Catching up, having a chat or joking with a friend once a day contributes to our happiness and reduces our stress.
- Stress is an adaptation phenomenon of the body that allows us to react to our environment.
- If stress sets in over time, our body becomes exhausted and several pathological consequences occur.
“Links between the frequency and quality of social interactions and instantaneous and overall well-being have been well documented. Little research examines whether the content of social interactions is associated with well-being using experimental methods”, said researchers from the University of Kansas (USA). To get to the bottom of it, they carried out work published in the journal Communications Research.
Communication: 7 ways to establish a relationship with someone
As part of this study, the scientists analyzed seven ways of communicating: taking news, having a serious discussion, joking, showing attention, listening, valuing others and their opinions and giving compliments. “These types of communication are the ones that allow people to feel closer through conversation,” said Jeffrey Hall, author of the work, in a statement.
The team recruited 907 people from five university campuses. These were divided into two groups. The first was to engage in one of seven communication behaviors for one day, then describe that evening their feelings of stress, connection, anxiety, well-being, loneliness, and indicate the quality of their day. The members of the second group were to do as they saw fit.
Reduced stress with just one quality conversation
According to the results, participants who adopted any of the seven behaviors experienced increased well-being. “The more you listen to your friends, the more attentive you are, the more time you take to appreciate other people’s opinions, the better you feel at the end of the day”, pointed out Jeffrey Hall.
According to the authors, quality conversations that took place face-to-face made volunteers happier than discussions on social networks or by message. “In this research, it is the quality of the conversation that matters most for connection and stress. This supports the idea that we use communication to fulfill our need to belong and that it helps to manage our stress”, concluded the team.
