The Sydney Morning Herald (smh.com.au)
It’s a Lonely, Stressful World Without a Hug
Everyone needs at least one hug a day to cope with the stress of modern life, psychologists at Manchester Metropolitan University say. London’sSunday Telegraph says their research found that one-third of people in Britain receive no daily hugs, while three-quarters wish they were hugged more than they are.
The team leader, Dr David Holmes, said the hectic pace of modern life had killed off the hug, leaving a nation starved of daily physical contact. “Britain has forgotten how to hug,” he said. “We are out of the habit. A hug is an important part of life. We are basically animals and so need physical contact like animals do.”
The research showed that in families younger members receive the most hugs, with parents often left out. The number of hugs for children decreases between the ages of 11 and 18, when the trend is reversed.
Holmes said “political correctness” was partly to blame because hugging people could be deemed “inappropriate”. Of course, this study has no relevance to Australia, where we hug each other all the time.
http://www.tangomag.com/20072334/uk-study-more-hugs-please.htmlTango’s Take
Preface: We sort of think that someone holding up a ‘free hugs’ sign is either on something or looking to get punched in the nose. That being said it looks like people need more of these hugs.
What’s the solution? Hugging a stranger borders on assault these days. Hugging a coworker is possibly sexual harassment. Hugging distant relatives sometimes makes them uncomfortable. So, whom do you hug? Do you hug just close friends? Do you get hugs from significant others and close family exclusively? The awkward, one arm, ass-out hug really has ruined hugging. Even the man-hug that involves back pounding was pretty good. Where have those gone? We assumed that the British could keep a stiff upper lip about the hugging scene. If it’s starting to distress them what chance do we have? Speaking of stiff, we wonder if Larry David’s, uh, hug-induced erections have other people laying off of the physical contact.
I saw a video about Amsterdam with people holding up ‘free hugs’ signs. People passing by happily hugged them. They whole city smiled. It’s fun and upbeat.
