Korean Job Discussion Forums

[mulligc3]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/8339647.stm

An attack of the grumps can make you communicate better, it is suggested

In a bad mood? Don't worry - according to research, it's good for you.

An Australian psychology expert who has been studying emotions has found being grumpy makes us think more clearly.

In contrast to those annoying happy types, miserable people are better at decision-making and less gullible, his experiments showed.

While cheerfulness fosters creativity, gloominess breeds attentiveness and careful thinking, Professor Joe Forgas told Australian Science Magazine.
The University of New South Wales researcher says a grumpy person can cope with more demanding situations than a happy one because of the way the brain "promotes information processing strategies".

Negative moods trigger more attentive, careful thinking, paying greater attention to the external world
Professor Joe Forgas

He asked volunteers to watch different films and dwell on positive or negative events in their life, designed to put them in either a good or bad mood.

Next he asked them to take part in a series of tasks, including judging the truth of urban myths and providing eyewitness accounts of events.

Those in a bad mood outperformed those who were jolly - they made fewer mistakes and were better communicators.

[No_hite_pls]

I love this article!

[Bloopity Bloop]

Indeed, it's pretty damn interesting.

It's also one of those studies that trigger that hindsight notion of, "I knew that!" Whenever you're grumpy, any little thing someone does could set you off.

[mmstyle]

I saw it before I saw your post. I loved it too, because I was feeling very grumpy this morning. I feel validated now. Uh-oh, I'm smiling, and may end up happy and unable to think clearly for the rest of the day!

[VanIslander]

what a load of crap

[Sector7G]

[beercanman]

This has been known for a long time. The article makes it sound like some new and important discovery. I read similar stuff 20 years ago. Akin to this is the old news that mildly depressed (ie not psychotic) people are better at self-assessment of their strengths and weaknesses, more realistic, whereas generally cheerful people are more likely to overestimate their abilities.

[beercanman]

here's another article that includes some potential benefits of laziness and swearing among other things.

http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/editors-choice/2009/11/04/why-being-grumpy-can-be-good-for-you-86908-21796720/

[nero]

But is it chicken and egg?
The grumpiest people I know are also the most cynical and the most cynical people I know are generally the most intelligent - therefore more likely to perform better in tests/make better decisions.

[Fox]

[beercanman]

^ Thus proving once and for all that chickens are the most intelligent creatures on Earth.

[DWAEJIMORIGUKBAP]

Overly cheery people are covering up deep feelings of sadness, insecurity etc. They are usually out of touch with reality and despite all their pc crap and all their facades at sensitivity they are the least sensitive to others when others don't suscribe to their ways of thinking. They often have problems dealing with anything that presents itself os difficult, negative etc and they use denial as they can't cope with acknowledgement of and then proccessing it, understanding it and then coming to terms with it.

I've met so many whackjobs in Korea who were all pc and happy clappy especially in social situations and after a few times meeting them you find the flaws start showing through...

Same goes with the deliberate overly cynical people, you know the ones who revel in it, wallow in it, show it off etc. It becomes their whole persona 'hey I'm the chandler type guy, love me I'm self effacing and ironic!' They lose the ability to be genuine and respond genuinely sometimes.

As always balance is the key.

I no longer trust people who are overly cheery or whom affect the whole cynical ironic persona. I find the overly cheery ones the worst though as I let myself get to know them, have some cool times and then find out some tiny little remark, joke or comment I made got taken out of context and now I'm branded as the evil one lol... Ironically doesn't take very much for this type of character to display a hidden utter lack of tolerance and open mindedness to any one who isn't also ridiculously happy clappy. At least with the 'I'm so ironic and cynical' persona, you might be able to snap them out of it from time to time....

Once a so called friend stoped hanging about with me as we went to a restaurant and had gimbap once. She waxed lyrical about it. I was like 'Kimbap is okay as a snack, but I'm not that keen on it.' After that I was the evil one. Something so simple as giving your honest opinion that wasn't 100% in agreement or 100% positive. Small minded idiots if you ask me... another couldn't handle it if I mentioned soemthing I'd seen on the news or had happened to a friend or familly member that wasn't 100% positive so would blank out and leave as soon as someting not 100% positive came into the conversation.

No looking at the whole person or evaluating all extenuating factors of a sitaution for these folks... Oh no because basically what they're really all about is 'if things don't go really well all the time or if I don't feel really safe or really secure ALL THE TIME - I AM GOING TO FREAK THE F____ OUT!!!!!! Why do a lot of these people come from the Western Coast of the USA btw...?

And what about the happpy clappy types who if you go to watch a movie and you don't rave about it afterwards and you just give an educated, well informed and honest critique of the film? Lord you'd think their whole world had fallen apart and you were instead attacking them (as they're actually quite egocentric) rather than the movie or that because you wasn't 100% positive, the evening was ruined or that you were saying you weren't having a good time with them when in fact just because the movie wasn't GREAT for you, you're still having fun hanging out because for you things don't have to be 100% all the time.

Give me a grumps any day of the week thanks very much.

[AmericanExile]

I'm a bit grumpy currently as I can't sleep and it's 6:25 am. I don't know if it is the grumpiness talking, but was his sample all Australians? It could just be a culture thing.

Sadly, intelligence is less related to success than optimism. Being grumpy may enhance certain mental faculties, but people don't like being around grumpy people. They are less likely to get jobs and promotions than positive people.

[VanIslander]

Oscar the Grouch is smarter than Fozzie Bear? Who knew.

[kan555]

Well thank f*ck for that! Now I have an excuse for my grumpy demeanor. I'm tired of being the only one dodging foot traffic. EVERYONE...pass on the left!