标题：Science Says You Need to Start Touching People More Often，But definitely not strangers on the subway.
source：details丨by SAMUEL BLACKSTONE
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If you"re the type of person who enjoys giving back scratches, rubs, or massages just as much as you like receiving them, the cause may be more related to evolution and science than your own generosity, says a new study from University College London.
In a series of studies conducted at University College London by Aikaterini Fotopoulou and other researchers, participants repeatedly rated other people"s skin as softer than theirs, regardless of if it was true or not. The findings, researchers believe, may point to an evolutionary, biological process that encourages touching as a way for people to bond with each other.
"What is intriguing about the illusion [of softness] is its specificity," said researcher Antje Gentsch of the University College London. "We found the illusion to be strongest when the stroking was applied intentionally and according to the optimal properties of the specialized system in the skin for receiving affective touch."
Put more simply, the illusion of the softness of skin in the mind of the person touching is based largely on what body parts and what type of strokes please the person being touched the most. "The illusion reveals a largely automatic and unconscious mechanism by which "giving pleasure is receiving pleasure" in the touch domain," Fotopoulou said. The optimal properties, previous studies have shown, are slow, gentle strokes, typically found in intimate relationships, which work to encode the pleasure of touch.
Trying to find an explanation for this phenomena, researchers looked toward the role social touching plays in physical and mental health. While the majority of research has focused on the benefits of receiving touching, much less is known about the physical or psychological benefits of active touching, though earlier studies found that softness and smoothness stimulated areas of the brain known to be associated with emotion and reward. As a result, it would seem that the illusion of softness encourages people to want to touch others, and that touching others leads to some sort of emotional reward for the person touching.
Just remember, there are good touches, and there are bad touches. One may lead to emotional rewards, but the other could lead you to handcuffs.
