Watching people cheat during a game made participants heart rates spike. Gossiping about the cheaters lowered the heart rates:
Surreptitiously passing along the news that someone has behaved badly—what’s technically called “prosocial gossip”—can relieve stress, as well as warn others to regard the rule-breaker with a wary eye, the researchers say. … What’s more, the researchers found, people who were most altruistic would gossip most readily about the transgressor, and even give up their compensation for the experiment to do so. If the most good-hearted among us are willing to pay to gossip, how bad it could it be?
Alasdair Wilkins raises an eyebrow:
It's an interesting study, and a potentially enlightening demonstration of how our supposed baser instincts can actually serve positive social functions. That said, there's a little room for skepticism here on how broadly this should be applied – it would be interesting to see a study that could also incorporate more destructive forms of gossip, such as participants being able to falsely accuse others of cheating. I would also like to see how this holds up outside a laboratory setting, where people might be more inclined to behave well on the assumption that, well, scientists are watching.
The Dish 