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Posted on Nov 19, 2010, 6 a.m.
Engaging in friendly discussions helps to improve memory and thinking skills.
In that a number of studies have suggested various interventions top help improve mental processes including memory and thinking skills , a team from the University of Michigan (Michigan ,USA), and colleagues studied whether and how short-term social interactions might create cognitive benefits. Oscar Ybarra and colleagues studied 192 undergraduate college students, engaging each in a short, 10-minute conversation in which they got to know another person. The team found that this positive conversation helped to boost the subjects’ performance on a variety of cognitive tasks. Further, they observed that conversations with a competitive tone failed to improve cognitive performance. The researchers conclude that: “The results highlight how social functioning can enhance core mental capacities.”
Oscar Ybarra, Piotr Winkielman, Irene Yeh, Eugene Burnstein, Liam Kavanagh. “Friends (and Sometimes Enemies) With Cognitive Benefits: What Types of Social Interactions Boost Executive Functioning?” Social Psychological and Personality Science, October 13, 2010.