DON’T SMILE IF YOU ARE FEELING MISERABLE – STUDY

Sadness

According to a 2014 study, trying to make someone smile when they are miserable can actually make them feel worse. So don’t bother cheering up your friend next time you see your friend sad, perhaps it might be best you just leave them alone.

The research was carried out by Anirban Mukhopadhyay, associate professor of marketing at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, who thinks you should wait until your unhappiness lifts before attempting a grin.

‘’Making people who are feeling bad smile could backfire and make them feel worse because they may interpret smiling as trying to become happy. Smiling frequently might remind them of being unhappy’’ says Anirban Mukhopadhyay.

According to the study, if you are faking a smile then it won’t cheer you up and that you are just using it to mask your inner sadness. If you force someone to grin when they are in a bad mood, their brain starts to associate it with sadness instead of joy.

What do you think about the study?

Phil

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