Sense of Touch Affects Reasoning, Judgment

We’ve all heard about the importance of having a firm handshake. But tactile sensations, those we receive by touching objects, may play more of a role in day to day decision-making than most people would ever dream, according to a new study published in Science this week.

Researchers from Yale, Harvard, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology conducted a series of experiments to investigate the role that the sense of touch plays in emotions and decision-making. Among other things, they found that if you’re negotiating a price with someone, you want that person to be sitting in a soft chair. If the person you’re negotiating with is sitting in a hard chair, they are less likely to budge on their price.

Yale researcher Dr. John Bargh says the studies demonstrate that “Our minds are deeply and organically linked to our bodies.”

Among other findings, the researchers found that handling rough objects makes people more likely to judge the interactions between others as adversarial. Holding a warm drink makes people judge others as more caring and generous.

While much research has explored the emotional impact of sights and sounds, touch remains a sense that has been little studied. Although these details may sound like trivia, those interested in successful interpersonal communication will likely want to know what textures, weights, and hardness make people most well disposed to hearing a message, making a deal, or hiring a job applicant.

The researchers suggest that, just as most people take it for granted that we should know how to use body language to communicate the messages we want, we might also want to deploy “tactile tactics” to communicate as effectively as possible.

Why is the sense of touch so closely linked to subconscious thoughts and judgments? Bargh speculates that some of our earliest and deepest sense impressions are gained through touch. Sensations associated with safety, such as warmth and softness, maintain their association with comforting feelings. By exploring the specific ways in which these associations influence our actions and judgment in adult life, future research may open a whole new realm of communication for study.