The last few months have been difficult, but they have often brought out the best in us: thousands of people signing up to be GoodSAM NHS volunteers, neighbours offering to do each other’s shopping, Captain Tom Moore’s fundraising efforts and the weekly #clapforcarers have shown just how much kindness matters in a crisis.
Positive connections and interactions with people are one of the greatest predictors of our happiness. Our nervous systems respond to kindness and helping other people and connecting with them creates feelings of pleasure, safety and warmth in our brains. Humans have evolved to behave in ways that promote the survival of our species, and kindness and looking out for others have been crucial. From around 18 months old young children demonstrate an instinct to be kind, for example, by picking something up someone has dropped or hugging or kissing someone who looks sad.
