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When you’re having an especially bad day or something terrible happens at work, does venting with your besties make you feel better? Getting it off your chest in a group chat or over drinks has some surprising benefits, according to science. A new study finds that ranting with your friends can actually make you happier.
Researchers from Southwest University in Texas set out to understand the effects of co-rumination - or “the excessive discussion of negative issues.” So they turned to a group with a lot of experience in talking with their friends - middle schoolers.
- Study authors surveyed over 26-hundred sixth, seventh and eighth-graders about their friendships, life satisfaction and depression.
- Then the team analyzed the relationship between life satisfaction and co-rumination, dividing it into two categories - supportive discussion and obsessive whining.
- It turns out, those co-ruminations, especially supportive discussions - are positively associated with life satisfaction.
- But the obsessive whining - which they only saw in girls, not boys - was negatively associated with life satisfaction.
In the end, they conclude that “the more we co-ruminate, the happier we are.” Study authors explain, “Our research highlights the important role strong friendships hold, which can mitigate these negative emotions and strengthen interpersonal relationships through seeking social support.”
Read the article at Daily Mail