Human beings are designed to be social
Summary
- Humans are designed to be social creatiures
Details
- Even hardened criminals form groups
- solitary confinement is a psychological toture
- much of the brain is dedicated to forming interactions with other people
- areas where people consistently live to be a 100 have several things in common including strong social networks.
- Loneliness has a similar impact to longevity as smoking cigarettes
References
Quotes
If hardened criminals and outlaws can’t fight the urge to form groups, it must be quite deeply rooted in our brains. Placing a prisoner in solitary confinement for too long is considered a form of psychological torture,1 demonstrating that human contact is more a necessity than a desire. The truth is, odd as it may seem, much of the human brain is dedicated to and formed by interactions with other people, and we grow to depend on people as a result, to a surprising extent.
Our brains are fundamentally social organs, and we need to have a range of social connections in order to keep our brains healthy. You may have heard of the Blue Zones: the areas around the world that have the highest number of centenarians (people who live to 100 years old or more). It turns out that one of the things that they all have in common, besides being physically active and eating a healthy diet, is that they have very strong social networks. The opposite of this is being lonely, and it turns out that loneliness has around the same negative impact on your longevity as smoking cigarettes or not doing any exercise.
Related
- Good relationships make us more productivity
- Build good relationships and real friends
- Out well being is based on relationships, purpose and service
- Distance and time are the two wedges that separate relationships. When it really matters, get in the car and meet them face-to-face - James Clear
- Social facilitation - we learn better with company
- Social engagement results in better cognitive performance in old age