Neuroscience behind gratitude

Gratitude is defined as the quality of being thankful and readiness to show appreciation for and to return kindness. Seneca, the ancient Roman philosopher, in his time spoke of gratitude as being a fundamental motivational drive - critical for building interpersonal relationships. And Cicero proclaimed that gratitude was the mother of all virtues.

Recent psychological and neurobiological studies have shown that generosity and gratitude go hand in hand. They are symbiotic. Fortunately, each of us has the free will to initiate the neurobiological feedback loop that is triggered by small acts of generosity and gratitude each and every day of our lives.

In 2015, the neuroscientist and director of the Brain and Creativity Institute, from the University of Southern California (USC), Antonio Damasio and his team conducted a study named Neural Correlates of Gratitude. With the objective was to examine a wide range of gratitude experiences in the context of gift-giving to identify neural correlates of gratitude at the whole brain level, because emotions play a central role in our social cognition and decision-making, according to Damasio. Feelings of gratitude nurture our individual mental health and fortify our bonds with other people. The personal and interpersonal benefits of gratitude occur at both a psychological and neurobiological level.

Another study on gratitude, lead by scientist researcher Glenn R. Fox, also from the Brain and Creativity Institute at USC revealed that ratings of gratitude correlated with brain activity in the anterior cingulate cortex and medial prefrontal cortex "The results provide a window into the brain circuitry for moral cognition and positive emotion that accompanies the experience of benefitting from the goodwill of others." said Fox. The stimuli used to elicit gratitude were drawn from stories of survivors of the Holocaust, as many survivors' report being sheltered by strangers or receiving lifesaving food and clothing, and having strong feelings of gratitude for such gifts. The participants were asked to place themselves in the context of the Holocaust and imagine what their own experience would feel like if they received such gifts.

For each gift, they rated how grateful they felt. Fox said, that he and his colleagues found that "when the brain feels gratitude, it activates areas responsible for feelings of reward, moral cognition, subjective value judgments, fairness, economic decision-making and self-reference. These areas include the ventral and dorsal medial prefrontal cortex, as well as the anterior cingulate cortex." The small acts of generosity that the survivors received helped them hold on to their humanity. After this research Neural Correlates of Gratitude, Damasio concluded, that "Gratitude rewards generosity and maintains the cycle of healthy social behaviour." Generosity and gratitude work in tandem in ways that benefit both the giver and receiver. Hopefully, this research will inspire each of us to infuse small acts of generosity into our daily interactions with others and to reciprocate this goodwill with gratitude.

Now, that even neuroscientists proved that gratitude can nurture our individual mental health and fortify our bonds with other people, why don't we use it more often in the workplace? Why is so difficult to say thank you to your coworkers? To be grateful for the benefits your job brings to you?

In 2013, the John Templeton Foundation released the results of a survey they did about gratitude in the workplace and the results were surprising--93% agreed that grateful bosses are more likely to succeed, and only 18% thought that gratitude made bosses weak. Almost all respondents reported that saying thank you to colleagues makes them feel happier and more fulfilled, but only 10% acted on that impulse. A stunning 60% said they either never express gratitude at work or do so perhaps once a year.

In short, people actively suppress gratitude in the workplace, even to the point of robbing themselves of happiness. Why? Templeton's survey hints at one of the factors that undermines gratitude at work--power and pay imbalances. People with power tended to believe others thanked them mainly because it was part of their duties, not out of authentic feeling as a result of this cynicism, supervisors are less likely to express gratitude. And this becomes in a vicious, culturally, ingrained circle of ingratitude, which have a terrible effect on workplace morale and cohesion. The need for a paycheck is only one of the motivations people bring to work. But it is not the only reason workers also work for respect, for a sense of accomplishment, for a feeling of purpose. Our work influences our emotional states and well-being. The benefits of gratitude go beyond a sense of self-worth, self-efficacy, and trust between employees. People who have a daily attitude of gratitude towards their co-workers showed significantly increased happiness, greater satisfaction with life, and higher resilience to stress, and fewer headaches and illnesses. The expression of gratitude has a spillover effect--individuals become more trusting with each other and more likely to help each other out.

Though the major take away from this survey is that--Employees need to hear thank you from the boss first. That's because expressing gratitude can make some people feel unsafe, particularly in a workplace with a history of ingratitude. It's up to the people with power to clearly, consistently, and authentically say thank you in both public and private settings.