Is crying a self-soothing behavior?
Is crying a self-soothing behavior?
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DOI：
10.3389/fpsyg.2014.00502
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发表时间：
2014-05-28
影响因子：
3.8
通讯作者：
Vingerhoets, Ad J. J. M.
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Gracanin, Asmir;Bylsma, Lauren M.;Vingerhoets, Ad J. J. M.
这篇文章描述了关于哭泣的自我安慰作用的最新科学文献。从哭泣是一种自我安慰行为的一般假设开始，我们考虑了这些影响可能出现的不同机制。在第一部分中，我们简要地解释了人类哭泣的主要功能。然后，我们根据情绪调节和压力减轻的内稳态过程来定义自我抚慰，并强调区分哭泣的自我抚慰效果与哭泣可能引发的社会抚慰效果的重要性。然后，我们提供了一个全面的回顾，假定的情绪增强和缓解作用的哭泣和他们的变化源于哭泣的人的特点，前事，表现，和哭泣的社会后果。我们还讨论了哭泣后情绪改善和缓解方面看似不一致的研究结果的可能的方法解释。然后，我们通过提出和评估可能的生理、认知和行为机制，为哭泣是一种自我安抚行为的一般假设提供理论和实证支持，这些机制可能在哭泣和包括情绪改善和缓解在内的体内平衡调节之间的关系中发挥中介作用。从社会安慰和自我安慰机制共享相同的生理系统的观点出发，我们提出生物过程与哭泣伴随的学习和重新评估过程并行，从而导致稳态调节。考虑到人类和动物的自我安慰行为之间的相似之处，我们还提出，哭泣可能通过一种机制来自我安慰，这种机制与有节奏的、刻板的行为有共同的关键特性。我们得出的结论是，除了哭泣的情绪增强作用的社会中介机制的重要性之外，有越来越多的证据表明哭泣具有直接的、自我安抚的作用。
This contribution describes the current state-of-the-art of the scientific literature regarding the self-soothing effects of crying. Starting from the general hypothesis that crying is a self-soothing behavior, we consider different mechanisms through which these effects may appear. In the first section, we briefly explain the main functions of human crying. Then we define self-soothing in terms of homeostatic processes of mood regulation and stress reduction and we underline the importance of distinguishing self-soothing effects of crying from social-soothing that it may elicit. We then provide a comprehensive review of the putative mood-enhancing and -relieving effects of crying and their variations stemming from characteristics of crying person, antecedents, manifestations, and social consequences of crying. We also discuss the possible methodological explanations for the seemingly discrepant findings regarding mood improvement and relief that may follow crying. We then provide theoretical and empirical support for our general hypothesis that crying is a self-soothing behavior by presenting and evaluating the possible physiological, cognitive, and behavioral mechanisms that may play a mediating role in the relationship between crying and homeostatic regulation that includes mood improvement and relief. Starting from the idea that social-soothing and self-soothing mechanisms share the same physiological systems, we propose that biological processes act in parallel with learning and reappraisal processes that accompany crying, which results in homeostatic regulation. Given the parallels between self-soothing behaviors in humans and animals, we also propose that crying might self-soothe through a mechanism that shares key properties with rhythmical, stereotypic behaviors. We conclude that, in addition to the importance of socially mediated mechanisms for the mood-enhancing effects of crying, there is converging evidence for the direct, self-soothing effects of crying.