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| "Shelling": junk mail collage, inks. |
2GN2S ...
Can Faking a Smile Actually Make You Happier? Scientists Think Yes!
“Fake it ‘til you make it” has become shorthand for people struggling in various aspects of life, with an emphasis on chasing happiness. If you’re feeling down, the advice goes, try to smile. Maybe the physical manifestation of feeling good can lift your spirits. It’s known as the “facial feedback hypothesis.” It’s a crude bit of advice, but does it ever work? A new study indicates that the answer is yes.
A paper published in the journal Nature Human Behaviour and led by Nicholas Coles of Stanford recruited 3878 people from different countries and negotiated a little misdirection. To make sure they wouldn’t skew the results, none of the participants knew the study was about how an artificial smile might influence their mood: They were given “decoy” instructions, like hand gestures, to obfuscate the real intent of trying to see if a forced smirk worked.
The result? Happiness appeared to be mildly increased in those smiling or mimicking a smiling actor when compared to those holding a fixed expression. The pen-in-mouth task appeared to produce less of a change, likely because it’s a product of a physical object creating a physical change and doesn't involve the same muscles used in smiling.
While
smiling might influence mood, how that happens is still open to
discussion. It’s possible smiling prompts positive emotional feedback
from others, which can influence how a person feels. Or, the
physiological act of smiling might stimulate biological processes.
Either way, smiling even when you don’t feel like it could be the boost
you need.
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| Eagle |
Thanks for coming by today
4 comments:
The title for your excellent collage is fabulous. It Couldn't be better.
In an hour my son and girlfriend will be here. I'm so happy!
Have a fine weekend, Jacki!
I know that the day will come when the war will end. Then the rebuilding of lives and surrounding will occur. It always happens but in the meantime it is hell. Shelling and destruction. Did you ever think that you would have to create based on war? Thanks for doing it though. :-)
Thanks, Elenor. I am so happy for you to be with your family.
Have a great weekend.
Thanks, John. Actually I did do one a day when the Desert Storm was started, but luckily it was short-lived. When the President said it was over I was glad to stop. ANY WAR IS BAD, but this seems worse to me. Bullying and saying I will take it and it is mine now?
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