The Positive Effects of Non-Threatening Physical Touch

Physiological and psychological benefits are derived from tactile communication. From the reduction of stress and pain to more obscure group dynamics, touch can have positive effects. It is a necessary component for human social interaction. A study by Matthew Hertenstein et al. at DePauw University and University of California at Berkeley revealed that various emotions are evident through touch and that specific emotions, such as love or fear, correlate to a specific touch.

  1. Emotional Comfort

    • Physical touch creates a powerful sense of well-being. Whether between friends, minor acquaintances or complete strangers, touching purveys a warm human sentiment that is generally well-received. There are people who do not want to be touched, but the average person feels a sense of comfort from it. Tiffany Field, director of the Touch Institute at the University of Miami, found that angst and hostility declined in aggressive adolescents who were massaged regularly.

    Improved Performance

    • Touch is soothing and infers trust. Cooperation within groups is a side effect of the right kind of tactile communication. Michael W. Kraus et al. in the Department of Psychology at the University of Berkeley, performed a study of NBA teams and found that members who touched often were more cooperative and performed better. A study group of 294 players from 30 NBA teams were observed doing fist bumps, high fives, shoulder slaps and other means of touch that lasted fractions of a second to a second, and the results were that players performed better individually and within the group. However, the researchers cautioned that the strict parameters of this group may not necessarily mean it is a model for other types of groups as they took into consideration a possible variance in the coaching styles or roles of central players.

    Healthful Benefits

    • Research shows that infants who are not touched do not thrive and that the heartbeats of cardiac patients normalize when stroked or touched by a caregiver. Physical touch -- whether you are being touched or you are doing the touching -- helps to reduce heart rate and blood pressure. A massage relaxes you, causing a drop in cortisol -- the stress hormone -- thereby helping to build your immune system. Dr. Mark Rapaport, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences at Cedars-Sinai in Los Angeles, says it is not yet clear whether regular massages will be preventative, but he thinks it is possible.

    Social Acceptability

    • It has become more socially acceptable for boys and girls in middle and high school to hug, according to a New York Times article by Sarah Kershaw. As litigious as society is today, there is more concern over inappropriate touching -- as in sexual harassment -- but hugging has become a phenomenon that has its roots in people wanting to feel comforted and connected. The more formal greetings, such as ̶0;how do you do̶1; and a nod and smile have evolved into the less formal embrace as the boundaries of touch have become less stilted and people feel freer to express themselves.

    2. Previous:

    Next:

    • The Advantages of Strict Parents
      There are disadvantages and advantages to all parenting styles. There is no such thing as perfect parenting. The two main styles of parenting are permissive and authoritative. The authoritative method of parenting is commonly associated with strict p
    • Paternity Tests Using Blood Types
      Blood typing was first used to test paternity in the 1920s. Today, blood typing is rarely used in paternity tests because it is substantially less accurate than DNA testing. Description All humans have one of four blood types: A, B,
    • Types of Language Development
      An understanding of language development helps parents and teachers recognize when children are developing language skills normally and when they are not. The vast majority of children develop language skills at a normal rate, but some may develop mo