Ugh, what an abomination! Why we are disgusted, but love all sorts of nasty things

There are few emotions that are not very pleasant to even think about, and disgust is one of them. Disgust includes a range of states of varying degrees of intensity, from mild dislike to intense feelings of disgust. All states of disgust are caused by the feeling that something that affects you is disgusting, repulsive, or toxic. And this makes sense: if something is unpleasant for us, we will try our best to stay away from it. As part of a series of materials on basic emotions, we continue to understand feelings - this time disgust.

Disgust is one of the seven universal emotions: surprise, fear, disgust, anger, joy, sadness and contempt, expressed in varying degrees of disgust towards something. We may feel disgusted by what we perceive with our physical senses (sight, smell, touch, sound, taste), people's actions, appearance, and even ideas.

What disgusts us

A universal trigger for disgust is the feeling that something around us is poisonous, contagious and therefore potentially dangerous. Some disgust triggers are universally human conditioned responses (for example, encountering certain bodily waste products), while others are much more closely related to cultural and individual influences (say, aversion to certain types of food, such as insects, which is more pronounced in Western culture and, to a lesser extent, in Eastern culture).

There is still ongoing debate in the scientific community about whether certain forms of interpersonal and social disgust (to another person's appearance, actions, ideas, or social status) are learned and culture-specific, or whether they exist in some form in all cultures . For example, everyone can be disgusted by a "morally corrupt" person and their actions, but what would be considered "morally corrupt" can vary greatly.

Common disgust triggers include:

• waste products of the body;
• certain foods (often from cultures other than our own);
• the sight of something rotting, diseased, or dying;
• trauma, surgery and/or contact with internal organs;
• a person, animal or object that is considered physically deformed;
• actions of other people perceived as perversions (certain sexual inclinations, torture, etc.).

Is disgust the basis of morality?

Six basic emotions ( from left to right from top to bottom

): anger, disgust, fear, joy, grief, surprise (photo from vnl.psy.gla.ac.uk)

Psychologists and neuroscientists who study the nature of emotions suggest that many moral principles of humanity grew out of the feeling of disgust, which in humans, compared to animals, has unusually developed and become more complex. Disgust is the basis of many prejudices and prevents people from treating each other as human beings.

We all know well that many of our moral assessments and judgments are based more on emotions than on reason. It is more difficult to answer the question of whether this is good, whether emotions can serve as a reliable basis for the prosperous existence and development of society. Not only laymen, but also some experts believe that emotions, intuitive impulses and other natural urges are completely reliable criteria for truth in ethical matters. This point of view is based on the assumption, or rather on the intuitive conviction that the first, immediate, unclouded emotional reaction is the most correct, because it comes “from the depths of the soul” and carries “deep wisdom” . The voice of the heart, in a word. This is especially emphasized by opponents of cloning, stem cells, artificial insemination and other technologies that “encroach on what is most sacred” and “cause natural rejection.”

Meanwhile, meticulous neuroscientists are penetrating deeper into the proverbial “depths of the soul,” and what they find there does not always look like wisdom, which should be revered above reason.

Several research teams have been actively studying the nature of disgust in recent years, one of the basic human emotions, which, as it turns out, greatly influences public morality and social relations. Review article published June 14 in the journal Nature

, introduces readers to their achievements.

It cannot be said that disgust is an exclusively human feeling: it is also characteristic of animals, but to a lesser extent and in much simpler forms. A monkey, a cat, or a newborn baby, having taken something unpleasant to the mouth into their mouth, can spit it out with a characteristic grimace. But from “tasteless” to “disgusting” is a considerable distance. Only a person who has left infancy is able to refuse food only on the grounds that it was lying in the wrong place or touched in the wrong place. Paul Rozin of the University of Pennsylvania, one of the pioneers in this area of ​​research, believes that with the advent of reason, the primary emotion inherited from animal ancestors expanded dramatically to include, in particular, the idea of ​​​​contact, the transference of “filth” through touch . Thus, the volunteers who participated in Rozin’s experiments flatly refused to drink juice that had been touched by a sterilized cockroach’s antennae, or to eat from a spotlessly clean chamber pot.

From this feature of primitive thinking, the so-called contagious magic obviously grew (see J. Fraser, “The Golden Bough,” chapter 3). Nothing similar is observed in animals and newborn children.

The biological, evolutionary meaning of disgust seems more or less clear: it is a completely adaptive, survival-promoting desire to avoid contact with infection, not to eat unsuitable and dangerous food, and also to preserve one’s own integrity by keeping inside what should be inside (for example, blood), and outside what should be outside (for example, feces).

Disgust in people is clearly divided into “primary” - this is an almost unconscious mental reaction to all sorts of abominations - and “secondary”, or moral, relating to more abstract subjects, such as the idea of ​​cloning. The connection between them is the closest. In all human cultures, without exception, it is customary to extend words and concepts denoting objects of primary disgust to people who violate moral and social norms - for example, to deceitful politicians, corrupt officials, etc. People branded in this way may even be perceived as a source of some mystical “infection”, like some kind of cockroaches. For example, the proposal to wear a well-washed Hitler sweater does not evoke the slightest enthusiasm among most people. According to Rozin, this means that the idea of ​​“contagiousness” in the human mind also extends to the moral qualities of an individual, otherwise how to explain hostility to an innocent sweater.

Paul Bloom, known to readers of Elements as the author of an article on resistance to scientific knowledge, is more skeptical: in his opinion, people experience real disgust only for those abstract ideas that are directly associated with objects of “primary” disgust, and in all other cases ( for example, when they talk about “disgusting political technologies”), this is nothing more than a metaphor.

Jonathan Haidt from the University of Virginia believes that he has found evidence of the same physiological nature of “primary” and moral disgust: he was able to experimentally show that both emotions lead to a slower heart rate, and in a particularly acute reaction, also to a feeling of “lump in the stomach.” throat." According to Haidt, this shows that moral disgust is not a metaphor, but a very real disgust.

Brazilian neuroscientist Jorge Moll came to similar conclusions by monitoring subjects' brain activity using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). It turned out that during “primary” and moral disgust the same areas of the brain are excited, namely the lateral and medial orbitofrontal cortex - these areas are also responsible for some other unpleasant experiences, such as regret about missed opportunities. However, differences also emerged: moral disgust is associated with greater activation of the anterior part of the fronto-orbital cortex, which is considered evolutionarily younger and appears to be responsible for processing the most abstract emotional associations.

Regardless of whether “primary” disgust and moral disgust are the same or different feelings, “primary” disgust itself can have a very real impact on our moral judgments and evaluations and, as a result, on our attitudes towards people and social behavior. Psychologists from Princeton University, using MRI, have shown that excitation of the parts of the brain responsible for fear and disgust reduces the activity of those parts responsible for pity, empathy, and generally for perceiving other people as people (as opposed to inanimate objects). In other words, the sight of a nasty, dirty homeless person automatically evokes a feeling of disgust, which prevents us from thinking about this person as a person, forcing us to perceive him as a “heap of garbage.”

Rosin, Haidt, and some of their colleagues suggest that disgust may play a significant—and mostly negative—role in the lives of human groups. If initially disgust performed mainly hygienic functions, then in the course of further evolution this feeling seems to have been “recruited” to perform completely different, purely social tasks. The object that causes disgust must be discarded, isolated or destroyed, and must be distanced from it. This makes disgust an ideal "raw material" for the development of mechanisms for maintaining group integrity, which may have been extremely important for primitive people. It is believed that small groups of our ancestors competed fiercely with each other. The cohesion of a group increased its chances of survival, and confrontation with external enemies was the best way to achieve maximum cohesion (see: Intergroup competition promotes intragroup cooperation, “Elements,” 05/28/2007).

Perhaps, even at the dawn of human history, our ancestors learned to feel disgust for all sorts of strangers, “not ours,” “not like us.” Marc Hauser, a psychologist at Harvard University who also works with monkeys, notes that difficult relationships between groups occur not only in humans, but also in other social animals, which are also excellent at distinguishing their own from strangers. But for some reason, people are especially fixated on their intergroup differences and attach disproportionately great importance to them, compared to animals. To emphasize intergroup differences, moral assessments are often used, including those based on a feeling of disgust (for example, the Russian word “poganyy” originally meant simply “a non-believer, a pagan”). According to Haidt, if primary disgust helped the individual to survive, then moral disgust helped the collective to survive, to preserve the integrity of society - “and this is where disgust manifests itself from its most disgusting side.”

Unscrupulous politicians have always actively used disgust as a tool for uniting and subjugating groups, pitting one group against another. Nazi propaganda called Jews "rats" and "cockroaches." The same epithets were applied to their opponents by the warring parties during the recent massacre in Rwanda. If people begin to feel disgust towards strangers, they can no longer perceive them as people, feel pity or compassion.

According to Moll and other experts, disgust continues to be a source of bias and aggression today. You need to think ten times before making decisions based on such emotions coming “from the depths of your soul.” History confirms this. There were times when, for example, women (especially during menstruation), mentally disabled people, or interracial sex were considered disgusting and unclean. Today, few people in civilized countries will defend such views, and many indeed - on a physical level - have ceased to be disgusted by all of the above. If disgust was not a good moral indicator in the past, why should it be today? In many cases, what seems disgusting to us is really bad and harmful, but this does not mean that reasonable people should build their relationships on dense blind instincts.

The article also describes unpublished results obtained by Bloom and his colleagues. It is known that people vary greatly in the degree of expression of the emotion of primary disgust: some almost faint at the sight of a cockroach or unflushed water in the toilet, while others don’t care. It turned out that there is a significant correlation between this indicator and political beliefs. People who tend to experience a strong aversion to “primary” stimuli are more likely to hold conservative views and are staunch opponents of cloning, genetically modified foods, homosexuality, miniskirts, artificial insemination and other outrages. People with low disgust, on the contrary, usually have liberal views and simply cannot understand why all of the above might seem disgusting to someone.

Research in this area is just beginning, so we are talking only about the very first, preliminary results, many of which may not be confirmed in the future. “Yet,” Dan Jones concludes, “it’s hard not to conclude that if we think less with our guts and more with our heads and hearts, we can push the boundaries of our moral universe.” By “heart” here, we must assume, we mean those parts of the prefrontal cortex that are responsible for a humane attitude towards other people, sympathy and empathy.

Source:

Dan Jones.
Moral psychology: The depths of disgust // Nature
. 2007. V. 447. P. 768–771.

See also:

1) Man was not created in the image of God, “Elements”, 06/18/2007. 2) The part of the brain responsible for the emotional component of moral and ethical assessments has been identified, “Elements”, 03/28/2007.

Alexander Markov

Development of disgust

Children and adolescents (sometimes some adults) often experience a kind of fascination with disgust, that is, they find some disgusting things intriguing - this is a reflection of the functions of forming a picture of the world and its knowledge. In young children, disgust begins to develop around the ages of four to eight years: before this stage of emotional development, children experience only aversion to a bad taste or smell, but not disgust.

Additional research has also shown that children are not bothered by some things that adults might find disgusting (such as a chocolate bar shaped like poop). One theory that explains why this happens when we're younger is that we don't yet have the cognitive abilities needed for certain forms of learned disgust.

Unpleasant odors

The same can be said about smells. Especially in the case of children. Some foods and smells disgust them for various reasons. Goat milk is very beneficial for a growing body. But children often refuse to drink it and eat cheese from it because of the unpleasant smell. Kids may not like some fruits and vegetables, mushrooms, meat, and dairy products. If a child is forced to consume these products because of their usefulness, then this will cause nothing but disgust in the child. Sometimes the rejection is so strong that the child experiences nausea and even vomiting. Over time, or rather as you grow older, preferences may change - with age, disgust and rejection of these products will disappear.

How is disgust expressed?

Mimically, the most easily recognizable and obvious signs of disgust are the wrinkling of the nose and the associated raising of the upper lip.

There are also standard vocal expressions of disgust - usually the interjection "ugh", sounds of choking and vomiting. Physical sensations of disgust include cramping in the mouth, throat and/or stomach, as well as nausea.

Why do we vomit when someone else does?

Perhaps it's the "mirror neurons" that allow us to empathize with other people and their actions: in one study, functional MRI scans of participants showed that brain activity was the same regardless of whether subjects faked emotions or observed real ones. The simulation and observation areas of the brain are so connected that we may want to cry if we see someone crying. Or we may vomit if we see someone vomiting.

Finally, disgust often leads to turning the head or even the entire body away from the source of the unpleasant sensation. When disgust leads to nausea, reactions also include covering the nose and/or mouth and slouching.

Emotion as a way to combat bad habits

Modern society suffers from many addictions - smoking, alcohol, drugs, gambling. These same misfortunes include gluttony and cravings for sweets, leading to health problems. Therefore, people who want to get rid of a habit are sometimes interested in how to create an aversion to something. Such methods are based on the body’s rejection of harmful substances. Severe intoxication after drinking alcohol will make you forget about your harmful addiction for a long time, and sometimes forever.

Methods for getting rid of smoking or alcoholism include instilling disgust for the item of consumption. In order to enhance the effect, specialists sometimes resort to medications. For example, in the treatment of alcoholism. You can instill an aversion to smoking using hypnosis. Having a strong will and a desire to get rid of a bad habit, a person is able to instill in himself a dislike for something.

Disgust function

The universal function of disgust is to move away, block, or eliminate something unpleasant, toxic, or polluting from an area where it could potentially have a harmful effect on our body. And this is the secret, the necessity and the advantage of disgust: it keeps us away from dangerous things so that we can preserve our life and health. Thus, disgust prevents us from eating something putrid and forces us to stay away from open sores in order to avoid infection, poisoning or fatal disease.

However, although disgust is beneficial, it can also be dangerous, but rather from a moral point of view. Unfortunately, most societies and cultures are taught to avoid certain groups of people who are considered physically or morally disgusting, and thus learned disgust can be a driving force in the dehumanization and humiliation of others.

Moral aspect

With the help of an emotion such as disgust, a person determines for himself the boundaries of what is prohibited. What is contrary to human nature causes this feeling - this is, of course, taboo. This list may include the following:

• murder;
• violence;
• theft;
• indecent unleashed behavior;
• swearing

All those who disturb public peace, threaten the normal way of life, suffer from perverted addictions, cause in most people not just hostility, anger or contempt, these feelings develop into disgust.

American scientists conducted a study, which revealed interesting facts. Some words can cause disgust. For example, those that are associated with the physiological processes of the human body indicate actions or results. It has also been found that women are more likely to experience this feeling. The younger and more educated the respondents were, the stronger their negative emotions were.

Interesting facts about disgust

• Observing the "gross" bodily functions of other people often causes disgust, but this reaction is suspended when it comes to someone with whom we are close. Intimacy lowers the threshold of what we find disgusting so that we can help those we care about. In such cases, instead of trying to escape, we reduce the suffering of a loved one (for example, when changing a child's diaper or caring for a sick family member). This suspension of disgust establishes intimacy and can even strengthen love and a sense of community.
• Disgust can affect how you shop. Researchers Andrea Morales and Gavan Fitzsimons of Duke University in Arizona found that even the most delicious foods look disgusting when they are within 3 cm of the undesirable ones.
• In women, disgust may be related to hormonal cycles. Daniel Fessler of the University of California, Los Angeles, has long been interested in why pregnant women experience disgust so easily and has linked their sensitivity to disgust to the hormone progesterone. Progesterone levels are known to rise sharply in the first trimester of pregnancy, and Fessler suggests that this may help protect the fetus when it is most receptive. However, this hormonal connection can affect women even if they are not pregnant, but simply in the middle of their cycle: as the body becomes more hospitable to a potential embryo, it also produces a greater disgust response to protect it from external contamination.

From a psychological point of view

In psychology, emotions are divided into seven types. And one of them is disgust. This emotion is akin to contempt, a negative perception of something or someone that does not correspond to one’s own internal concepts of what is acceptable. It is generally accepted that a person cannot feel disgust towards animate things, that is, towards people and animals. The emergence of this feeling is possible only in relation to objects, taste sensations, smells, and condition. Sometimes insects, some types of amphibians or reptiles can cause disgust.

The statement is not always true. Yes, some people shudder at the sight of snakes, spiders or mice. It disgusts them to think about the proximity of these creatures to them. Even the thought of touching an animal or insect causes not just rejection, but horror. Fear and disgust often go hand in hand, arising simultaneously, or one provokes the other. A similar feeling sometimes arises towards other people. More often it is called hostility or contempt. But the emotion of disgust that arises towards people is not uncommon. This happens if a person you know has done something very bad. “How disgusting! How could he/she do this?!” This is exactly the reaction of those around him.

Another interpretation of disgust in psychology. This is the continuation of any action after receiving satisfaction. And often it's not just about sex. Although this comparison is also suitable. For example, the work being done. Having received satisfaction from the work done, having achieved a good result, the same actions, performed over and over again, will first begin to cause a slight dislike for work activity, and then disgust. In order for this not to happen, the business by which people earn a living must be loved and devoted to it. Although this does not happen often, and therefore daily work becomes a routine for most and does not bring joy.

Alcohol and its influence

From a chemical point of view, ethanol is a water- and fat-soluble substance that has sufficient calorie content and can be broken down in the body. Every person has a tiny amount of ethyl alcohol in their body, even if they have never tried alcohol: it is formed during metabolic processes and as a result of the activity of intestinal bacteria.

However, alcohol, unlike many drugs, does not accumulate in the body, but is quickly oxidized and excreted through:

• kidneys;
• intestines;
• lungs;
• skin.

When alcohol enters the digestive tract, it is quickly absorbed into the blood and even penetrates the brain, causing symptoms familiar to many: from mild incoordination to severe poisoning and mental disorders.

Even severe intoxication does not cause much harm to a healthy person. The next morning he may experience dry mouth, weakness and headache, but after a few hours or a couple of days he will be well again. And some never experience discomfort even after drinking liters of alcohol.

We have the liver to thank for such resistance to intoxication. It produces enzymes - protein substances that help convert ethanol into safe compounds.

The process includes two stages:

1. First, the enzyme alcohol dehydrogenase breaks down ethanol, turning it into acetaldehyde, a toxic substance. It is this that causes poor health, nausea, headaches, and weakness.
2. The second enzyme, acetaldehyde dehydrogenase, converts the toxin acetaldehyde into harmless acetic acid. When the concentration of acetaldehyde in the blood decreases, well-being is restored.

Other organs also participate in the process of removing poisons after drinking alcoholic beverages, but their role is several times less.

It is also important to take into account other components in the drink: the more complex the recipe, the harder it will be for the body to remove the poisons.