Without knowing how to give gifts, humans cannot even survive as a species.

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Editor’s note: Chinese New Year, birthday, Valentine’s Day, etc. are inseparable from gifts. Sending gifts is an art. If you give it right, you can make the relationship closer and achieve emotional resonance. Can cause harm to the other party. We should not underestimate this simple behavior. If our ancestors did not know how to give gifts, humans could not even survive as a species. The unique happiness that people experience when giving gifts will inspire human primitive instincts. As the year approaches, let’s learn the art of gift giving. This article is translated from Medium, author Cortney Clift, the original title is “If We Did n’t Give Gifts, We Would n’t Survive as a Species”, I hope to inspire you.

The year is coming and scientists will teach you how to

In the field of positive psychology, there is a well-known phenomenon called hedonic adaptation. Hedonic adaptation refers to the fact that when changes in the environment bring happiness to people, people usually get used to the changes in the environment and return to their normal level of happiness. Simply put, as time goes on, people will feel less and less happiness from their favorite activities, events, and behaviors. This concept is usually directly related to our consumption habits and acceptance. For example, when you eat the same lunch every day or buy yourself a new dress from a store you frequent, your excitement slowly diminishes.

The happiness we feel from this “repeated gain” may diminish, but there is a kind of consumption that seems to be immune to this situation, that is, consumption for others. According to a new study, the happiness we experience from giving gifts does not diminish over time.

In a 2018 study, 96 people were divided into two groups. For 5 consecutive days, half of them buy the same thing for $ 5 a day. The other half buy the same small gifts for others with the same money every day.

Research shows that those who spend their money on themselves gradually lose their overall happiness at the end of the 5-day cycle. However, those who gave gifts to others were very stable within 5 days, and the fifth day felt the same as the first day.

Researchers have been trying to figure this out