Humans are found to have been evolved to show signs of stress to seek social support and positivity, as per a study at the Nottingham Trent University and the University of Portsmouth. Researchers examined the paradox of stress behaviour, namely why, as in other primates, humans show signs of stress — such as scratching, nail-biting, fidgeting, and touching their face or hair — which could demonstrate to others that they are in weakened state.
‘Expressing signs of stress among humans may help other fellow mates to be more likeable and supportive towards them.
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They found that, as well as being able to accurately identify when someone was stressed, people reacted more positively towards to the individuals who showed more signs of stress.As part of the study, participants were videoed while taking part in a mock presentation and interview which they had to prepare with very short notice. The videos were presented to raters, who were asked to rate how stressed they thought the person in the video was.
The participants who reported feeling more stressed during the task were perceived as being more stressed by the raters. Similarly, those showing more self-directed behaviours during the task, such as scratching and nail-biting, were also perceived as more stressed.
The findings suggest that people can accurately detect when others are experiencing stress from their behaviours — something which surprisingly has yet to be shown with scientific evidence.
The participants who were identified as being more stressed during the task, were also perceived as more likeable by others, giving a clue as to why humans have evolved to display stress signals.
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“If producing these behaviours leads to positive social interactions from others who want to help, rather than negative social interactions from those who want to compete with you, then these behaviours are likely to be selected in the evolutionary process. We are a highly cooperative species compared to many other animals, and this could be why behaviours which communicate weakness were able to evolve”.
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Discussing the next steps, co-author Dr. Sophie Milward from the University of Portsmouth added: “Our team is currently investigating whether young children also show this sensitivity to stress states. By looking at childhood we can understand how difficult it is to detect stress, as well as identifying how exposure to adults’ stress might impact young children".
Source-Eurekalert