Happiness and Compliments: How Altruism, Human Interaction, and Feedback Influence Our Moods

Abstract

Compliments are one of the most basic and popular forms of positive communication. Much of the existing literature (Vonk, 2002; Marigold, Holmes, & Ross, 2007; Buchanan & Bardi, 2010; Aknin, Hamlin, & Dunn, 2012) asserts that both receiving compliments and performing acts of kindness promote happiness, but there is a dearth of research about whether giving a compliment has the same effect. The present study sought to investigate both the change in happiness that arises from giving a compliment and whether that happiness is derived from simply giving the compliment or from the positive feedback (e.g., being thanked) that often follows such an act of kindness.