Live Organizational Culture Class on ZOOM this Thursday September 21, 2023, 9am-noon EST
Emotional Contagion article
Hello all!
I wanted to let you know about an opportunity, as my course, Organizational Culture Development, has been moved to ZOOM. If you or someone you know is interested, please register HERE. I am including a research study on Emotional Contagion, and article for you to read. I will be covering this concept as part of the training. Please share this post with your networks, as when we drive strategy with culture, the outcome benefits everyone.
Emotional Contagion
A 2018 study from Tilburg University in the Netherlands found that viewers readily catch the emotions of popular YouTube vloggers. When viewers see a positive post, they react with heightened positive emotions, and the same pattern holds true for negative posts. (Online mirrors: Video bloggers and viewers share emotions, December 27, 2018)
Though they were later criticized for their invasive methods, a team led by Adam Kramer, a Facebook data scientist, tested emotional contagion by manipulating the newsfeeds of more than 680,000 users of the platform. Some were given more positive posts and fewer negative ones, and others were given the opposite social media diet. After analyzing more than 3 million posts, the team found that people exposed to fewer positive words made fewer positive posts themselves, whereas those exposed to fewer negative words made fewer negative posts. You feel your feed. (Adam D. I. Kramer, 111 (24) 8788-8790;)
Social psychologist Ron Friedman at the University of Rochester has found that just putting people in the same room as a “highly motivated individual” improves their motivation and performance. Conversely, when participants were paired with a less motivated person, they experienced a drop in their own motivation and performance.
He notes,
“Participants performed worse when they were seated next to an unmotivated office mate, even when they avoided verbal communication and worked on totally different tasks.”
The effect was detected after just five minutes of exposure. (all F. e., March 2009)
Research shows we affect one another positively or negatively. It is true to be cautious of the company we keep, including online. Emotion is contagious. Spread the positive kind! Also, choose co-workers to hang around who have an uplifting attitude. Have you ever heard the term; ‘if you don’t want fleas, don’t hang out with dogs?’ Better yet, what about becoming the positive influence for others to emulate?
Subscribe to The Knoxville Happiness Coalition podcast!