Lifestyle Behavior and Social Groups
Let's face it, we're social beings and want to get along with the people around us so we more or less will move along with the group
Have you noticed that when we're in groups it seems that we get swept up with what the group's expectations are? This can be valuable if we share what the group wants
So if change is fearful for people, then dis-ease models would suggest that support groups would help with resistance to change
Recently a social researcher at MIT published interesting observations about online support group behavior
Supportive Clusters
What Centola found was that individuals are more likely to acquire new health practices while living in networks with dense clusters of connections — that is, when in close contact with people they already know well The denser the cluster the better
Now this doesn't seem unusual at all We all have had the experience of trust if we know the people around us and not so much trust if we know no one but for trust to really happen the more involved the better the trust and more effective is ability of the group to induce change of ingrained unhealthy behavior patterns
The concept of "health buddies" within the clustered group began to surface as an observation
“Social reinforcement from multiple health buddies made participants much more willing to adopt the behavior,” noted Centola
It's All About Trust and Relationship in Clusters
I believe that the group would function best when people know one another, particularly for online support groups At least if I know Jim is doing it, then I can trust Sally who I have never met before
The cluster must in some way be energetically connected Hence relationship plays a pivotal role in making clusters work to make lifestyle changes
But the power of transformation(change to a healthy habit) by the group lies in the innocence of the individuals involved, that is, trust brought about by the relationships they share
Undaunting Force Field Created by Clusters
But the unbelievable force field created by these cluster groups has the potential to move far beyond the group and the transformations that occur within it
It has the power to change or impact other clusters as well This is real viral spread A viral particle notas we know it but one of thought
And then our health on the planet as well as individually will evolve
Until tomorrow To health as a Skill Love DrBill
