The Real World Benefits of Expressing Gratitude

By Christopher L. Heffner, PsyD, PhD

Gratitude: As Old as Animal Kind

Gratitude may be an evolutionary component of human development, passed down for thousands of years according to sociologist Georg Simmel (Greater Good Magazine, n.d.). While we may think of it as something personal and internal, it is also considered an important social skill that helps humans interact with each other. Researchers as far back as Charles Darwin have been suggesting that the expression of emotions related to gratitude help us feel connected (Suchak, 2017)...