You’ve probably heard the saying that “laughter is contagious,” and when someone smiles at you, you immediately smile back. This is not limited to smiling and feeling happy; Sadness and other emotions are contagious. In this article, we talk about the contagion of emotions and the theory of emotional contagion. Stay with us.
What is emotional contagion?
Emotional contagion means observing one person’s behavior leads others to repeat the same behavior reflexively. Humans are social creatures and react to stimuli in the world around us, so, unsurprisingly, those around us also affect our emotions and behaviors.
Emotional contagion theory
Elaine Hatfield was the first to propose this theory. She defined emotional contagion as “the tendency to automatically imitate and synchronize expressions, sounds, postures, and movements with other people, resulting in emotional convergence.”
What causes emotional contagion?
Although, according to primary research, emotional contagion occurs completely unconsciously, various factors may play a role in emotional contagion or cause it. These factors are:
- Verbal communication;
- non-verbal communication, such as facial expressions and body language ;
- Environmental factors such as music, scents, and atmosphere.
Imagine a room full of people watching a stand-up comedian. The funny story and the presenter’s actions cause a contagious reaction of joy among the viewers. Many people, such as advertisers, filmmakers, restaurateurs, and salespeople, use emotional contagion to convince you to buy something or to make you feel something.
To better understand environmental factors, imagine a clean room where everything is in order and place. Seeing this room gives you peace, and this feeling is contagious to anyone who enters the room and sees its cleanliness.
Are negative emotions more contagious or positive emotions?
Just as positive emotions are contagious, so are negative emotions. It is interesting to know that emotions such as sadness, anger, despair, and depression are much more infectious than positive emotions and involve others very quickly. Stimulating factors such as lack of sleep, hunger, and severe stress make a person more vulnerable to emotional contagion.
Relationship of emotional contagion with neurons
According to research, simulating other people’s emotions may have a neural origin. This neural agent is related to mirror neurons; When someone observes another person doing something, specific neurons in his brain are activated and make him repeat the same thing. If you see another person crying, laughing, or smiling, you mirror what they are doing, which is how the person’s feelings spread to you. Have you ever wondered why your child does exactly what you do? The reason is mirror neurons and emotional contagion.
Stages of emotional contagion and its impact
Emotional contagion seems so quickly that you don’t even notice it. However, experts believe it has stages.
- Imitation: In response to the other person’s smile, you smile and imitate their laughter.
- Feedback: You’d think I’d be happy with another smile and happiness.
- Contagion: Now that I’m happy, I also smile at others.
Of course, smiling and laughing are positive ways to share feelings. It’s no wonder that when you smile and mirror the emotions of others, you feel happier and less stressed.
Positive emotions also have positive effects, such as the smile that goes on, the connection and excitement we feel at a concert, and the sense of support seen at events like memorials. Meanwhile, negative contagious emotions have a negative effect. When the negative feelings of others spread to us, it becomes challenging to remain steadfast and control them. When negative emotions spread to a group, they may have unpleasant effects, such as increased violence.
Methods of controlling the effects of emotional contagion
Considering the impact of emotional contagion, it is necessary to learn ways to prevent the contagion of emotions. In the following, we have presented several valuable recommendations in this field.
- Find out what actions (verbal and non-verbal) make you react. Do you like the way these actions make you feel? If you are not interested in these feelings, you can take necessary actions as soon as you see such behaviors and avoid them as much as possible.
- Stop, analyze what is happening, and take a deep breath. Now that you’ve allowed yourself to explore the situation, use your body to your advantage. Deep breathing is beneficial. When you do this, the body signals to the mind that “everything is going to be okay,” and your body and mind begin to focus.
- Practice empathy with others. Proper empathy with others allows you to separate the feelings of others from your own. Empathy means understanding other people’s feelings and staying with them to get through these situations better instead of considering their feelings as your own.
- Connect with people who have a positive influence on you. Try to be in contact with people who give you peace and make you feel comfortable being around them.
- Develop functional coping skills. Use helpful coping strategies such as deep breathing, guided visualization, and cognitive restructuring in uncomfortable and difficult situations.
final word
Life is entirely of bittersweet moments that are easily contagious. The important thing is to learn to control your emotions and react correctly to emotional contagion.
What emotions do you feel most easily? Please share your valuable comments and experiences with us and our dear users.
Warning! This article is only for educational purposes;d to use it, it is necessary to consult a doctor or specialist.
