- 4 years ago
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00:00where statistically disorder is king as time moves forward things fall apart stars burn out
00:07energy spreads out entropy conquers all but humans life fights that trend we build things
00:17we organize things we add information so why is it that we love destroying things
00:31exploding fireworks fights and crashes even popping bubble wrap
00:40tiny cute things can make us want to just squeeze them to death
00:48why
01:03the power to destroy is a delicious one even just holding this here knowing i can drop it
01:10i am in control i can exert my will in a dramatic and irreversible way ready ready
01:27beautiful why does that feel so good to do or even just watch for me throwing it to its death
01:34was
01:34almost relaxing like i feel calmer now after being destructive like i vented some pent-up energy or
01:43anger why do we like breaking things when we're angry there's a growing trend of businesses called
01:51anger rooms that are popping up in places like texas and toronto people pay to visit these anger rooms
01:58and let off steam by smashing mock-ups of workplaces kitchens and more
02:07catharsis theory proposes that such acts of destruction reduce our anger but do they sometimes
02:14but sometimes they don't this is what makes studying the mind so difficult researchers are still looking
02:21into the specifics and the variables involved and i want to see firsthand and in person what it's
02:28like when people get angry and then break things will they be more or less violent afterwards
02:37to demonstrate catharsis theory we set up our own anger room to see whether or not breaking things
02:43will help calm down some angry people our subjects think they're participating in a study about opposing
02:49political views so we've asked them to write an essay on different polarizing topics
02:56come in hoshana hi how are you i'm michael hi michael it's nice to meet you i was just with
03:01your
03:02co-participant clint he's in another room i'm going to give your essay to clint and he's going to
03:08critique it and you're going to uh critique his okay thank you see you soon he wrote a lot i
03:14didn't write
03:15that much okay each of our subjects has been paired with a man named clint and they will be
03:21critiquing each other's essays police officers have a very difficult job they have to protect us
03:26mainly from people of color the thing is okay here we go i'm actually clint overblown un-american get
03:37over it my job or rather clint's job is to make our subjects mad so they can test our anger
03:44room
03:47you should be ashamed you deserve what's come to you what a
03:54asshole
04:01hi change the black that's better
04:06oops
04:10okay koshana i'm back and you were with clint okay let's go through what he wrote just quickly
04:17he wrote did i put that that way no you didn't did you turn it around i did turn it
04:21around he seems
04:22like a bigot or something i didn't want to keep looking in his face he's responded to your essay
04:28there oh that's minus okay we can't tell people where to go to eat for lunch what car to drive
04:33like
04:33that just really irritates me this is a person that is making arguments that are not based in
04:40any fact he's clearly someone who thinks that the people who are on social programs are lazy and i was
04:47like what the okay well that's something that's a ridiculous argument you're fired up mother oh i'm
04:53getting fired up it's disgusting i got an f plus oh i hope i don't see him in the hallway
04:58he's a dick
04:59and that is why he is part of the reason why our country sucks right now because he's stupid well
05:07i think that was pretty effective we've got a lot of angry people on our hands so will demolishing
05:14things calm them down or will acts of destruction throw fuel on the fire let's explore catharsis theory
05:21with an expert the modern view of catharsis is that by acting out we release sort of like a pressure
05:28valve and that releases that energy in order for us to sort of build up again and handle everyday
05:34distress people who are angry and aggressive who then act that out what would they feel afterwards
05:40what many studies have found is that it's a short-lived release and it feels good it feels really
05:46good to release but what happens in the brain is the brain enjoys that there's really a reward to
05:50build up that pressure again and then release it again it's a temporary fix as far as we know i
05:57didn't realize it was so complicated and still being researched i thought it was black and white it
06:03was you do this and you release the emotion and it's gone yeah not as much we don't have this
06:08perfect
06:08definition of catharsis where everybody agrees here's how it works here's how it ends up well let's see
06:14if catharsis works for us
06:18now that clint has sufficiently angered all of our subjects he's more like a pussy as far as i'm
06:23concerned it's time to put catharsis theory to the test some subjects will be allowed to actively
06:31take out their anger on all these beautiful art objects you have completely free reign to break
06:39anything in this room okay other subjects are instructed to sit in the room passively i want
06:46you to reflect on the essay the arguments the critiques and also on the objects in this room
06:54am i going to meet clint or no no you are not that's not part of this study okay gotcha
07:00will these
07:00subjects feel less angry after their violent acts of destruction only one way to find out
07:16that's not part of this study okay we're going to be able to find out that we're going to be
07:25able to
07:25when we are angry the body's adrenal glands release cortisol and adrenaline readying the body and mind
07:31for fight mode you are
07:37but catharsis theory hypothesizes that letting it out relieves feelings of aggression
07:54is
07:55will these subjects feel less angry after their violent acts of destruction
08:00okay i'm done before we move on to the final step of our anger room demonstration maybe we can
08:07gain insight from someone who makes a living by hitting not objects but other people mark smith aka rhino
08:15is a champion bodybuilder, boxer, and UK gladiator
08:19who knows a thing or two about how to destroy an opponent.
08:25So, when you're going into a fight,
08:27you know that you're going to get hurt.
08:29Yes.
08:29You know that you're going to hurt someone else.
08:31How do you psych yourself up to be good at that?
08:34Well, you're going into a fight,
08:36you want to stick to your game plan,
08:37stay focused, and be relaxed.
08:40Relaxed.
08:41Relaxed.
08:41Because I would have thought you'd want to go in angry.
08:44No, because if you go in too angry,
08:45all you're doing is...
08:46And you're not thinking straight back,
08:48and it turns into like a school ball.
08:50It's a very tactical game.
08:51Right.
08:51The eye of the tiger, like Rocky.
08:53But this is fascinating to me,
08:54because you would think that to physically out-fight someone
08:59in nature, we would have evolved to run off of anger and fear.
09:03That's like two lions.
09:04I agree with you there.
09:05Two lions attack and go full out, don't they?
09:07There's no pace in that fight whatsoever, like animals.
09:10But you have to know when to be an animal
09:11and at what point in the fight.
09:13Bang!
09:14So it's no...
09:15I'm a very jumpy, punchy person.
09:17It's knowing when to pull the trigger.
09:18If you ever find yourself angry in your real life,
09:23do you find it helpful to punch a punching bag?
09:26Definitely.
09:26Yeah?
09:26I will get angry like I'm on the phone with my bank,
09:30and I might think slamming a door or just hanging up
09:34and throwing my phone on the bed will help.
09:35No, don't throw your phone and don't slam doors.
09:38Why?
09:38Just come and exercise and hit the bag.
09:39You'll feel so much better.
09:40What's the difference, though?
09:41They're both like active things.
09:42If you're not doing something spontaneous and acting on impulse,
09:45and it's premeditated, you'll know you're going to go,
09:48okay, I'm going to pack my bag, I'm going to go to the gym.
09:49You're releasing endorphins, you'll feel more relaxed,
09:52and you'll be able to assess the bank manager
09:53who's been irritating you for the last hour.
09:55Can I try hitting some things?
09:57Definitely.
09:57You can try hitting me.
09:58Can I really?
09:59Yes.
10:00Are you going to hit back?
10:01I'll let you know I'm there.
10:03Okay.
10:07Awesome.
10:08Do I look scary?
10:10Oh, yeah.
10:11Is Rhino correct that violent acts of rage won't calm you down,
10:15but the controlled aggression used in boxing will actually relax you?
10:20I guess I'm about to find out.
10:26Yeah.
10:27Yeah.
10:29They're crying in my face.
10:57I came out of the fight having learned two things.
11:00One, I'm a wimp.
11:02And two, Rhino is right.
11:04When physical violence is channeled in an organized sport like boxing,
11:07it can actually reduce feelings of aggression.
11:10I have this weird combination of feelings.
11:13As tired as I am, I'm very amped up.
11:16Now you've seen it.
11:17Yeah.
11:18I don't feel aggressive.
11:20You feel relaxing.
11:21I wouldn't say I'm relaxed here.
11:23I would just say I'm clearer here.
11:25Yeah.
11:25And I feel more in control.
11:28Eye of the tiger rock.
11:30Yeah.
11:30Well, maybe it's the eye of the kitten who is in a bad mood.
11:34Yeah.
11:35But man, that was great.
11:39It's time for the final part of our anger room demonstration.
11:43All of our subjects will be taking part in what they think is a reflex test against their opponent, Clint.
11:50In reality, of course, there is no Clint.
11:52And what we're really looking at is the catharsis theory.
11:55Have our subjects' levels of anger been affected according to whether they committed violent acts of destruction or not?
12:04Stage three is going to be testing how your reflexes are working at this very moment.
12:10Okay?
12:10So this right here is a static electricity generator that is going to provide a little bit of a shock.
12:17We're putting one on Clint as well, and he's in another room, but you both have the same setup.
12:23Once our subjects are fitted with the shock bracelet, they're introduced to the test's control panel.
12:29Look at this.
12:30Yeah.
12:30It's very simplified, but that really helps keep the variables low.
12:34So both you and Clint will be competing in a bit of a game.
12:37The yellow light is going to come on at some point, and as soon as you see it come on,
12:41hit that orange button.
12:43And if you hit this button before Clint does, you'll see the green light come on, and that'll mean that
12:48you won.
12:49And Clint needs to receive a small shock.
12:53Okay?
12:54And you can set this to a level of your choosing.
12:57So, okay, light goes on.
13:00If I hit this, the green one comes, and then I'm allowed to work this contraption.
13:03Correct.
13:03Which controls how high the voltage and for how long the voltage.
13:07Correct.
13:07Okay.
13:08If, however, Clint pushes the button before you do, the red light will come on indicating...
13:13My red light, and I'm about to get it.
13:14That you'll get a shock, yeah.
13:16Oh, correct.
13:16We'll get a sense of our subjects' level of anger by how they respond to the chance to administer pain
13:22to Clint.
13:23Remember, this subject just sat in the anger room passively.
13:29Did I get him?
13:31Oh, all right.
13:31The green light means our subject wins.
13:34How hard will he shock Clint?
13:36I'm gonna give you a little low one, buddy.
13:38There you go.
13:40Just a kiss.
13:46Ah, got me.
13:47The red light means Clint won.
13:49How will our subject respond to getting shocked?
13:52Ah!
13:54You son of a bitch.
13:55Not only does this subject not seem angry, he's actually enjoying the game.
14:00All right.
14:02How about that?
14:04I'm not gonna harm you, man.
14:05I'll give you a little low one.
14:06He actually seems relatively calm.
14:09Will our other passive subject follow suit?
14:16Clint gave her a painful shock.
14:18Let's see how strongly she retaliates.
14:26Even after getting a shock from Clint, this subject is still hesitant to give him a shock in return.
14:33Okay, Clint, Andrea.
14:34Okay.
14:34This is just a reminder that you are, um, you are allowed to change that dial to what you think
14:40would be appropriate.
14:41Yeah, I just don't want to, like, hurt him or anything.
14:43I'm just gonna keep it at low.
14:44So the angry subjects who sat passively seem to have calmed down.
14:49Now it's time to check on the subjects who acted violently in the anger room.
14:53Did letting out all of that aggression relieve their anger?
14:57The experiment will begin now.
15:10Take it, take it, take it.
15:12Kushana, that's, that's, that's fine.
15:14What level is your dial at?
15:20Um, hello?
15:33He cranked that all the way up, and he's laying on that button.
15:36This subject was one of the most aggressive people in the anger room.
15:41But that doesn't seem to have calmed him down.
15:53Among our subjects, it seems that those who physically vented their anger are still pretty angry compared to the subjects
16:00who sat quietly.
16:01Fried, fried chicken.
16:03So, at least in this case, catharsis therapy was not effective.
16:09In fact, in some cases, the subject seems even angrier.
16:14Ow!
16:14You know what?
16:15That's too hard.
16:17You dick!
16:18Why don't you come in here and talk to me in person?
16:22Oh, my God.
16:23Oh, my God.
16:24We're all familiar with the concept of rubbernecking.
16:27It's hard to look away from a car crash.
16:29Oh, my God.
16:30Oh.
16:31But why?
16:33There are surely a myriad of reasons, but one may be that at a primitive level, witnessing danger allows us
16:39to learn and prepare for it.
16:42Activities where danger and destruction are likely are exciting.
16:46Starting in our childhood, physical aggression is encouraged, even in games.
16:51Take a pinata, for example.
16:53As a special birthday treat, we are told to beat up an effigy with a baseball bat.
16:58And when we hit it hard enough, we are rewarded with candy.
17:03What parts of a child's urge to destroy are innate versus learned?
17:09Well, there was a groundbreaking experiment that shed light on this.
17:12In 1961, Albert Bandura conducted a famous and controversial study called the Bobo Doll Experiment.
17:21He had adults act violently to an inflatable clown doll in the presence of children,
17:26then left the children alone with the same doll to see if they would mimic the destructive behavior they'd observed.
17:33Disturbingly, the children did indeed copy the adults and lashed out at the doll,
17:38often getting very creative with their aggression and destruction.
17:43Aggression comes in many unexpected forms.
17:46Why is it so hard to resist popping bubbles in bubble wrap, for instance?
17:52Do we like the sound, the destruction, or both?
17:56It's like we're naturally drawn to destroying these harmless plastic bubbles of air.
18:01Destructive tendencies seem to be so ingrained in us that we even respond to positive stimulation with urges to destroy.
18:08One of the strangest things about destruction is how people want to hug things to death,
18:15especially things that are extremely cute, like a puppy.
18:19We don't know exactly why this is, but there is a study that demonstrates the effect by using bubble wrap
18:25and our desire to pop these bubbles.
18:29Oh, yeah.
18:35Can sweet, adorable stimuli really incite aggressive behavior?
18:40We're about to find out.
18:41Thank you for participating in our focus test.
18:43No problem.
18:44Please make yourself comfortable.
18:45Sure.
18:45We've recruited subjects who think they're taking part in a motor skills test.
18:50Are you familiar with this product?
18:51Yes.
18:52Have you popped the bubbles in bubble wrap before?
18:54Yes.
18:55But really what we're testing is their aggressive response to cute stimuli.
18:59So you will be viewing a montage of images.
19:02Please pop bubbles in the bubble wrap.
19:04You may pop as many or as few as you like.
19:07Just be sure to start when images begin and stop when the images end.
19:10Popping bubbles is like squeezing a stress ball.
19:13It's a great way to express aggression.
19:16The question is, will the subjects pop more bubbles when watching neutral images or cute ones?
19:25First, we showed our subjects these basic landscapes, which are not designed to elicit an emotional response.
19:35And we tallied the total number of bubbles popped.
20:02All right, we're going to do part two, where you'll be viewing another set of images.
20:06We also showed them images of puppies.
20:16Oh, look at that one.
20:19Don't you just want to hug them and squeeze them?
20:21Just, okay, look, you get the point.
20:25To keep things even, half of the subjects viewed the landscapes first, and half viewed the puppies first.
20:31But either way, they seemed to pop a lot more bubbles while watching the puppies.
20:36Except for this guy.
20:42So-called cute aggression is a universal psychological phenomenon.
20:49Researchers believe the brain's response to both cuteness and aggression results in the release of dopamine,
20:56implicated in reward and pleasure.
20:57If we are unable to physically touch cute stimuli, the desire to do so can be regulated by substituting aggressive
21:05physical behavior.
21:07Will our results reflect this theory?
21:14Well, how did you feel about the images that you saw?
21:18They were cool.
21:20How did you feel about the puppies?
21:21Oh, I love them.
21:22They were very tiny and adorable, and I wanted to hug them.
21:26And how did you feel about popping the bubble wrap?
21:28I felt like I wanted to play with the dogs, or I wanted to play with the bubble wrap with
21:36the dogs.
21:36In our simple test, our subjects popped an average of 33% more bubbles while watching cute puppies, as opposed
21:44to boring landscapes.
21:46So was the bubble wrap a stand-in for the puppies?
21:48I guess so.
21:49In fact, the majority of our subjects popped more bubbles while watching puppies.
21:53But not this guy.
21:55Remember him?
21:56So how did you feel about seeing the dog pictures?
21:58Um, I've always been more of a cat person.
22:01It seems sometimes cuteness is a matter of perspective.
22:10Our relationship with destruction is not a simple one.
22:15It can release endorphins and relax our minds.
22:19It can amp us up and make us even more aggressive.
22:23It can even help us regulate our emotional reactions to cute things.
22:29Destruction can be useful, it can be dangerous, and it can be a lot of fun.
22:40And as always, thanks for watching.