The Society Of American Florists recent behavioral
study conducted at Rutgers University shows that men who receive flowers
demonstrate increased social interaction and happiness. This research
expands on previous data collected, which showed that flowers enhance
happiness and social connections among women.
Conducted by Rutgers University student researcher
Holly Hale and psychology professor Jeannette Haviland-Jones, Ph.D., the
study involved two groups of men who varied in age and ethnicity, one group
who received a surprise gift of flowers and a control group who did not. The
subjects' verbal cues and body language (measures of social interaction)
were studied.
The men who received flowers demonstrated increased
eye contact in conversation, stood in closer proximity to the researchers,
and produced more and truer smiles than those men who did not receive
flowers.
While in general, women displayed a greater level
of emotion in their study, the effects are equal. "When it comes to
receiving flowers, men and women are on the same playing field," said
Haviland-Jones. "It seems that we all express extraordinary delight and
increase our social behavior."
