Jennifer Talarico, professor of psychology, shared insights with NBC News about human nature to crave celebrations and events that mark life’s milestones, from weddings to retirement parties to college graduations.

Talarico, who studies the role of emotions in memory, explained that it’s human nature to want memories and to see rituals, and there is often a desire for a singular moment or marker of a time of change or transition.

Categorized in: Faculty and Staff, In the Media, Psychology