What is Gratitude?

11/01/21 • 21 min

9 Listeners

Like most human emotions, gratitude has a connotation of being intangible. But in fact, it’s not just a ‘nice to have’ in our lives. It’s a necessity. And the impact that it has on the human condition can be measured.

In this debut episode of Measures of Gratitude, we speak with Emiliana Simon-Thomas, the Science Director at the Greater Good Science Center.

Here are some of the highlights:

Gratitude is an emotion that comes with a sense of reciprocity – When someone contributes to our welfare, it increases our desire and motivation to contribute to their well-being in the future.
Rather than simply an “aspirational virtue,” gratitude is an “evolved quality of human mental life” – When we recognize that others can do good, that benefits us – and compels us to do good in return.
People who are more grateful are happier – and their lives are better – People who score higher on a measure of gratitude feel better, are less disturbed by everyday hassles, and experience fewer physical and physiological issues.
Gratitude is the first building block toward creating a better company – When a company practices gratitude, employees are more inspired, less stressed, build more meaningful relationships, develop trust, and turn into better leaders.

In this debut episode of Measures of Gratitude, we speak with Emiliana Simon-Thomas, the Science Director at the Greater Good Science Center.

Here are some of the highlights:

Gratitude is an emotion that comes with a sense of reciprocity – When someone contributes to our welfare, it increases our desire and motivation to contribute to their well-being in the future.
Rather than simply an “aspirational virtue,” gratitude is an “evolved quality of human mental life” – When we recognize that others can do good, that benefits us – and compels us to do good in return.
People who are more grateful are happier – and their lives are better – People who score higher on a measure of gratitude feel better, are less disturbed by everyday hassles, and experience fewer physical and physiological issues.
Gratitude is the first building block toward creating a better company – When a company practices gratitude, employees are more inspired, less stressed, build more meaningful relationships, develop trust, and turn into better leaders.

Next Episode

Communicating Gratitude

In the debut episode last week, Emiliana Simon-Thomas – an expert on the key roles that social connection, support, and belonging play in well-being – took us on a deep dive into the meaning and impact that gratitude has on our work and personal lives.

This week, Elizabeth Stokoe, professor of social interaction at Loughborough University in the U.K., explores the pivotal role communication plays in fueling gratitude in our day-to-day interactions.

The highlights:

Effective communicators think about the person with whom they are communicating in a process called recipient design.
Rapport is the outcome of an encounter, not something you can build with small talk.
Though each is unique, our conversations tend to hit similar waymarks along the way. Like someone walking their dog around the block. Sometimes the dog stops at different places, but the general path is the same.
Choosing words carefully should be a fundamental part of an organization’s culture because there is no positive alternative.
There’s no clear line between actions, talk, behavior, and language. They're all entangled as one.
How you say “thanks” matters especially as thanks has merely become shorthand for the end of a conversation in many instances.

LINKS:

Elizabeth's work at Loughborough University

Liz Stokoe on Twitter

Conversation Analytic Role-play Method (CARM)

Elizabeth's first book Talk: The Science of Conversation

Elizabeth's second book: Crisis Talk: Negotiating with Individuals in Crisis