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ncovering the profound impact of social exclusion on mental health
In today's society, mental health problems are becoming increasingly serious. Many people are ostracized or bullied in social interactions. This phenomenon of social exclusion has a profound impact on an individual's mental and physical health. Social rejection is not only a simple problem of interpersonal interaction, but may also lead to sustained psychological stress and form a biological and behavioral effect of "social failure", similar to the social failure model in animal research. In this case, the individual's mental health is threatened, and research shows that this situation has similar behavioral responses and physiological mechanisms in animals and humans.
Social exclusion may be a stress response that occurs when animals face conspecific competition. This stress response can affect behavior and physiological state.
The biological basis of social exclusion
The biological basis of social exclusion can be traced back to the animal kingdom, such as experiments in the "resident-intruder" paradigm, which confirm that animals that fail in social interactions often show reduced anxiety and depressive behaviors. In natural situations, the pressure animals face comes from competition for resources, mates, and social status. This kind of conflict also reflects the interpersonal tension in human society to some extent.
The impact of social exclusion on mental health
Psychological research has proven that humans will experience multiple mental health problems such as low self-esteem, anxiety, and depression after being excluded from society. The lack of a healthy social environment has caused many disadvantaged groups to face greater psychological pressure. This kind of pressure is like the survival challenges faced by animals, further deteriorating their mental and physical health.
Victims often experience isolation and lack of access to emotional support, which makes their psychological state even more fragile.
Interaction between behavior and physiology
The interplay between behavior and physiology is key to understanding the effects of social exclusion. For example, socially defeated animals will exhibit social withdrawal, reduced activity, and reduced exploratory behavior, which reflects that when their social status is reduced, their ability to adapt to the environment also declines.
Physiologically, some hormone levels in the body will change after social rejection, such as an increase in cortisol, which is related to stress. It reflects that psychological stress seems to cause physiological lesions and may induce the development of chronic diseases.
Comparison between animal models and human behavior
Animal models provide important insights into understanding human behavior. Research points out that social rejection faced by humans has behavioral and physiological response patterns similar to those of animals. For example, changes in status in the social hierarchy may affect an individual's psychological state. However, researchers based in different disciplines have differences in terminology and concepts, which makes cross-disciplinary communication tricky. In contrast, research efforts by behavioral scientists and psychologists have revealed many of the dark sides associated with social exclusion, yet the same concept may be treated separately due to different terminology.
Potential evolutionary reasons
From an evolutionary psychology perspective, some behaviors considered aberrant social behaviors may actually have adaptive value. Humans' ability to cope with social exclusion and conflict in early societies may have been a survival strategy that still impacts mental health today.
Adaptive responses to social rejection may be an important component of human mental health and deserve further study.
Conclusion
The impact of social exclusion is not only a symptom of mental health problems, but also an issue worthy of attention from all walks of life. Understanding how social exclusion affects an individual's behavior and physiology can help find more effective interventions and treatments. So, how can we create a more inclusive and understanding environment in society to promote mental health?
