“Ah I finally found what will really please him, I can't wait to give him! ”

Who has not jumped with joy and happiness at the sight of this gift offered by a loved one? Yes, receiving gifts causes us a rather special feeling. Some even equate this to very intense happiness and even say that they feel “fulfilled”. But what about the feeling of the person who gave it to you?

What if we went back to the true meaning of the famous “pleasure to give”, which even serves as a slogan for many retailers during these holiday periods. Is it really real? Can you be “as” fulfilled when you give a gift as when you receive it, what does cognitive science tell us?

1. Understanding the reward circuit

A lot of research has been done to understand this phenomenon, especially when we receive a gift, or any other reward. This feeling of pleasure, which can be translated for some as “being happy or fulfilled”, is in fact the result of numerous neural mechanisms that occur in our brain in a very short time.

When we experience this feeling after a very appreciated gift or reward, a very particular neural network is activated! This network is in fact a group of interconnected brain regions, called The reward circuit¹. This circuit is made up of several brain structures that communicate with each other: a rather internal one such as The striatum — inside our brain- and another rather cortical one like The prefrontal cortex -at the front of our brain-.

This circuit is activated in particular by a neurotransmitter - a chemical compound released by our neurons - which is responsible for this feeling of pleasure: Dopamine ! In other words, when we receive a gift or when we eat our favorite food, it is the activation of this network via dopamine-released in this circuit at the sight of this reward- that will generate this famous feeling of pleasure !

But what is very interesting is that this circuit is not activated only when we receive a gift! It also activates when we give it away² ! But how do you explain This sharing of emotion when we don't get a gift ourselves?

2. The process of perspective taking

When we make acts of generosity or donations, studies have shown that the reward circuit -striatum and prefrontal cortex- is activated, but not only that! A region involved in The empathy process and involved in “perspective taking” processes) -The temporoparietal junction- is also activated³ ! In a sense what this research suggests to us is that when we give a gift to a loved one, we experience this pleasure because we put ourselves in their perspective.

Numerous other studies have replicated this effect, not only when we give to loved ones but also when we donate to charities. This famous “pleasure of giving” then makes perfect sense! But is it as much fun as when we receive a gift?

3. Pleasure to give vs pleasure to receive

What is very interesting, in This recent study⁴ And what gives us part of the answer is when the researchers compared the situation where the subjects received a gift versus when they gave a gift or made donations, the happiness effect seemed to last over time only for the case in which they gave. And not when they were receiving. Giving a gift would have a greater effect in this study if it was maintained over time. Some researchers suggest that the feeling of happiness when we give seems to be maintained because we are less likely to get used to it or because we don't take it for granted.

4. What if generosity made us happy?

So, all this data⁵ So they show us that not only are acts of generosity and the feeling of pleasure intrinsically linked in our brain, but also that the effect of pleasure lasts over time if we are an actor in this gift!

Giving, sharing or even other acts of generosity are all behaviors that have existed for hundreds of years in any type of organization or community! And it is not for nothing that these behaviors are present across all cultures and have remained over time. Indeed, these behaviors are essential to create a strong social bond, or to promote mutual aid, equity, reciprocity or even cooperation between peers. All these behaviors are decisive for the proper functioning of a community.

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Key points

* Receiving a gift activates the reward circuit.

* Giving a gift or showing generosity also activates the reward circuit but also the activation of networks involved in empathy.

* Giving would have a longer-term effect on the feeling of pleasure.

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