Watching cats on the Internet is good for your health
Do you have the problem that after one video with a cat you want to watch another and another, and the pictures of cats just pop up on Facebook? If it does not ruin your work and study and you do not deteriorate contact with your family, then everything is good with you. Research conducted in the United States at Indiana University School by Jessica Gall Myrick on a sample of about 7 000 people, proves a positive impact on our well-being after contact with cats on computer screens and smartphones.
Some may think watching video of cats is not a serious research topic, but the fact is that today it is one of the most common uses of the Internet. If we want to better understand how the Internet affects the lives of individuals and society as a whole, then we cannot ignore such material any longer – said Jessica Gall Myrick, author of the study.
Myrick points out that we’ve all seen a video of cats online, but very little research explains why we keep watching them. Research has shown that in 2018, 2 million cat videos were shown on YouTube. They have been viewed over 25 billion times in total. It turns out that cat videos are the most-watched material on Youtube.
Out of approx. 7 000 respondents, 30% described themselves as “cat lovers”, and 60% expressed similar sympathy for both dogs and cats. The respondents also declared that after the video with the kitties was broadcast, they are in a better mood than before. The materials watched reduced negative emotions, anger, sadness and nervousness. The pleasure generated by consuming a cat video was greater than the guilt generated by interrupting or postponing important duties, as it turns out that most cat videos are viewed at work or while studying. What’s more, it turns out that only 25% of cat movies were deliberately sophisticated, the rest we watched by accident, e.g. scrolling through our Facebook or from recommended videos shared, for example, via YouTube.
The results of the study and the interviews of the author of the study are unambiguous, the benefits of consuming media with cats are very positive for our psyche. What’s more, it turns out that even if we neglected a topic because we preferred to watch a movie with cats, we have an even better chance of implementing our plans because after the movie with the cat we are strongly emotionally stimulated.
