14 Incredible Psychological Facts We Need to Know
Sometimes I start to think about why I like my favorite song. Is there a particular reason for that or it’s just a nice tune? It turns out, questions like these ones hide psychological reasons. So, here’s a list of 14 psychology facts that we should know.
Besides being interesting, these facts will open our eyes and may surprise us as well.
1. Favorite Song
According to studies, those songs that have been people’s favorite for a long time are usually related to some emotional event from their lives. (1)
2. The Impact of Music
Scientists from the University of Groningen say that besides affecting people’s brains, listening to a happy or a sad song can change the way we see the world. (2)
When you are happy or sad, and when you listen to a song it may make you feel more sad or happy, so your perception may change. For example, if someone is feeling happy, they may see happy people wherever they go.
3. Spending Money on Others
Studies say that people who spend money on other people are actually buying happiness for themselves. When you spend money on people in need, you get a good feeling because you have done something good, so you are happy with yourself. (3)
4. Experiences Not Stuff
When people think that spending money on material things would make them happy they are thinking wrong (4). In fact, they may experience happiness, but that is the one that lasts a short time.
On the other hand, spending money on experiences, like going on a trip, leads to long-term happiness. Well, now you know what to do with your savings.
5. Children Are Highly Strung
Nowadays, children are more highly strung than people with psychological issues back in 1950 (5). This seems scary, but it is not surprising. At these modern times, half of the human civilization struggles with issues like depression, anxiety, or addictions.
And, all of these problems cannot be helped by the bad news we get all the time. Whenever you turn on the TV or get online, you see something bad that has happened, and we are constantly reminded that the same thing may happen to us.
6. Religious Practices Are Helpful
Have you ever thought that religion is actually useful? According to The American Psychiatric Publishing Textbook of Mood Disorders, when people went to church and used prayers felt less stressed.
In fact, the degree of stress that people felt was lower when they practiced religion. Also, meditation showed to be very helpful in lowering stress. (6)
7. Money Buys Happiness
Does this sound surprising? Probably, does not. How could some be happy if they did not have money to buy food, clothes, and medications?
An average American citizen needs 75,000 dollars a year to be free from poverty, and get what they need in their life. So, this amount of money is enough to buy happiness. (7)
8. You Are Happier with Happy People
Those people that tend to surround themselves with happy people are usually much happier than others. But, this is not a surprise; you have probably felt in on your skin. Even when you feel sad, if you hang out with the good company you will feel much better. (8)
9. From 18 to 33 Stress is the Highest
People from the age of 18 until the age of 33 experience the most stress than other people in the world. When one finishes high school, there comes higher education, a lot of bills to pay, studying, effort, etc. All of this causes a lot of stress in young adults. (9)
After getting a degree, one needs to find work and then have a family that requires a lot of effort and thinking which of course, leads to stress because everything is new.
10. You Can Trick Your Brain
When you have little time to sleep, and you wake up exhausted, you can still feel like you have had enough sleep. According to scientists, you can trick your brain into believing you have had enough sleep. This is named ‘placebo sleep.’ (10)
11. Smart People Think They Are Not Smart
It is ironic that intelligent people often underestimate their intelligence, and think they are not smart enough, while ignorant people are convinced they are perfect. This is known as the Dunning Kruger Effect. It is real, and you have probably noticed it on social media.
12. Remembering a Past Event
When it happens for you to remember something that happened in the past, actually you remember the last time you have to remember the event.
If this sounds confusing, here is an explanation: scientists say that our brain is betraying us because every time we try to remember a memory, it transforms it. So, we can never remember exactly what happened in the past. (11)
13. Thinking in Another Language is More Rational
One may think that a person will always make the same decision no matter which language they use. But, researchers have revealed that people make different and more rational decisions when thinking in another language. (12)
For instance, a study conducted by the University of Chicago discovered that citizen from Korea lowered their overall bias by thinking in a foreign language.
14. Talking About Your Aims Is Not Good
When you talk loudly about your purposes in life, you are less motivated to achieve them. This is so because when you talk about your goal and others acknowledge it, then your brain is satisfied, and you end up unmotivated to work on achieving your goal. (13)
Besides being surprising, these facts may put you into thinking. We hope you learned something that may be helpful in your life.
