← all facts
social dynamics
You assign human traits to objects to satisfy a need for connection.
A 2008 study found that individuals experiencing social exclusion were more likely to attribute human-like intentions to inanimate gadgets.
When your need to belong goes unfulfilled, your brain actively seeks out agency in the environment to compensate for the loss of human interaction. It is a psychological survival mechanism to maintain a sense of relatedness.
Your attachment to technology can be a proxy for social hunger.
Where this comes from
- Study
- Epley et al., 2008, Psychological Science
- What the check found
- The study exists, is correctly attributed, and the core claim is an accurate summary of its findings.
- Confidence
- Well replicated
Related
One of these every day, and every one names the study it came from. When a finding is contested, it says so.