Living in a social world

I don’t know if you did it this year, but alot of us took the time in the beginning of the year to make a New Year’s resolution. If not, you at least reflected and decided that maybe some changes need to be made. We do it at the beginning of the year because it has become a social custom to think, “New Year, new me,” although lifestyle changes are ongoing. When we decide to make a change, often it is in an individualistic context. We choose to change because we want to improve ourselves. Ironically though, we are only changing because we live in a social world.

            Just think of all the things we do today because we live in a social world. Would you diet if the world wasn’t social? Basically, if you are the only person on Earth, why diet and lose weight? Why stop smoking? Why dress better? Why go to work? Why are we doing all these things? Well, it’s because we live in a world with other people. Our lives would have little meaning if we didn’t have interaction with other people. Think of all the things we have because we live in a social world. Things like language, names, schools, fashion, appointments, sports, healthcare, etc. the list could go on and on.

            It is also unknown if we would experience emotional and psychological aspects if we lived in solitude. We have feelings such as love and joy because of our interaction with others. Would we be able to experience the phenomena if we were in the world alone? Maybe. The frontal lobe of our brain desires human interaction. In the Tom Hanks movie Castaway, he found ways to give objects human characteristics so he could experience socialization. There is a reason solitary confinement in prison is a negative event. We have a natural inborn desire for social interaction.

Our children’s brains are developed and neurons are matured by interacting with the environment and other people. Getting your children out and interacting is the best way to develop their brains. Trial and error when a child touches and interacts is called learning. The more they socially learn the easier they may interact and navigate in the social world.

You have decided you need to eat better. You may contact a nutritionist. You want to exercise more and contact an athletic trainer. Saving money is on your radar for this year, so you contact a financial planner. Moving to a better school district is desired and you call a realtor. Changes often happen because we rely on others.

            Now we realize a lot of the things we do in this world is due to living in a social world. The social world connects us. One person cannot do it all. We socially rely on each other more than you think. The next time you are at a stop light think of all the people that made the intersection. The lights, the pavement, the curbs, the paint on the roads, etc. The intersection wouldn’t be needed if you were the only person in the world. The intersection exists because we live in a social world.