Do you ever talk to your pet, your plant or maybe your car? Good news: it’s not crazy and it makes you smarter!
Many people, consciously or unconsciously, sometimes talk to a plant or discuss the day with their pet. As adults, it is sometimes seen as something crazy or even silly. It’s not at all, according to a study by University of Chicago scientist Nicholas Epley. Talking to our pets and plants is actually a good thing: it helps us to develop our empathy and train our social intelligence. So you indirectly become smarter.
We ‘humanize’ animals or objects and that is called anthropomorphism. Anthropomorphism is already strongly present in children, but the development of our social intelligence continues even after childhood. The moment we have no social contact with other people, we invent a social interaction with an animal or object. For example, we see faces in objects, such as the buttons on a chair or in the headlights of a car, and we give our car a name. We are the only species that can do this.
Anthropomorphism, according to Epley, is therefore completely normal and even comparable to a conversation with a human being. The more often we interact with objects or pets, the better we are able to gauge other people’s intentions. So it is a sign that your brain is functioning properly. It can also help with a feeling of loneliness. So: you are not crazy if you discuss the day with your dog or cat and it is good to say goodbye to all your plants.
