Ever had a laugh with a bunch of other people? A person will start laughing at something that no one has noticed and everyone else soon joins in the fun. Maybe you have had your mood completely ruined by theEeyoreYour group. As if emotions are unified, they converging at a certain pitch. This is something most people have experienced at least once.
It has been noticed by scientists, as well. It’s a large body.Psychological researchThis is a common theme that connects empathy and compassion to a lot of the experiences. It’s an incredibly complex phenomenon, and it can be quite complicated.PhysiologicalPsychic manifestations. This can happen even between strangers or over great distances.
Hence, why don’t we see each other in our moods?
Social animals with emotions
Affective Neuroscience: The Foundations for Human and Animal EmotionsJaak Panksepp, a neuroscientist and psychobiologist, argues that the brains of humans evolved to promote social behaviour and cohesion. Social animals are social creatures. Being able to listen to the moods of others is an advantage. This could explain contagious emotions.
The following is anArticleInPsycheJack Andrews (a cognitive neuroscientist from the University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia) suggested another reason why contagious emotions can be caused by them. One of the benefits to catching someone’s emotions may be that other people can often help us choose the right emotional response to social situations.
When fear is the predominant emotion, this might prove to be particularly useful. It’s not a good idea to ignore the warning signs and run from the guy in the mask with the chainsaw.
The Dark Side of Emotions
There’s also a darker side. Contagious emotions like anger and depression can be also contagious. You’re likely to see a lot more anger if you spend time on social media. We might be in the middle of an anger epidemic. Contagious anger has become a major problem.ProblemIndividuals and the society.anger keeps us engaged).
Even “catch” anger can be a survival benefit. It might even be lifesaving to have enough anger to protect yourself from an angry person.
Andrews is a specialist in adolescents’ mental health. He noted that teens are more likely to catch emotions than adults. Andrews believes this is partly due to young people’s inability to regulate their emotions, which makes them vulnerable for the influence of their peers.
This is not necessarily a bad thing. Andrews points to a 2015StudyResearchers found that children with positive friends were less likely to be depressed. If they are already suffering from depression, their chances of recovery are higher. It seems that the positives may be more important than the negative. Adults can also experience positive emotions such as laughter.Are likelyTo be more infectious than the negative.
It seems that negative emotions have spread like coronavirus these days. It’s good to remember we can all help one another by sharing a bit of joy and laughter, kinda like a vaccine.