Ever wondered why gossip is such a prevalent part of human interaction? Delve into the intriguing world of whispers and rumors as we explore five theories that attempt to explain our irresistible urge to talk behind each other's backs.
In 2009, a high-profile study claimed to have discovered that 80 percent of all conversations are “gossip”
that is, almost all of our discussions are comprised solely of people gossiping about other people and their lives.
- For sociologists, “gossip” doesn’t just mean teenagers exchanging revelations about who made out with whom last weekend.
- In their view, it’s a much bigger phenomenon that covers every time we share information – either benign or terrible – about people other than ourselves.
It Builds Social Bonds
A 2011 study found that office gossip could actually win you friends, provided you kept your tongue relatively in check
- People who gossiped with just a few close coworkers over the course of a year were found to have stronger friendships with them than those that didn’t
It Determines Social Hierarchies
Gossip is a serious form of bullying and can be greatly detrimental
- In this theory, gossip is part of what’s called “relational aggression” – a blanket term used while discussing bullying, that refers to the ways that we compete for power
- Just as gossip can help us keep people close, it can also push someone out of a social circle
It’s A Way Of Policing Behavior
Professor Lisa Feldman told NPR that gossip is a way of “determining who is friend and who is foe.”
- How do we determine that? Often through moral judgement.
- We’re being judge, jury and executioner when we gossip – and using the information we cull to keep immoral influences at arm’s length.
It’s Part Of Our Urge To Tell Stories
Gossip has another function that is key to social bonding: it’s also largely constructed of narratives.
- According to this theory, we love gossip because it ties into our human innate fascination with storytelling.
- Being a good gossip makes you sexy as well as social.
It Keeps Us Safe
We ensure our well-being by exchanging information about the world around us (and the potential dangers it contains) with as many people as possible
- For early humans out on the savannah, keeping ourselves safe meant knowing as much as possible about our surroundings and situation, and sharing that information as freely and quickly as we could.
