Skip to main content

Kindness leads to popularity and happiness



Kinder children were happier and more accepted in their peer groups, says a study reported by the BBC (29 December, 2012, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-20851434). Researchers at the University of California revealed that pre-teen children who performed deliberate acts of kindness were more popular with their peers.
Researchers assigned children three acts of kindness each week for four weeks. Four hundred (400) children aged between 9 and 11 years from 19 classrooms in Vancouver participated in the study. Researchers worked with whole classes of school children to perform three kind acts per week and also with a control class of students who visited three places per week (anywhere they wished such as their grandparents’ place or the mall designed to be “mildly pleasant”). Consent was first sought from parents and teachers. The kind acts were not necessarily directed at their classmates. They included hugging parents, performing chores at home, or sharing their toys. Throughout the four weeks, students in both groups reported what they did each week during in-class surveys.
Before the study, students in both groups were asked to circle the names of classmates whom they would like to be in school activities with (as many or as few as they wished). Students also reported their life satisfaction on standardized life scales). They repeated the exercise after the four week study. Students in the kindness group gained significantly more nominations and peer acceptance than the control group, although both conditions (acts of kindness and visiting places) improved well-being.
Researchers suggested that by reinforcing social connections between children could help positive interactions and reduce bullying. They were not surprised that the study led to happier students because they had the same effects in adults. Therefore the researchers suggested that the goals of happiness, pro-sociality, and popularity may not only be compatible but also reciprocal. In other words, happy people were more likely to engage in pro-social behavior and have satisfying friendships. Similarly, students who were well-liked by peers were also more helpful, cooperative, and emotionally well-adjusted.
By encouraging simple, positive deeds, it had a double reward: for those who received the acts of kindness, but also for the giver. Furthermore, entire classrooms practicing pro-social behavior may reap benefits in student performance.
Layous K, Nelson SK, Oberle E, Schonert-Reichl KA, Lyubomirsky S (2012), Kindness Counts: Prompting Prosocial Behavior in Preadolescents Boosts Peer Acceptance and Well-Being. PLoS ONE 7(12):e51380. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0051380.

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Pir-E-Kamil - The Perfect Mentor by Umera Ahmed: book review

The Perfect Mentor pbuh  (2011) is set in Lahore and Islamabad in Pakistan. The novel commences with Imama Mubeen in medical university. She wants to be an eye specialist. Her parents have arranged for her to marry her first cousin Asjad. Salar Sikander, her neighbour, is 18 years old with an IQ of 150+ and a photographic memory. He has long hair tied in a ponytail. He imbibes alcohol, treats women disrespectfully and is generally a “weird chap” and a rude, belligerent teenager. In the past three years he has tried to commit suicide three times. He tries again. Imama and her brother, Waseem, answer the servant’s call to help Salar. They stop the bleeding from his wrist and save his life. Imama and Asjad have been engaged for three years, because she wants to finish her studies first. Imama is really delaying her marriage to Asjad because she loves Jalal Ansar. She proposes to him and he says yes. But he knows his parents won’t agree, nor will Imama’s parents. ...
1 comment
Read more

The acacia thorn trees of Kenya

There are nearly 800 species of acacia trees in the world, and most don’t have thorns. The famous "whistling thorn tree" and the Umbrella Thorn tree of Kenya are species of acacia that do have thorns, or spines. Giraffes and other herbivores normally eat thorny acacia foliage, but leave the whistling thorn alone. Usually spines are no deterrent to giraffes. Their long tongues are adapted to strip the leaves from the branches despite the thorns. The thorny acacia like dry and hot conditions. The thorns typically occur in pairs and are 5-8 centimetres (2-3 inches) long. Spines can be straight or curved depending on the species. MARTINA NICOLLS is an international aid and development consultant, and the author of:- Similar But Different in the Animal Kingdom (2017), The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Suda...
1 comment
Read more

Shindi: the Georgian Cornelian cherry

The Cornelian cherry – shindi in Georgian – is a fruit with medicinal and decorative properties. It was grown from ancient times, according to the International Society for Horticultural Science (ISHS). It is also commonly called the European cornel. It is native to southern Europe from France to Ukraine as well as Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Iran, Turkey, Israel, Lebanon, and Syria. The Cornelian cherry tree ( Cornus mas ) can be grown in orchards, but it is often seen in the forests of Georgia where it grows up to 1,350 metres above sea level. It is a medium to large deciduous tree, growing from 5-12 metres tall. The flowers are small with four yellow petals in clusters, which flower in February and March. The Cornus mas has three botanical varieties: (1) var. typica Sanadze with cylindrical red fruits, (2) var. pyriformis Sanadze with pear-shaped red fruits, and (3) var. flava vest with yellow fruits. The fruits are oblong red drupes about 2 centimetres ...
Post a Comment
Read more