Ulterior Motives

How goals, both seen and unseen, drive behavior

Art Markman is a cognitive scientist at the University of Texas whose research spans a range of topics in the way people think. See full bio

May 19, 2009, Happiness

Comments on "Fast, happy, and impulsive I: Speed makes you happy"

Fast, happy, and impulsive I: Speed makes you happy

By Art Markman, Ph.D. on May 19, 2009 in Ulterior Motives

I went to see the movie Duplicity a while back. That's the one starring Julia Roberts and Clive Owen as spies who get involved in corporate espionage. The movie is not brilliant, but it is fun. Part of the fun comes from scenes of rapid-fire dialogue between the stars. In that way, it reminded me of the old show Moonlighting (with Bruce Willis and Cybill Shepherd) that also involved these rapid exchanges.

In retrospect, the plot of the movie was filled with holes and logical gaps. There was probably one plot-twist too many. Yet, the movie was undeniably fun. Why is that? Read More

Awesome post

Submitted by Anonymous on May 19, 2009 - 5:43pm.

I'm not sure about everything, but I can say I agree with the sadness and the slowly part. When I'm having a slow day I tend to feel depressed, and now I know the reason. Thank you so much; and congrats, your blog is getting better and better.

counter examples

Submitted by Terry on May 19, 2009 - 11:40pm.

Regarding the examples given by Emily Pronin
and Elana Jacobs in their paper, I'm sure
they are valid examples.

But as for their generalization that
"Situations and factors that make people think
faster improve their mood." I would disagree
as there are counter examples:

- Beta Brainwaves that are associated with
active thinking are also associated with
anxious thinking.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beta_brain_wave

http://www.neurobehavioralservices.com/effects.php?id=19

- meditation which is associated with slower
brainwaves (alpha) has been found to
improve mood and outlook.

- sleep which is associated with slower
brainwaves (delta) has also been found to
improve mood and outlook.

A couple of other things, the example given
is the movie Duplicity. "The movie is not
brilliant, but it is fun. Part of the fun
comes from scenes of rapid-fire dialogue
between the stars. In that way, it reminded
me of the old show Moonlighting (with Bruce
Willis and Cybill Shepherd) that also involved
these rapid exchanges."

Dialog aside, if that movie is like most
thrillers then it is chock full of fast
scene changes, and other fast moving formal
features. According to the Scientific American
article "Television Addiction is no mere
metaphore", the faster the scene cuts and
format features, the slower the brainwaves.

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=television-addiction-is...

"But there is a downside to thinking fast.
Thinking fast increases impulsive behaviors."

A counter example would be ADD/ADHD. People with
ADD/ADHD have increased implusivity, and they
are also more likely to have abnormally
slow brainwaves:

"This study implies that individuals diagnosed
with ADHD show excessively slow brainwave activity
when compared to non-diagnosed individuals and
that perhaps this slower activity results in a
decreased ability of self-regulation and control."

http://www.westminstercollege.edu/myriad/index.cfm?parent=2514&detail=44...

"Additional evidence for the biological basis
of ADD/ADHD is in the brain wave patterning.
A recent study found 80% of children with ADHD
had a specific EEG signature of an excessive
slow waves/deficient fast waves ratio, while
75% of non-ADD (normally attending) children
did not. (See Mann, C. A., et al, (1992),
Pediatric Neurology, 8:30.)"

http://www.greatbrain.com/thesamscenter_003.htm

Terry, Thanks for the careful

Submitted by Art Markman, Ph.D. on May 21, 2009 - 7:18am.

Terry,

Thanks for the careful reply. The main point of my post was that, all else being equal, fast thinking will elevate mood (as long as it does not involve repetitious thoughts).

There are clearly lots of factors that influence mood, and you have pointed to a few.

One thing to say, though, about meditation. Most meditation leads to states of calmness (or quiescence). Calmness is a generally positive state, though it seems to be different from happiness. Tory Higgins and his colleagues have talked about this quite a bit.

Anyhow, thanks for the comments. Glad that the initial entry provoked your response.

-Art

great reply Terry

Submitted by Brian Hart on May 20, 2009 - 2:03pm.

Thanks for speaking up, some of the statements in this article didn't sit right with me on a gut level, thanks for playing devil's advocate and citing your sources.