August 21, 2012
Sir Mix-A-Lot sang, “I like big butts and I cannot lie,” and now we know why. Negative social mood trends are stressful phases in our social evolution, and stress influences not only our health, but decisions we make every day. Critical decisions, like whether men prefer women with small butts or big butts. Hey, don’t take my word for it, I read this just the other day in Scientific American: “Stressed Men Like Bigger Butts.” Time magazine chimed in the next day: “Why Stressed-Out Men Prefer Heavier Women.” Admittedly, this may seem frivolous at first glance, but the implications of the study are both serious and far-reaching. Chronic stress can do a lot more than make a guy crave corpulent posteriors, it can also make individuals—and whole societies—sick. Click here to read more.
If you look closely, you can see patterns in social mood that help you predict social trends. Learn more with the Socionomics Premier Membership.
The Socionomist enables you to see trend-shaping waves of social mood, as reflected by the stock market — and capitalize on them. The June issue looks at phases of social mood and features a “Research Roundup,” which highlights five academic studies that shine a light on important aspects of socionomic theory. Mood Riffs topics include “quiet luxury,” loneliness, the Writers Guild strike and efforts by countries to trade in currencies other than the U.S. dollar. Read the June issue when you become a Socionomics Premier Member.
