Cheaper than couples counselling: take a five-second break

Researchers from the University of St Andrews have found that couples who take a five-second break during an argument could stop their row from escalating. Psychologists ran experiments with 81 couples to reach their findings, published in the Nature journal, Communications Psychology.

Annah McCurry, a PhD candidate in the School of Psychology and Neuroscience, designed and led the experiments with her supervisors Dr Robert May and Professor David Donaldson. She concluded that breaks as short as five-seconds can reduce negative emotions and aggression.

"It sounds obvious, but this is the first time anyone has experimentally demonstrated a reduction in aggression following enforced breaks. Forcing couples to have a five-second break was just as effective as a 10 or 15-second break, which shows even the briefest of pauses can help diffuse an argument" she said.

McCurry proposed the break as a simple, free, and effective 'hack' to reduce negative emotions during arguments, saying "It's cheaper than couple's therapy and can be easily integrated into everyday interactions."

The study engaged couples in a competitive game where they could blast an unpleasant noise at their partner, at a volume of their choosing. Each couple participated in 30 rounds of the game, with breaks enforced at different intervals. The emotional response of each couple was captured by a 360-degree camera, with onboard audio. This footage was then analysed by advanced AI and machine learning.

The Researchers found that couples tended to match each other's level of aggression, even at high levels. However, enforcing a short break disrupted this pattern of retaliation, leading to lower overall aggression. McCurry did point out that the five-second strategy is intended only for managing lower-level conflicts, to prevent potential escalation into more serious fights. "This approach does not apply to domestic violence scenarios. This is about managing the mundane, everyday arguments that couples have, and that can escalate" she said.

Feedback from the participants mirrored the results found by the researchers. Murray explained that the team "asked participants for their feedback and some of the comments we got were gold. One participant said "I felt great after winning and when my partner won I wanted to institute a sex ban. Another said that the forced break made them look into their partner's eyes, and that reduced the tension."

Issued by the University of St Andrews Press Office

The full article can be accessed at Nature's Communications Psychology.

For more information on Annah McCurry's research, visit: https://daris.wp.st-andrews.ac.uk/

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