Wash your hands and wipe away doubt over tough decisions

Wash your hands and wipe away doubt over tough decisions

Posted on 18. May, 2010 by in Articles, General

Lady Macbeth had the right idea when she compulsively washer her hands to absolve her guilt – scientists have discovered that it really does put your mind at rest.

A team of psychologists found that people who washed their hands after making an agonising choice were happier than those who didn’t.

Spike Lee, from the University of Michigan, who led the study, said that washing seemed to remove doubts about the decision. He said:

“Washing your hands can symbolically ‘wipe away’ concerns. Once you wash your hands, you no longer need to do the mental work that makes the chosen alternative look better than the rejected one”

The study, reported in the journal Science, involved students who were told they were taking part in a consumer survey of CDs. They ranked 10 CDs by preference and were then given the choice of either their fifth or sixth-ranking CD to keep. Half the participants then washed their hands. Those who did so were happier with their decision that those who didn’t. Researcher Dr Norbert Schwarz said:

“Once participants washed their hands they no longer needed to justify their choice”.

Dr Schwarz continued: “Washing can cleanse us from traces of immoral behaviour and also from traces of past decisions. This ‘clean slate’ effect may be relevant to many choices, such as choosing a partner or buying a car”.

By Richard Alleyne, Daily Telegraph

Photo courtesy of Invisible Monsters

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