Entering the world of Positive Psychology now, a recent study has found that a 'Secret Ingredient' in religion actually makes people happier!
Researchers found that it was not necessarily the spiriual aspect of religion that makes people happier - but the social side! Friendships made within religious congregations lead to greater life satisfaction!
The study compared those who attend religious services weekly, those who attended a few times a year and those that never attended. According to the study, 33% of religious people who have three to five close friends in their congregation report that they are "extremely satisfied." But only 19% of religious people who have no close friend in their congregation report the same.
23% of those who attended only a few times a year but have three to five close friends in their congregation reported that they were "extremely satisfied."
Last of all, 19% of those who never attend religious services say they are extremely satisfied with their lives. The same as those who attend every week, but have no friends within the congregation. This suggests strongly that the part of the service that is most beneficial to the person, in terms of life satisfaction is the socil side!
The researchers commented that: "One of the important functions of religion is to give people a sense of belonging to a moral community based on religious faith. This community, however, could be abstract and remote unless one has an intimate circle of friends who share a similar identity. The friends in one's congregation thus make the religious community real and tangible, and strengthen one's sense of belonging to the community."
They found this evidence within a wide range of Christian denominations as well as similar results within Jewish and Mormon communities.
So you want to be happier? Head out there and make some friends! :)
Article
Showing posts with label social connections. Show all posts
Showing posts with label social connections. Show all posts
Thursday, 9 December 2010
Wednesday, 1 December 2010
How Lemonade Curbs Aggression
Need to give somebody some bad news and fear they may get just a little bit angry with you? Give them some Sugary Lemonade first and be amazed at the difference!
A recent study has found that people who drink a glass of lemonade with sugar acted less aggressively toward a stranger a few minutes later than people who consumed lemonade with a sugar substitute.
Now why would this make a difference? The researchers suggest that the increased glucose in the sugared lemonade allows the person to have greater self control, which enables them to avoid their angry impulse. This is because self control takes a lot of energy, and the extra glucose gives this energy to the brain.
It was also found in other studies that that people who have trouble using glucose in their bodies show more evidence of aggression.
"Diabetes may not only harm yourself -- it is bad for society," said Bushman (co-author of the study.) This is because those with diabetes struggle with using their glucose, meaning, this study suggests, they are likely to suffer from increased aggression.
"To our knowledge, this is the first study to find that boosting glucose levels can reduce actual aggressive behavior," Bushman said.
Interestingly, when 2001 data was anaysed, the researchers found that diabetes rates for each of the 50 US states were linked to violent crime rates. Those states with higher diabetes rates also tended to have higher rates of murder, assault, rape and robbery, even after controlling for poverty rates in each state.
In a Prisoner's Dilemma experiment, those who scored higher on diabetic symptoms were less likely to forgive an initially uncooperative partner, when compared to those who scored lower on diabetic symptoms.
Evidence does seem to be mounting against those who cannot metabolise their clucose correctly!
The researchers believe that "with the rate of diabetes increasing worldwide, it is something that should concern all of us."
And maybe it should!
Article 1
A recent study has found that people who drink a glass of lemonade with sugar acted less aggressively toward a stranger a few minutes later than people who consumed lemonade with a sugar substitute.
Now why would this make a difference? The researchers suggest that the increased glucose in the sugared lemonade allows the person to have greater self control, which enables them to avoid their angry impulse. This is because self control takes a lot of energy, and the extra glucose gives this energy to the brain.
It was also found in other studies that that people who have trouble using glucose in their bodies show more evidence of aggression.
"Diabetes may not only harm yourself -- it is bad for society," said Bushman (co-author of the study.) This is because those with diabetes struggle with using their glucose, meaning, this study suggests, they are likely to suffer from increased aggression.
"To our knowledge, this is the first study to find that boosting glucose levels can reduce actual aggressive behavior," Bushman said.
Interestingly, when 2001 data was anaysed, the researchers found that diabetes rates for each of the 50 US states were linked to violent crime rates. Those states with higher diabetes rates also tended to have higher rates of murder, assault, rape and robbery, even after controlling for poverty rates in each state.
In a Prisoner's Dilemma experiment, those who scored higher on diabetic symptoms were less likely to forgive an initially uncooperative partner, when compared to those who scored lower on diabetic symptoms.
Evidence does seem to be mounting against those who cannot metabolise their clucose correctly!
The researchers believe that "with the rate of diabetes increasing worldwide, it is something that should concern all of us."
And maybe it should!
Article 1
Wednesday, 24 November 2010
Men (and women) Behaving Badly
In two recent studies at University of Toronto Scarborough, researchers tested people's willingness to behave badly.
"People are more likely to cheat and make immoral decisions when their transgressions don't involve an explicit action," says Rimma Teper, lead author on the study, "If they can lie by omission, cheat without doing much legwork, or bypass a person's request for help without expressly denying them, they are much more likely to do so."
In the first study, two groups of participants took a test on a computer. Group 1 were told if they pressed the space bar that the answer would appear on the screen. Group 2 were told the answer would appear if they didn't press the enter key within five seconds of the question.
They found that those who didn't have to actively do anything to see the answer, they were more likely to cheat.
In the second study, participants were asked if they would volunteer to help a student with a learning disability to complete part of the test. Group 1 had only the option of checking a 'yes' or 'no' box on the computer. Group 2 could follow a link at the bottom of the page to volunteer their help or press 'continue' to move on to the next page.
They found participants were more likely to volunteer when they had to pick either 'yes' or 'no.' They concluded that it is difficult for people to explicitly deny help to others and this was linked to emotion, proably either guilt or shame. Those that didn't have to explicitly make a 'yes/no' choice wouldn't feel these emotions as strongly so it didn't affect their decision making, meaning they were more likely to make the immoral choice.
It also has critical implications for those in the business of soliciting peoples' good will, money or time.
Link to Article
"People are more likely to cheat and make immoral decisions when their transgressions don't involve an explicit action," says Rimma Teper, lead author on the study, "If they can lie by omission, cheat without doing much legwork, or bypass a person's request for help without expressly denying them, they are much more likely to do so."
In the first study, two groups of participants took a test on a computer. Group 1 were told if they pressed the space bar that the answer would appear on the screen. Group 2 were told the answer would appear if they didn't press the enter key within five seconds of the question.
They found that those who didn't have to actively do anything to see the answer, they were more likely to cheat.
In the second study, participants were asked if they would volunteer to help a student with a learning disability to complete part of the test. Group 1 had only the option of checking a 'yes' or 'no' box on the computer. Group 2 could follow a link at the bottom of the page to volunteer their help or press 'continue' to move on to the next page.
They found participants were more likely to volunteer when they had to pick either 'yes' or 'no.' They concluded that it is difficult for people to explicitly deny help to others and this was linked to emotion, proably either guilt or shame. Those that didn't have to explicitly make a 'yes/no' choice wouldn't feel these emotions as strongly so it didn't affect their decision making, meaning they were more likely to make the immoral choice.
It also has critical implications for those in the business of soliciting peoples' good will, money or time.
Link to Article
Wednesday, 17 November 2010
Falling in Love and its Cognitive Effect
A new study has found that falling in love generates the same feeling as cocaine use and affects the intellectual areas of the brain!
Results showed that 12 areas of the brain work together to release euphoria-inducing chemicals icluding dopamine and adrenaline.
This also affects mental representation, metaphors and body image.
Other researchers also found blood levels of nerve growth factor were significantly higher in couples who had just fallen in love.
"The findings have major implications for neuroscience and mental health research because when love doesn't work out, it can be a significant cause of emotional stress and depression."
"It's another probe into the brain and into the mind of a patient," says Ortigue. "By understanding why they fall in love and why they are so heartbroken, they can use new therapies." By identifying the parts of the brain stimulated by love, doctors and therapists can better understand the pains of love-sick patients.
So, don't fall into drug use! Fall in love instead!
Link to Article
Results showed that 12 areas of the brain work together to release euphoria-inducing chemicals icluding dopamine and adrenaline.
This also affects mental representation, metaphors and body image.
Other researchers also found blood levels of nerve growth factor were significantly higher in couples who had just fallen in love.
"The findings have major implications for neuroscience and mental health research because when love doesn't work out, it can be a significant cause of emotional stress and depression."
"It's another probe into the brain and into the mind of a patient," says Ortigue. "By understanding why they fall in love and why they are so heartbroken, they can use new therapies." By identifying the parts of the brain stimulated by love, doctors and therapists can better understand the pains of love-sick patients.
So, don't fall into drug use! Fall in love instead!
Link to Article
Wednesday, 15 September 2010
The Pain of Discrimination
"In a new study, researchers found that adolescents from Latin American and Asian backgrounds experienced more discrimination than their peers from European backgrounds and that the discrimination came not only from other adolescents but from adults as well. The level of discrimination also impacted these teens' grade-point averages and their health and was associated with depression, distress and lower levels of self-esteem.
601 Teens (equal males and females) kept a daily diary for 2 weeks to record any discriminatory events or comments they experienced. They were also asked to separately record on a four-point scale any physical symptoms, such as headaches, stomach-aches or general pain.
Among the teens in the study, nearly 60% reported experiencing discrimination from other teens, and 63% reported discrimination from adults; 12% reported experiencing discrimination on a daily basis.
The researchers found that teens who reported higher levels of peer or adult discrimination also reported more aches, pains and other symptoms, as well as a lower overall grade-point average. Thus, discrimination may not only tax adolescents' physical and psychological resources but may also affect their ability to achieve in school, the researchers said.
"Discrimination significantly predicted lower GPAs, higher levels of depression, higher levels of distress, lower self-esteem and more physical complaints," Fuligni said. "So the bottom line? Discrimination is harmful."
____________________________________________________________
This interesting study highlights the link between the personal world, i.e. one's own wellbeing and health, and the social world. This link can be good, in terms of positive interactions and suppport, but, as this study shows, negativity in the social world can create bad results in the personal world.
Although people may think the discrimination is only small, it can mount up on a single individual, much like in the story 'An Inspector Calls' by J.B Preistley, and can manifest itself in a number of physical and psychological problems.
The modern world already seems to be accelerating the number of people that are being diagnosed with depression and ADHD and personality disorders etc, and people are quick to blame the fast paced life and music and videogames. This study is an interesting wake-up call that shows how our interactions with each other, although seemingly harmless, may be commiting more pain than we realise.
Link to article
601 Teens (equal males and females) kept a daily diary for 2 weeks to record any discriminatory events or comments they experienced. They were also asked to separately record on a four-point scale any physical symptoms, such as headaches, stomach-aches or general pain.
Among the teens in the study, nearly 60% reported experiencing discrimination from other teens, and 63% reported discrimination from adults; 12% reported experiencing discrimination on a daily basis.
The researchers found that teens who reported higher levels of peer or adult discrimination also reported more aches, pains and other symptoms, as well as a lower overall grade-point average. Thus, discrimination may not only tax adolescents' physical and psychological resources but may also affect their ability to achieve in school, the researchers said.
"Discrimination significantly predicted lower GPAs, higher levels of depression, higher levels of distress, lower self-esteem and more physical complaints," Fuligni said. "So the bottom line? Discrimination is harmful."
____________________________________________________________
This interesting study highlights the link between the personal world, i.e. one's own wellbeing and health, and the social world. This link can be good, in terms of positive interactions and suppport, but, as this study shows, negativity in the social world can create bad results in the personal world.
Although people may think the discrimination is only small, it can mount up on a single individual, much like in the story 'An Inspector Calls' by J.B Preistley, and can manifest itself in a number of physical and psychological problems.
The modern world already seems to be accelerating the number of people that are being diagnosed with depression and ADHD and personality disorders etc, and people are quick to blame the fast paced life and music and videogames. This study is an interesting wake-up call that shows how our interactions with each other, although seemingly harmless, may be commiting more pain than we realise.
Link to article
Tuesday, 31 August 2010
More casualties of the BP oil spill!
Anger, depression, and helplessness are the main psychological responses being seen in response to the catastrophic Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, and they are likely to have long-lasting effects, according to an interview in Ecopsychology, a peer-reviewed, online journal published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.
In an interview published in Ecopsychology and conducted by Editorial Board member Susan Koger, PhD, Professor of Psychology at Willamette University in Salem, OR, Winter predicts a great deal of chronic depression, withdrawal, and lack of functioning among not only people directly affected by the events in the Gulf, but also people nationwide and globally who identify or empathize with their circumstances.
Describing the oil spill as "the absolutely worst 'environmental' disaster" in the history of the United States, Winter discusses her own personal attempts to deal with the negative emotions she is experiencing by focusing at times on hopeful, positive feelings related to the "tremendous self-sacrifice and generosity of spirit" among those affected by the spill and those helping to contain it and clean up the oil.
With the hope that the BP spill, with all the damage and suffering it is causing, will stimulate renewed environmental activism and changes in attitudes and behaviors, Winter says, "this disaster is probably just the kick in the pants that the environmental movement has needed."
____________________________________________________
Maybe it's stronger in the US, being a little closer to home, but how do you feel about the oil spill? Has it made you feek angry or depressed? Why do you think others feel like this?
Link to Article
In an interview published in Ecopsychology and conducted by Editorial Board member Susan Koger, PhD, Professor of Psychology at Willamette University in Salem, OR, Winter predicts a great deal of chronic depression, withdrawal, and lack of functioning among not only people directly affected by the events in the Gulf, but also people nationwide and globally who identify or empathize with their circumstances.
Describing the oil spill as "the absolutely worst 'environmental' disaster" in the history of the United States, Winter discusses her own personal attempts to deal with the negative emotions she is experiencing by focusing at times on hopeful, positive feelings related to the "tremendous self-sacrifice and generosity of spirit" among those affected by the spill and those helping to contain it and clean up the oil.
With the hope that the BP spill, with all the damage and suffering it is causing, will stimulate renewed environmental activism and changes in attitudes and behaviors, Winter says, "this disaster is probably just the kick in the pants that the environmental movement has needed."
____________________________________________________
Maybe it's stronger in the US, being a little closer to home, but how do you feel about the oil spill? Has it made you feek angry or depressed? Why do you think others feel like this?
Link to Article
Wednesday, 28 July 2010
With a little help from your friends you can live longer
"A circle of close friends and strong family ties can boost a person's health more than exercise, losing weight or quitting cigarettes and alcohol, psychologists say.
Sociable people seem to reap extra rewards from their relationships by feeling less stressed, taking better care of themselves and having less risky lifestyles than those who are more isolated, they claim.
A review of studies into the impact of relationships on health found that people had a 50% better survival rate if they belonged to a wider social group, be it friends, neighbours, relatives or a mix of these.
The striking impact of social connections on wellbeing has led researchers to call on GPs and health officials to take loneliness as seriously as other health risks, such as alcoholism and smoking.
"We take relationships for granted as humans," said Julianne Holt-Lunstad, a psychologist at Brigham Young University in Utah. "That constant interaction is not only beneficial psychologically but directly to our physical health."
Holt-Lunstad's team reviewed 148 studies that tracked the social interactions and health of 308,849 people over an average of 7.5 years. From these they worked out how death rates varied depending on how sociable a person was.
Being lonely and isolated was as bad for a person's health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day or being an alcoholic. It was as harmful as not exercising and twice as bad for the health as being obese. The study is reported in the journal Plos Medicine.
Holt-Lunstad said friends and family can improve health in numerous ways, from help in tough times to finding meaning in life. "When someone is connected to a group and feels responsibility to other people, that sense of purpose and meaning translates to taking better care of themselves and taking fewer risks."
Holt-Lunstad said there was no clear figure on how many relationships are enough to boost a person's health, but people fared better when they rarely felt lonely and were close to a group of friends, had good family contact and had someone they could rely on and confide in.
Writing in the journal, the authors point out that doctors, health educators and the media take the dangers of smoking, diet and exercise seriously, and urge them to add social relationships to the list.
A report by the Mental Health Foundation in May blamed technology and the pressures of modern life for widespread feelings of loneliness in all age groups across Britain. The survey of more than 2,200 adults found one in 10 people often felt lonely and one in three would like to move closer to their family.
Andrew McCulloch, of the Mental Health Foundation, said the latest study builds on work that links isolation to poor mental and physical health. "Trends such as increasing numbers of people living alone and the advent of new technologies, are changing the way in which we interact and are leading both the young and old to experience loneliness. It is important that individuals and policy-makers take notice of emerging evidence and of the potential health problems associated with loneliness."
___________________________________________________________
But with online social networking on the increase, does this help or hinder our mental and physical health? Although online social websites allow us to catch up with more people than ever, even on the other side of the globe, has this left us more isolated?
I guess anybody can ask questions.
No go forth and socialise! For your health!
Link to Article
Sociable people seem to reap extra rewards from their relationships by feeling less stressed, taking better care of themselves and having less risky lifestyles than those who are more isolated, they claim.
A review of studies into the impact of relationships on health found that people had a 50% better survival rate if they belonged to a wider social group, be it friends, neighbours, relatives or a mix of these.
The striking impact of social connections on wellbeing has led researchers to call on GPs and health officials to take loneliness as seriously as other health risks, such as alcoholism and smoking.
"We take relationships for granted as humans," said Julianne Holt-Lunstad, a psychologist at Brigham Young University in Utah. "That constant interaction is not only beneficial psychologically but directly to our physical health."
Holt-Lunstad's team reviewed 148 studies that tracked the social interactions and health of 308,849 people over an average of 7.5 years. From these they worked out how death rates varied depending on how sociable a person was.
Being lonely and isolated was as bad for a person's health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day or being an alcoholic. It was as harmful as not exercising and twice as bad for the health as being obese. The study is reported in the journal Plos Medicine.
Holt-Lunstad said friends and family can improve health in numerous ways, from help in tough times to finding meaning in life. "When someone is connected to a group and feels responsibility to other people, that sense of purpose and meaning translates to taking better care of themselves and taking fewer risks."
Holt-Lunstad said there was no clear figure on how many relationships are enough to boost a person's health, but people fared better when they rarely felt lonely and were close to a group of friends, had good family contact and had someone they could rely on and confide in.
Writing in the journal, the authors point out that doctors, health educators and the media take the dangers of smoking, diet and exercise seriously, and urge them to add social relationships to the list.
A report by the Mental Health Foundation in May blamed technology and the pressures of modern life for widespread feelings of loneliness in all age groups across Britain. The survey of more than 2,200 adults found one in 10 people often felt lonely and one in three would like to move closer to their family.
Andrew McCulloch, of the Mental Health Foundation, said the latest study builds on work that links isolation to poor mental and physical health. "Trends such as increasing numbers of people living alone and the advent of new technologies, are changing the way in which we interact and are leading both the young and old to experience loneliness. It is important that individuals and policy-makers take notice of emerging evidence and of the potential health problems associated with loneliness."
___________________________________________________________
But with online social networking on the increase, does this help or hinder our mental and physical health? Although online social websites allow us to catch up with more people than ever, even on the other side of the globe, has this left us more isolated?
I guess anybody can ask questions.
No go forth and socialise! For your health!
Link to Article
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