The idea that our outward manifestation of emotions, contributes to our internal feelings is not a novel one. Even the founder of modern-day psychology, William James, alluded to the idea that bodily experience of emotional states (i.e. expressions) can impact on how we feel inwardly.
So … The body influences the mind?
This concept often comes as a shock to people, who believe that it is the mind that does the ‘driving’. However, psychologists have known for some time, through various studies, that facial expressions and posture send feedback to our brain about our feelings and emotions.
However, some new research has recently emerged that shows just how far our body’s influence can extend. The researchers had participants complete two different stressful tasks. One involved the completion of a difficult problem solving activity in which they were continuously told they were failing, and another in which the volunteers kept their hand submerged in ice water for several minutes. Some individuals were asked to hold chopsticks between their teeth, essentially contorting their faces into a smile. The results showed that those who ‘smiled’ reported being less stressed and demonstrated faster heart rate recovery following painful experiences than those who did not smile during the tests.
Interestingly, the researchers claims that this technique worked best when it was ‘unconscious’, or when participants didn’t know they were doing it. Nevertheless, even faking a smile was better than nothing. Holding your face in a smile led to a quicker recovery of a normal heart rate following the stressful events suggesting that, on some level, our brain cannot help but interpret our smiles as a green light that all’s well!
Reference:
Kraft, T., & Pressman, S. (2012). Grin and bear it: The influence of manipulated facial expression on the stress response. Psychological Science, 23(10). doi: 10.1177/0956797612445312
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