Have you ever persisted with something that wasn\u2019t in your best interests? <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Either a job you disliked, a destructive habit or unfulfilling relationship? <\/p>\n\n\n\n
It\u2019s not that we don\u2019t know what to do, rather we just can\u2019t bring ourselves to do it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Why is that? I mean, if we can diagnose the problem, it should be an easy fix. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
And yet these situations frequently persist for years leading to an undercurrent of anger, crawling snake-like, beneath the skin. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Humans love what they know. Why? Because what\u2019s known is safer than the mysterious candyland out there, full of evil clowns.
On a biological level, maximising happiness isn\u2019t high on the agenda.
Neurologically, we\u2019re geared first and foremost for survival, everything else secondary.
So even if that unspeakably irritating situation is causing significant distress or unhappiness, at least it\u2019s the safer option.
You’re alive and potentially able to reproduce, so your DNA is joyous, even if you are not.
Breaking free from unenviable situations in the search of something better, at least on a neurological level, is considered a risky move.
There’s even some fancy scientific-sounding terms to support this little theorem about familiarity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This is sometimes called the familiarity principle and is based on the fact that people tend to display a preference for that with which they’re most familiar.
From language to people and situations, we tend to gravitate towards what we know.
This can obviously be an issue if we stuck in the old proverbial rut.
Best developed by Robert Zajonc, the principle shows that when organisms are initially exposed to a novel stimulus, they exhibit fear and avoidance.
With each subsequent exposure, this reaction diminishes, until the response becomes one of interest and curiosity, and eventually, affective liking.
Interestingly, Zajonc tested subjects through the use of priming exposure with different levels of conscious awareness.
He discovered that positive feelings are maximised when subjects aren’t consciously aware of their repeated exposure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n