The MRI results showed that people for whom this effect was the strongest--those whose exposure to diverse experiences was more strongly associated with positive feeling ("affect")--exhibited greater correlation between brain activity in the hippocampus and the striatum. These are brain regions that are associated, respectively, with the processing of novelty and reward-- beneficial or subjectively positive experiences.
- Study authors used GPS to track participants for up to 4 months, regularly texting them to ask about their positive and negative emotional states.
- People who were the most active explorers also reported the most positive emotional states.
- Later, some participants underwent MRI scans, and the results showed that the brain actively rewards us for experiencing new things and switching locations.
- People feel happier when they experience different things and visit new places often, but it’s unclear whether people with less interesting experiences actually feel sadder.
- What’s important, even small changes - exercising at home, walking around your neighborhood, choosing a different route to go shopping - can have a positive impact.
