Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Study: People Would Rather Be Shocked Than Be Alone With Their Thoughts

Posted by samzenpus on from the still-your-mind dept.

sciencehabit writes "How much do we hate being alone with our own thoughts? Enough to give ourselves an electric shock. In a new study, researchers recruited hundreds of people and made them sit in an empty room and just think for about 15 minutes. About half of the volunteers hated the experience. In a separate experiment, 67% of men and 25% of women chose to push a button and shock themselves rather than just sit there quietly and think. One of the study authors suggests that the results may be due to boredom and the trouble that we have controlling our thoughts. "I think [our] mind is built to engage in the world," he says. "So when we don't give it anything to focus on, it's kind of hard to know what to do."

20 of 333 comments (clear)

  1. How fitting by nospam007 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    "The two foes of human happiness are pain and boredom"

      Arthur Schopenhauer

    1. Re:How fitting by JMJimmy · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Every time I read these types of studies I am baffled. I could sit in an empty room for days without issue. Just cause you're alone doesn't mean you're without stimuli - I actually enjoy sitting pondering problems and get annoyed when someone comes and distracts me from it.

    2. Re:How fitting by jythie · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Extroverts are 'people', introverts are abnormal. When studies discover behavior closely tied to extroverted personalty types it is considered something about 'people' in general, while studies discovering behaviors related to introverts tend to be labeled as being about introverts.

      It is the classic normal/default/otherness problem, in the same basic category as when you draw a simple stick figure people think it is male unless you add something gender marking, male unless otherwise specified. In this case, extrovert unless otherwise specified.

    3. Re:How fitting by FilmedInNoir · · Score: 5, Funny

      But the button? THE SHINY RED BUTTON! Calling out to you. Begging to be pressed. How long can you last? How long?!?!

      --
      Sig. Sig. Sputnik
    4. Re:How fitting by oneandoneis2 · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Oblig. http://xkcd.com/242/ :)

      --
      So.. it has come to this
    5. Re:How fitting by Ol+Olsoc · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Every time I read these types of studies I am baffled. I could sit in an empty room for days without issue. Just cause you're alone doesn't mean you're without stimuli - I actually enjoy sitting pondering problems and get annoyed when someone comes and distracts me from it.

      A million times THIS!

      One of the things I ponder is that these people who cannot be alone with themselves place that need to never be alone as some sort of proper and good state, and that anyone who can function by themselves is the outlier, the weirdo, the one "you have to look out for." How many times to we see the story about some crackpot that shoots up a school or McDonalds, and the writer feels compelled to mention that they were a "loner". Validation for people who think that their inability to be alone protects them from that fate. Sorry, but the crackpot was mentally ill, that's why they shot the place up, not because they enjoyed solitude.

      When in fact, if a person cannot be alone with their thoughts, perhaps they have the mental issue. I rather enjoy my own company,

      --
      The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
    6. Re:How fitting by Bogtha · · Score: 4, Insightful

      I could sit in an empty room for days without issue.

      So could I. But if I was sat in an empty room with a button that gave me a shock, I'd definitely press it - not because I couldn't handle the boredom, but just to see what it's like. I'm not sure this study really measures what it intends to.

      --
      Bogtha Bogtha Bogtha
    7. Re:How fitting by marcello_dl · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Before MTV, cellphones and in general the sensory overload of contemporary urban life, extroverts could stay with themselves for 15 minutes too.

      Introverts are to be considered uncool, not because they are more or less abnormal (the media hype, and therefore sanction, people with degenerate, inane, self-harming behavior: get a teenager's top 20 chart and listen to the lyrics).
      They are uncool because they think too much for themselves. The system improperly known as society want people who respond to emotions, not thinkers.

      --
      ---- MISSING MISCELLANEOUS DATA SEGMENT --- [sigdash] trolololol
    8. Re:How fitting by swillden · · Score: 4, Informative

      If the majority of people are extroverted, how would it not be considered normal or typical behavior?

      Per a 1998 study, 50.7% percent of Americans are introverts. http://introvertzone.com/ratio...

      --
      Note to ACs: I usually delete AC replies without reading them. If you want to talk to me, log in.
    9. Re:How fitting by eulernet · · Score: 4, Interesting

      I believe that a lot of people need external stimuli to avoid boredom.
      In fact, my wife is like this and doesn't know how to busy herself.
      Meanwhile, I can sit down and be busy for hours without any support.

      It's probably related to the fact that I had to play alone when I was baby.
      Nowadays, I see parents always trying to stimulate their babies, who then become attention whores.
      They are building future extroverts.

    10. Re:How fitting by ColdWetDog · · Score: 5, Funny

      tl;dr

      --
      Faster! Faster! Faster would be better!
    11. Re:How fitting by penguinoid · · Score: 4, Informative

      The study said that the subjects had previous experience with the button, and had said that they'd pay to avoid getting shocked again. It's not like the researchers were too stupid to account for the novelty factor (in this case).

      --
      Don't waste your vote! Vote for whoever you want, unless you live in a swing state it won't matter anyways
    12. Re:How fitting by Austerity+Empowers · · Score: 4, Insightful

      I don't think it's a true statement that introverts recede into the mists unless lasso'd with the titanium chains of social discourse. We are human beings and are motivated by the usual impulses, just not the desire to necessarily be engaged with other people all the time or to do our critical thinking as part of a hive mind. Introverts do a) need money to finance our seclusion (in my personal experience, a proper hermitage in the modern world costs an incredible amount of money, I am still saving up), b) the desire to find a mate and c) the need to acquire goods to live and be happy.

      In the quest for these it is frequently put upon the innocent introvert to venture forth into the unholy wilderness of academia, shopping malls or simply city streets. Presented with the option to get a quick $50 for a survey or perhaps simply being intrigued by scientific inquiry, an introvert may willingly participate. Introversion is not the same as social anxiety, we are often known to voluntarily be in the presence of other human beings. It's simply that we prefer not to be, and perform best when left to ourselves.

    13. Re:How fitting by war4peace · · Score: 4, Informative

      I'm Romanian, you inconsiderate clod.
      How well do you speak (or write, for that matter) my language?

      Anyway, thanks for correcting me, I appreciate it. What I don't appreciate is the unnecessary smug coating you simply HAD to pour in.

      --
      ...gis sdrawkcab (usually not responding to ACs; don't bother posting as AC)
  2. Sad, sad times... by brunes69 · · Score: 5, Interesting

    At first I assumed that the people were stuck n a room for hours upon hours with nothing to do. Then I read...


    "The period of time that Wilson and his colleagues asked participants to be alone with their thoughts ranged from six to 15 minutes. Many of the first studies involved college student participants, most of whom reported that this "thinking period" wasn't very enjoyable and that it was hard to concentrate. So Wilson conducted another study with participants from a broad selection of backgrounds, ranging in age from 18 to 77, and found essentially the same results.

    Is it just me or is it a very poor reflection on today's society if people can not just sit and think for 15 minutes?

    For the record I would have ZERO problem doing this at all... in fact I could think for hours... although having a pencil and paper to keep track of ideas and plans would be helpful.

  3. Buddhist meditation... by Noryungi · · Score: 4, Interesting

    ... And just about any form of meditation revolves about emptying your mind, focusing on your breathing and discarding thoughts (after examination) rather than dwell on them.

    I just read this study as an example of how people are completely disconnected from their own inner life and addicted to constant stimulation. Seriously, an electric shock instead of enjoying a little bit of peace and quiet and a chance to gather yourself? What kind of total lack of self-control is that?

    --
    The right to offend is far more important than the right not to be offended. (Rowan Atkinson)
    1. Re:Buddhist meditation... by moeinvt · · Score: 4, Informative

      The concept of the "mind monkey" has been around for centuries in Buddhism. i.e. the mind sort of naturally jumps around like a monkey. When I took a yoga class that included meditation, the instructor said that you need to give your mind something to do. That's why you focus on your breathing. He said to let your thoughts come and go but treat them as if you were an outside observer and return your focus to your breath.
      The constant flow of information we have today absolutely must affect out psychology. Maybe our minds jump around even more? I think the goal of meditation remains the same.

  4. Re: Just 15 minutes? by kqs · · Score: 5, Interesting

    In related news,scientists have discovered a correlation between "thinks that signing up for experiments is fun" and "extrovert".

  5. Re:Bears? by khallow · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Well, can't speak for the original poster, but where there's woods, there's wood. Knives can do interesting things with wood.

  6. Re:Just 15 minutes? by Gim+Tom · · Score: 4, Interesting

    INTJ and 15 minutes of just thinking are no problem. Even less so since I began doing some meditation a bit over a year ago.