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People not always needed to alleviate loneliness
Date:1/18/2008

k of social connection by creating humanlike connections with gadgets or pets, or to increase their belief in the supernatural.

In one experiment, the team found a correlation between how lonely people felt and their tendency to describe a gadget in terms of humanlike mental states.

In another experiment, the team made people feel lonely in the laboratory by asking them to write about a time when they felt lonely or isolated. Under those circumstances, they were more likely to believe in the supernatural, whether it be God, angels or miracles, than when they were not feeling lonely.

If we made them feel lonely, they were also more likely to describe a pet, even if it wasnt their own pet, as having humanlike mental states that were related to social connection, like being more thoughtful, considerate and compassionate, Epley said.

The research further revealed that not just any negative emotional state produces this effect. Its something special about loneliness, Epley said. Fear, for example, doesnt increase reported belief in God, or how people describe their pets.

Loneliness is both painful to experience and potentially deadly. Its actually a greater risk for morbidity or mortality than cigarette smoking is. Being lonely is a bad thing for you, he said.

But anthropomorphizing pets or God may actually confer many of the same psychological and physical benefits that come from connections with other people. The same benefits may not apply to gadgets, which were a component of Epleys studies.

Non-human connections can be very powerful, Epley said. A brains not so sensitive to whether its a person or not. If its something that has a lot of traits associated with what it means to be a human, then all the better for us, it seems.

The study also provides insight into the flip side of anthropomorphism: dehumanization. People who enjoy a strong sense of social connection are less likely to perceive huma
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Contact: Steve Koppes
skoppes@uchicago.edu
773-702-8366
University of Chicago
Source:Eurekalert  

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People not always needed to alleviate loneliness
People not always needed to alleviate loneliness