Should You Listen to Your Gut?
Eva M. Krockow
Most people consider decision-making to be a means to an end. They encounter a choice situation (e.g., how to spend their afternoon off), consider the options (e.g., yoga class, meeting friends, or bingewatching "Game of Thrones" for the third time), and reach a conclusion (e.g., bingewatching it is!).
The decision process typically follows one of two approaches. On the one hand, people may use a quick approach that involves reacting instinctively and simply going with what feels right. This is often referred to as “System 1,” “intuitive” or “gut” decision-making. On the other hand, people may use a slow, deliberate approach that includes careful consideration of all options. This is often called “System 2,” “analytical” or “head” decision-making.
No matter which approach people follow—be it an instinctive reach for the TV remote or a careful weighing of pros and cons—the decisionmaking process helps to get them where they want to be (e.g., sprawled out on the sofa, comfortably watching Jon Snow slaughter White Walkers and wildlings). It is a necessity, ideally resulting in a pleasant outcome.
Recent research, however, offers an entirely new perspective. Rather than viewing decision-making as a chore, psychologists suggest that the act of making a choice may be intrinsically pleasurable and could increase people’s well-being.
EMOTIONAL BENEFITS OF DECISION-MAKING
A team of researchers from Germany and Switzerland conducted a two-week decision-making study (currently a preprint). During this period, 256 participants kept regular decision journals. Whenever they faced a decision, they logged on to the online study site and answered a series of questions.
First, they rated their general mood and provided information about the type of decision they were about to make. Then, participants received instructions to either use their gut or their head to make the decision. Once they’d made their choice, participants were asked to rate their mood again and state how easy and how “right” the decision felt to them.
This completed the initial process of journaling, but participants were able to go back into their journals at a later time and provide follow-up details. For example, they could specify whether or not they had acted upon the decision made.
The study produced several surprising results. Firstly, people’s happiness ratings increased after they made a choice. It thus appeared that decision-making improved people’s moods.
Additionally, the findings showed some interesting differences in the effects of intuitive gut choices and analytical head choices. The emotional boost of decisionmaking was greater if participants had made their choice quickly using their gut. Also, follow-up decision records showed that people were more likely to implement a decision if they had used an intuitive approach. This led the researchers to conclude that making fast, instinctive choices was beneficial to people’s well-being.
ADVANTAGES OF GOING WITH YOUR GUT
Should people avoid lengthy rumination or procrastination to help them feel better? According to recent evidence, quick gut decisions could be an underexplored tool to promote well-being.
There are several potential reasons for the surprising benefits of intuitive choices. First, efficiency and decisiveness help to get things done, thereby playing into inherent human preferences for completing tasks, which I discussed in a related post. Also, the subjective ease experienced during instinctive decision-making could trigger positive emotions. Finally, the process of turning inward and listening to one’s gut may increase personal insights and help to connect with the subconscious.
Research indicates that gut decisions are most frequent when people make choices about leisure activities and social relationships. Yet, scope exists to increase the role of intuitive judgments in other areas of life—for example, in the context of healthrelated decision-making. Could you boost your happiness by increasing the number of instinctive judgments about exercise options and medical choices?
Despite the immediate emotional benefits of gut decision-making, some caution may be warranted when making major life choices. The study outlined above has yet to be published; it also didn’t include a long-term follow-up and failed to consider the consequences of intuitive decision-making beyond the two-week research period. While following your gut may increase short-term happiness, this doesn’t guarantee long-term satisfaction with the choices made.
Gut decisions are inherently prone to reasoning errors and biases, meaning that not all quick choices render optimal results. Sometimes, being a slow thinker can be beneficial. Big decisions with life-changing consequences in particular may require a more measured approach. After all, you don’t want to rush into a marriage or choose your forever home on a short-lived whim—no matter how good the decision feels in the moment.