may work as well. No work has yet examined the comparative importance of these different social behaviors in contributing to social need fulfillment. The current work utilized a visual measure to assess frequency, variety, and degree of contribut…
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From “love actually” to love, actually
Belongingness needs have generally been thought to be filled through traditional strategies, but recent research suggests that nontraditional strategies (e.g., parasocial relationship partners, TV shows) may work as well. No work has yet examined the comparative importance of these different social behaviors in contributing to social need fulfillment. The current work utilized a visual measure to assess frequency, variety, and degree of contribut…
How Parasocial Relationships Affect Our Self-Concepts
The chapter surveys the effects of parasocial relationships (PSRs; one-sided relationships with media figures, including celebrities and fictional characters) on individuals’ self-concept, self-esteem, and self-discrepancies. The chapter begins by examining the effects of PSRs on self-esteem and body esteem. After reviewing the literature in these areas, the chapter explores how people use self-expanding properties of PSRs to regulate affect and …
Reliving the Good Old Days
Nostalgia, a sentimental longing for one’s past, is associated with, or confers, psychological wellbeing (PWB). We identified a mechanism for this link: collective effervescence, a potent sense of connection to those present in an assembly and a sensation of transcendence (i.e., feeling that an experience is special or sacred). In six studies, involving measurement-of-mediation and experimental-causal-chain designs, nostalgia was associated with,…
When Do Real-World Rejections Motivate People to Seek out Symbolic Social Bonds? Insights From the Risk-Regulation Model
Lack of belonging can negatively affect mental and physical health, but experiences with social rejection are routine. Two studies examined whether being unable to mitigate the risk of rejection in real-world relationships motivates people to defensively immerse themselves in symbolic social bonds with celebrities and fictional characters. Study 1 (four daily diary samples) and Study 2 (cross-sectional sample) operationalized the ability to mitig…
Random Roommates, Broader Minds
As U.S. campuses grow more diverse, university policy choices determine whether cross-group encounters produce connection or division. Drawing on decades of intergroup contact research, this paper highlights randomized roommate assignments as a scalable institutional policy to increase meaningful cross-group contact. We show that intergroup contact decreases prejudice, increases belonging, and boosts cognitive benefits to both students in the roo…
Thank you for the music
Social need fulfillment is imperative to well-being, leading to a strong motivation to ensure that social needs are met. The social surrogacy hypothesis proposes that individuals may use non-human social targets, including television characters, books, or comfort foods, to address social needs. The current work sought to examine the social surrogacy hypothesis in the domain of music. Utilizing both correlational (Study 1) and experimental (Study …
Let the Music Play
This work examined the power of live music events to enhance wellbeing through collective effervescence (CE)—the sense of sacredness and connection felt when in large groups. Four studies ( N = 789) using both university and community samples examined the relationship between live music events and CE and how this relationship contributes to positive, lasting outcomes. Results suggest that CE is highly related to positive outcomes associated with …
Media Influence and Health (6 works) · Psychology (5 works) · Social Psychology (5 works) · Behavioral Health and Interventions (3 works) · Death Anxiety and Social Exclusion (3 works) · Aesthetics (2 works) · Affect (linguistics) (2 works) · Feeling (2 works) · Social and Intergroup Psychology (2 works) · Social relation (2 works)