Why should there be a sense of ritual when celebrating the New Year alone?

Author | Tang Yicheng China Science Popularization Mental Health Promotion Center

This year, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, 29 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities across the country have proposed the "stay-at-home Chinese New Year" initiative. Suddenly, we have a Spring Festival that depends entirely on ourselves. I believe many of my friends were worried about how to spend the New Year.

Although there is no lively company of uncles and aunts, it is still necessary to maintain the sense of ritual during the Chinese New Year - the sense of ritual brings a strong flavor of the New Year and can promote physical and mental health. Today, let us talk about the "sense of ritual" during the Chinese New Year from the perspective of psychological science. The sense of ritual gives people a "paradise" Why should "celebrating the Chinese New Year on the spot" have a sense of ritual? Rituals have a special power that can bring people a sense of satisfaction and control. It provides people with a paradise in which we can play another self. Anthropologist Clifford Geertz found that when a ritual is held, people can withdraw from the "real" world, temporarily escape from the annoying rules and trivialities of daily life, and enter another more idealized world. In this sense, the sense of ritual can help us regard "celebrating the Chinese New Year on the spot" as a "runaway", break away from the conventional life of following the rules, and experience a unique fresh experience in a lifetime. In addition to this "chicken soup flavor" benefit, the sense of ritual can also bring many practical benefits to life.

Research shows that rituals can improve the quality of people’s experiences. Psychologist Kathleen Vohs has conducted experiments to see if rituals can improve the dining experience.

The researchers asked one group of subjects to perform a specific ritual before eating chocolate. The instructions were as follows: "Before unwrapping the paper, break the chocolate into two pieces; unwrap one half and eat this half of the chocolate; then unwrap the remaining half and eat the remaining chocolate." Other subjects in the non-ritual group ate the chocolate at will after a period of free activity.

The results showed that the participants who performed the ritual thought the chocolate tasted better and was more expensive. The ritual made people enjoy the process of eating chocolate more.

Rituals can also relieve people's anxiety. Psychologist Alison Wood Brooks and colleagues conducted a study on pre-game rituals. They asked the subjects to participate in a singing competition and perform some rituals before the game. The results showed that rituals can relieve the subjects' anxiety before the game, thereby improving the subjects' overall performance on the field. The ritual operation they designed is as follows: draw a picture that reflects the current feeling; sprinkle salt on the picture; count to 5 loudly; crumple the paper; throw it into the trash can. By asking the subjects about their emotional state and measuring their heart rate, the researchers detected the effectiveness of the ritual. The results show that people who perform specific rituals can relieve anxiety more effectively than random behaviors and non-ritual behaviors. This study reminds us that when we have negative emotions such as anxiety and tension due to "staying in place for the New Year", we can perform a ritual to soothe our inner emotions and improve our subjective experience.

Psychological Guide for "Celebrating the New Year in Place" So, for those who "celebrate the New Year in Place", what can they do to increase the sense of ritual? In fact, it is particularly important to abide by the New Year's procedures that have been accustomed to since childhood, and don't break the tradition at will just because you are "alone". For example, if you have to buy a new set of clothes every New Year, then even if there are no social activities during the Spring Festival this year, you still have to buy new clothes. For example, if you keep a plate of whole fish until the first day of the New Year every year, it means "abundance every year", and this year it will be steamed on New Year's Eve as usual. It is worth mentioning that those things that we care about particularly and that our family helped to arrange during the New Year in the past are all good things that can enhance the sense of ritual, so be sure to prepare them in advance.

For example, in some areas of the south, a pot of daffodils is indispensable on the table during the Spring Festival; there are also blessing characters and spring couplets on the door... These decorations that are exclusive to the Spring Festival must be prepared in advance. We can also make themes by day and carefully make a "Spring Festival program list" for our holidays. For example, the first day of the first lunar month is "New Year's Day", on which you should greet all important people; the second day of the first lunar month is "Home Day", stay at home to make up for things that you don't have time to do normally, and "squander" time to your heart's content; the third day of the first lunar month is "Plan Day", make a detailed New Year's plan... If you have arrangements for every day, you will naturally find a sense of ritual and will not feel lonely. If you still have some spare time, you can make a thank you list, think about all the things you want to be grateful for this year, and help clarify what is important to you. Such a review is also helpful in making a wish list for the next year.

In addition, writing a letter to your present self from your future self is also a ritual with great psychological significance. We can try to imagine that we have achieved the most important goal for next year, and review what will happen next year from this perspective. Studies have shown that connecting with your future self in this way can transform difficult challenges into possible challenges, helping you to successfully achieve your goals.

In the new year, we actually need the blessing of ritual in our daily life. For example, in the workplace, we can find some hints or small actions to tell ourselves, "It's time to work." For example, some people can't calm down and write without a cup of Coke on the table; some people have to sing a song to warm up their voices before starting work. There is a very famous "workplace goddess" in Japan, named Katsumi Kazuyo. She once said that when she was preparing for the CPA exam, she would put a mirror on the table.

From the moment she puts the mirror up, she will be fully committed to her work. Because once she slacks off, she will see it clearly in the mirror. So, even after the Chinese New Year, you might as well set up a small ritual for yourself and tell yourself that you must stay focused and work efficiently - to make endless money.

Editor | Chen Tianzhen

Editor | Gao Peiwen

The article was published by the public account "Ten Points Science" (ID: Science_10). Please indicate the source when reprinting.