Can You Catch a Bad Mood?

Beware: It’s not just the colds and OTT bosses you need to defend yourself against at work.

- Thea O'Connor

Unfortunately, it’s not always possible to surround yourself with people who you love, or whose company you appreciate. Take work, for example. It’s highly likely there’ll be someone whose vibe rubs you up the wrong way. The bad news: That feeling you get when you’re around them — that ‘I can’t stand another one of her self-pity parties’ kind of hate – is infectious.

“There’s no doubt that de-energising states are contagious and can spread much deeper than people realise,” says Larry Miller, CEO of Acitve Networks, which maps social networks to track how information and ideas flow.

‘Emotional contagion’ is when a persistent mood spreads over large social networks across a long period. And not only do moods transmit via direct contact, they can extend across three degrees of separation, too! So if your co-worker is in a bad mood, you can take it on, and in the next minute, your boyfriend might be snapping at you. But there are ways to ensure you don’t take someone else’s strop home with you ...

The SADNESS SPREAD