Norms and Conformity V

Research on social rejection and acceptance finds that our brains treat social threats as seriously as physical threat. It is found in physiology that physical pain is an important mechanism for normal functioning of a human body. The pain people experience makes people retract from harmful situations. It has been observed that people with congenital insensitivity to pain have a shorter lifespan (Nagasako et al., 2003). Children with this condition incur carelessly repeated damage to their tongue, eyes, joints, skin, and muscles.  Some die before adulthood, and others have a reduced life expectancy (Mardy et al., 2001).  Social rejection and the anticipation of it give rise to negative physical sensation. People who experience social rejection show increased activity in the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex and right anterior insula, the areas of the brain that are involved in the experience of pain (DeWall et al., 2010).

In the experiment conducted by Zhong and Leonardelli (2008), people who recalled being rejected feel the room was significantly colder. The slowing of the heart rate is another physiological symptom of rejection (Moor et al., 2010). Social exclusion also has a harmful impact on cognitive ability and causes self-defeating behavior. These results suggest that our social needs are built upon an existing physiological system that evolved to process physical input from the environment (Eisenberger et al., 2003). Companionship, on the other hand, can reduce the physical symptoms that are related to physical pains (Coan et al., 2006). Positive social contacts can predict physiological well-being as people with more positive social contacts are happier and live longer (Cacioppo and Patrick, 2008).

In the evolutionary process of the human species, it is vital to cooperate with others and rely on the group. Individuals who take social exclusion very seriously have an evolutionary advantage to pass on their genes. Genetically, we are wired to be sensitive to even minor nuance of rejection, just as we are sensitive to physical pains. Therefore, it is clearly that people conform to be liked by other group members, to avoid rejection and to maintain a good standing in the group.