How crying for joy helps you stay in control

IT is one of biology’s great quirks – why do people cry with joy?

But now psychologists think they have worked out exactly why humans shed tears in moments of extreme happiness.

According to scientists, it may be the body’s way of keeping emotions in check.

Experts believe that tempering an overwhelmingly positive emotion with a negative physical reaction helps people to control the energy-sapping high.

Yale University psychologist Oriana Aragon, who led the research, said: ‘People may be restoring emotional equilibrium with these expressions.

They seem to take place when people are overwhelmed ... and people who do this seem to recover better.’

The team, whose findings are published in the journal Psychological Science, cited other similar reactions including people laughing when they are nervous. Their study, which tested 680 people, found those who displayed these ‘dimorphous’ emotions tended to show a bigger drop-off in intense emotion after five minutes.

Miss Aragon said: ‘These insights advance our understanding of how people express and control their emotions, which is importantly related to mental and physical health, the quality of relationships with others, and even how well people work together.’