THE FUSE

You may have heard the phrase “Misery loves company”, but psychological research has shown time and again that the reverse is true: Happiness loves company. Being in the company of other people and doing something fun together has been shown repeatedly to increase positive emotions and general psychological well-being. In contrast, being completely alone for a long time and having strong subjective feelings of loneliness leads to negative emotions in most people. What is less well understood, however, is how being around other people, but without interacting with them, affects emotions and psychological well-being.