Affection

Stroking is a form of nonverbal communication. It is a gentle body contact, to express the affection and is perceived through the sense of touch of the skin. Stroking concerns the social-emotional area of interpersonal communication, but also takes place between humans and animals.

On the importance and acceptance of a caress, especially in public, there are different social norms, depending on the culture.

Expressions

Stroking is essential for building up confidence a child's development and essential part of a successful bond between parent and child. In the animal kingdom, it corresponds to the social grooming such as licking of the fur of a young animal.

It can be an expression of affection between parents and children or between humans and tame animals. Occasionally caress people even inanimate objects that are near and dear to them.

As a form of physical intimacy between lovers petting is a form of expression of love. The stroking the erogenous zones is called petting.

Neurophysiological effects

The importance of a caress and its influence on brain function has been demonstrated by the biologists at the University of Montreal Michael J. Meaney in animal experiments. The assumption that this form of contact strengthens the hippocampus and additionally sensitized him for the stress indicator cortisol, was for some time. By stroking the child, or the animal by grooming and licking of pups, a specific chemical compound in the organism decapping (will demethylisiert ), which will be closed without this grant. Entkappte the compound now has the possibility of new chemical reactions that result in a stabilization against stress.

Stroking in animal -assisted therapy

Long-term studies show that the body contact with pets calms the heart rate and lowers blood pressure. It is believed that this aggression and stress are reduced. This positive effect from animals to humans using animal -assisted therapy.

• See also: petting zoo

Stroking in the transaction analysis

In Transactional Analysis is referred to generally by stroking, if a person cares for another, and their affection for brings. Here, the term is, however, usually meant in a figurative (non- physical ) sense as mental attention ( " pats ").

History

Looking for the original language took place in the 13th century Emperor Frederick II a cruel human experiment. On his orders infants were only cleaned and fed by their nurses, but got no response and physical affection such as stroking and caresses. Due to the lack of human affection the children had died early. This is documented by the Franciscan monk Salimbene of Parma in one of his seven chronicles.

The American psychiatrist Seymour Levine experimented with rats in 1957 by letting them by so-called " handling " to get 15 minutes daily special attention: He took the young out of the nest and stroked it. The effect is pronounced laser- showed more cohesive behavior and the production of fewer stress hormones over the non caressed animals in the adult animals. Even with the caressed rats not rat typical signs of degradation of the brain were found to resemble those of human Alzheimer 's disease.