Why Starbucks makes me a better person

So much for that old, cold hands, warm heart, adage.

Researchers at Yale University have discovered that people holding warm objects in their hands become more friendly, generous and trusting, making them see others as warmer people as well.

For the first study they presented half the unwitting participants with a hot or ice cold coffee and then asked what they thought of a stranger after a brief meeting.

People holding the warm coffee found had a more favorable impression of the strangers that they met that people that held the iced coffee, did.

In the second study the researchers had people, who thought they were evaluating a product, hold either a warm or cold object and then given a choice of reward for participating in the study: either a gift for a friend, or a reward for themselves.

The study found that people who held the hot pad were more likely to choose the gift for a friend, and people who held the cold pack were more likely to choose the reward for themselves.

The researchers believe the effect relates to childhood when emotional warmth given by a parent was often accompanied by the physical warmth of being held or hugged.

Personally I don't have a high regard for people who order those new cold drinks at Starbucks, especially if they are in front of me, in line. It takes too damn long to make their fancy, exotic, excuses for a cup coffee.

Which I guess, is actually the opposite reaction to what their studies found.




Today's post is referenced from the Telegraph UK and is brought to you because I am getting tired of Palin posts and I don't want to write about Justin Trudeau yet.