For a hug between two people to bring well-being, it should not last less than 5 seconds.
- For a hug to be successful, it must last between five and ten seconds.
- The position of the arms has little influence on the benefits of the hug.
Hugs are important for our well-being. It starts from the first months of life since it has been shown that maternal hugs play a role in the level of empathy that young children will develop later. Later in life, these sweet moments have many benefits, from improving sleep and the immune system to reducing stress and depression.
Assess how a hug can affect mood
A new study, published on November 2 in the journal Acta Psychologica, became interested in the question of what is a good hug? Because, if it is good for health, the hug must be well done to produce its effects. “Hugs are one of the most common types of emotional contact encountered in everyday life.add the authors of the study. However, little is known about the factors that influence cuddle assessment and behavior. Here we sought to assess how different hugs would be rated and whether they might affect mood.”
According to the researchers, for a hug to be successful, it must last between five and ten seconds. Moments of quick affection, which do not exceed 5 seconds, did not seem to provide any real benefit to those who performed them. As for the position of the arms, it does not matter, say the scientists.
The position of the arms does not matter
For this research, the scientists brought together 48 volunteers whom they asked to perform different types of hugs. Each time, the latter changed their position, placing their arms on one shoulder, another time in the back or under the shoulders. Throughout the duration of the experiments, the volunteers were blindfolded.”to prevent visual feedback from influencing tactile perception”, specify the researchers.
The latter then made a feedback, just after the hug and then three and six minutes after the hug. They reported on their mood and how pleasant, exciting and controlled the touch was. The results showed that the feeling of arousal was strongest immediately after the hug, compared to three minutes and six minutes after the hug. The arms did not seem to influence the emotions felt.
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