Witnessing Uplifting Behavior May Spur Good Deeds

[Peacetrain]

The notion that you are what you eat.. you think what you read.. and now you act on what you witness..something to think about




Witnessing Uplifting Behavior May Spur Good Deeds

http://news.yahoo.com/s/hsn/witnessingupliftingbehaviormayspurgooddeeds


SATURDAY, Feb. 13 (HealthDay News) -- Seeing someone else do a good deed appears to inspire you to do the same by making you feel uplifted, new research suggests.

In an experiment, researchers recruited volunteers who watched a "neutral" video clip of scenes from a nature documentary or a clip from "The Oprah Winfrey Show" in which musicians thanked their mentors. The participants then wrote essays about what they watched, were paid for their time and asked to indicate whether they'd want to take part in another study.

Those who saw the Oprah Winfrey clip were more likely to volunteer to take part in another study.

The positive, uplifting emotion that makes people feel good and may inspire them to help others is known as "elevation," the researchers explained in a news release about the experiment from the Association for Psychological Science.

[GoddessOfGuinness]

1. We need a return to "Random acts of kindness".

It just makes sense. :-)

[Peacetrain]

2. Yep.. I think there is a lot of truth to that.. and conversely

when you think of the negativity of the republicans and the birthers, teapartiers, etc.. you can see how these people howl at the moon 24/7.. they are steeped in failure

[GoddessOfGuinness]

3. Negativity doesn't limit itself to the RW...

I've seen it in myself many a time...often the result of listening to someone else spout it out.

I'm fortunate enough to work with some wonderfully positive people, who know how to spread the love around without chiding...because that in itself is negative.

[panader0]

4. Perhaps architecture can too.

Paolo Soleri (sp?), a student of Frank Lloyd Wright, had a theory that buildings that were Inspiring to be in raised your spirits. He called his community in Arizona 'Archosanti' or architecture of the spirit. Imagine the feeling of being in a small square room with a low ceiling, and contrast that with being in a building like, say, Notre Dame cathedral. The one feels oppressive, the other inspiring.

[mwb970]

5. It's like those commercials.

Someone sees someone do something kind, then they go and do something kind, and so on. Seems simplistic, but this is actually the way this works. "What goes around, comes around."

[njlib]

8. Great commercial

The "pay it forward" commercial has been a favorite of mine from the first time I saw it.

[Peacetrain]

9. I love the pay it forward myself..

I keep hoping people will pay it forward for future generations instead of being caught up in the never ending negativity of nothing is happening

[lunatica]

6. Duh! Vice Versa has the same results

[reformist2]

7. I bet all the family-oriented TV shows of the 70s

Had the same effect on people. I wish we had more of that nowadays and less of the CSI stuff.