Contents:
- Medical Video: Weird Things Your Body Does When You're Around Your Crush
- Eye contact when speaking is important to humans
- Why are there people who don't look at each other?
- What should be done to make it more comfortable when I have to look?
Medical Video: Weird Things Your Body Does When You're Around Your Crush
When chatting with someone, you will definitely look into his eyes, right? Eye gaze is indeed one of the effective communication tools. By looking at each other, you can convey the intent of the conversation while reading the expressions of the other person. However, there are also types of people who always avoid eye contact with their interlocutors because they feel awkward. What's the reason?
Eye contact when speaking is important to humans
In addition to reading facial expressions and emotions the other person is talking, also has other functions.Eye contact ensures that the person you're talking to is really focused on hearing what you are talking about. If you cannot see both eyes directly, it is difficult to determine whether the person is listening carefully.
Unlike other living things, the human eye plays an important role in the exchange of information and emotions. Ants, for example, do not rely on eye contact to communicate. They actually depend on sound and touch. As another example, chimpanzee apes will observe each other's mouth movements while communicating, not looking at the eyeball.
Now, even though humans have evolved to utilize eye contact to build relationships and work together, eye gaze can also be used as a bullying tool. This is why sometimes you avoid the eyes of someone you care about.
Why are there people who don't look at each other?
Are you the type of person who likes to avoid eye contact with the other person? If so, you may lower your head more often or turn away when chatting with someone. Apparently according to experts, there are scientific reasons why someone's gaze can feel so piercing for some people.
In the 2015 journal Scientific Reports, experts note that in some people, eye contact can make certain brain areas overactive. This brain area is known as the subcortical system. This brain system is responsible for recognizing and translating other people's facial expressions, including through the eyes.
For people who are sensitive, this part of the brain suddenly receives excessive nerve stimulation when faced with a person's eyes. This phenomenon seems to occur a lot in people with autism spectrum.
So, avoiding eye contact with someone does not always mean you are reluctant to talk to other people or do not pay attention to their words. You can actually feel uncomfortable looking at your eyes for a long time with the other person because your brain is overreacting.
What should be done to make it more comfortable when I have to look?
According to a social psychologist and researcher from the University of Tampere in Finland, Jari K. Hietanen, most think about your interactions with other people will actually make you more nervous and uncomfortable when looking at the other person. If you really feel uncomfortable having to look at other people, it doesn't need to be forced.
You can choose a more comfortable talking position. For example, sitting next to the other person. That way, you don't need to look directly at the person you're talking to.
However, sometimes eye contact is truly unavoidable. For example, if you are being interviewed for a job. Therefore, it is also important to practice communication skills through the eyes. You can train it with the closest people, for example by getting used to staring into the other person's eyes for a few seconds. Over time, your brain will adjust to having to look at other people.
