Screaming is a way of expressing emotions.
The professor of neuroscience Sascha Frühholz and his colleagues at the University of Zurich wondered if we react differently when we encounter different types of screams.
Out of sheer desire, they started a study and the result surprised them.
It turned out that we humans react faster to cries of joy and pleasure than those of anger, fear and pain.
- Previous research says that the human brain through evolution is prepared to react most quickly to what is negative, such as fear and anger.
But we have found that it is the other way around, says Sascha Frühholz.
We have six different screams
The researchers began the study by categorizing the reasons why people scream.
They found that we express six different emotions through screams and these can be divided into two categories.
Alarming, which is anger, fear and pain and non-alarming which is sadness, joy and pleasure.
Easier to recognize joy
In the study, the researchers played out the different screams and the subjects had to decide which category best matched the scream they heard.
It turned out to be easier for them to recognize the non-alarming screams.
The subjects were then allowed to listen to the screams while the researchers studied their brain activity.
Even there, they could see that the brain reacted faster to screams of joy and pleasure.
Helps us create social bonds
Researchers do not know for sure what this may be due to, but believe it may have something to do with the fact that it is important for people to be part of a group.
- We can only speculate, but people often live in safe and protected environments.
Then the positive emotions are much more important because we interact with other people, says Sascha Frühholz.
Researchers also believe that you often encounter positive screams in a context in which you yourself are involved, for example when your favorite team scores goals.
- It creates social bonds, says Sasha Frühholz.
The study was published in Plos Biology.