外刊阅读20240917｜最近的瓜都吃了吗

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Whenever someone confides something to you about someone you both know—whether the information is positive, negative or neutral—it brings the two of you closer, creating a social bond. According to one study, it even increases your liking for the spreader of the information. It helps you learn who to trust and who to avoid. It enforces group norms. For example, complaints about a co-worker who puts smelly banana peels in the paper trash are likely to get back to them and let them know that placing stinky garbage in the incorrect container is not an office norm.

The gossiper is the prime mover in this drama. So it’s not surprising that much of the social science research related to gossip has focused on why they do it, what they get out of it and what the attendant dangers are in doing it, if any. In its most benign form, Sun says, gossip creates a sense of connectedness and belonging. On the other hand, if what you’re sharing is injurious to the target, you may feel guilty. You may also feel anxious about repercussions , including retaliation . There’s the further risk that listeners may form unwelcome impressions about you.

Despite complex motivations, humans on average are quite good at sizing up the intentions of others with whom they interact. They usually know the person and their place in the network. One study shows that the determining factor of how people interpret gossip is whether they believe someone is passing on gossip to help out the listener or to benefit themselves. If they perceive it to be the former, they trust the gossiper more.

Gossip can be vital to those who listen to it. Learning that a colleague could be leaving their job, for example, could motivate a listener to take on challenging, promotion-worthy assignments. For someone new to a group, gossip can be invaluable. In any large organization, there are always smaller cliques , in-groups and out-groups.