Spread the Happiness: Look up and Smile

We humans need social connections. Without claws or big teeth or size, our ancestors in the African plains relied on social inclusion to survive. That’s why scientists believe that isolation is so painful. It actually causes a pain response in the [I] brain as would happen with physical pain[ii]. 

Because it is so important, researchers propose that we are vigilant to even the most subtle cues of inclusion or exclusion[iii].

For example, withholding eye contact can be seen as exclusion and cause feelings of ostracism while simple eye contact is enough to convey inclusion[iv][v]. 

Researchers got people to walk by people and do one of three things:

• Give an air-gaze (look at the person with a neutral expression and look pass their ear with no acknowledgement or eye contact).

• Make eye contact

• Make eye contact with a closed smile.

It was found that people felt less disconnected when eye contact was made (with or without a smile).[vi]

While that study did not find a difference between eye contact and eye contact with smiling, there has been significant research into how when someone smiles at us, we automatically smile back[vii].

This is all to do with our mirror-neurons. Our what?!

With recent advancements in neuro-imaging, have neuroscientists discovered something called mirror-neurons[viii]. These are specialised brain cells that mimic sensations, feelings and actions of other people[ix].

As we walk around through the day, our brains, using our mirror neurons, are constantly processing the feelings of people that pass by us[x].

So when we see someone smile at us, mirror neurons simulate our own smiling[xi]. Additionally, when we smile, our brain makes neurochemicals that actually make us happy[xii]. Thus, when we see someone smile, we mentally simulate that smile or smile back and we feel happier.[xiii]

And this spreads. You smile at one person, they smile at the next and so on and so forth.

So next time you’re walking around your workplace, your neighbourhood or even your community, make eye contact and smile. Spread the happiness.

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[i] Dunbar, R. (2007). The social brain hypothesis and its relevance to social psychology. Evolution and the social mind: Evolutionary psychology and social cognition, 21-31.

[ii] Hawkley, L. C., Williams, K. D., & Cacioppo, J. T. (2011). Responses to ostracism across adulthood. Social cognitive and affective neuroscience, 6(2), 234-243.

[iii] Wesselmann, E. D., Cardoso, F. D., Slater, S., & Williams, K. D. (2012). To be looked at as though air: Civil attention matters. Psychological Science, 23(2), 166-168.

[iv] Wirth, J. H., Sacco, D. F., Hugenberg, K., & Williams, K. D. (2010). Eye gaze as relational evaluation: Averted eye gaze leads to feelings of ostracism and relational devaluation. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 36(7), 869-882.

[v] Wesselmann et al. (2012).

[vi] Ibid.

[vii] Achor, S. (2010). The happiness advantage: How a positive brain fuels success in work and life. Currency.

[viii] Ibid

[ix] https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-mirror-neuron-revolut/

[x] Acho, S (2010).

[xi] Hennenlotter, A., Schroeder, U., Erhard, P., Castrop, F., Haslinger, B., Stoecker, D., ... & Ceballos-Baumann, A. O. (2005). A common neural basis for receptive and expressive communication of pleasant facial affect. Neuroimage, 26(2), 581-591.

[xii] Zajonc, R. B., Murphy, S. T., & Inglehart, M. (1989). Feeling and facial efference: Implications of the vascular theory of emotion. Psychological review, 96(3), 395.

[xiii] https://www.psychologytoday.com/intl/blog/eyes-the-brain/201102/i-feel-your-smile-i-feel-your-pain