Participants reported enjoying the human connection regardless of whether they thought the topic was dull
The human aversion to dull experiences was nailed by the author Paulo Coelho when he declared: “I can stand defeats, pain, anger. But I can’t stand boredom.”
But the natural desire to avoid boring conversations comes at a cost, according to researchers, who found that people enjoyed chatting about tedious topics far more than they expected.
The findings, based on conversations among 1,800 volunteers, suggest that by dodging potentially dull exchanges, people miss out on the mood boost and health benefits that connecting with others can bring.
“A lot of people, myself included, cancel small talk, we dread networking events, and we assume that certain topics like the weather or commuting or our daily routines won’t be interesting,” said Elizabeth Trinh, a PhD candidate in management and organisations at the University of Michigan. “But people underestimate how interesting and enjoyable conversations about boring topics will actually be.”
