Gaby
We all have days when we feel especially generous—and other days when we hold on to our money. A new study found that the desire to donate to charity may depend on how well someone slept the night before.
What Scientists Discovered
A team of researchers from the University of Bern (Switzerland) says people are more likely to donate money to charity if they had a good night’s sleep.
The researchers enrolled 54 adults in an experiment designed to study prosocial behavior—actions that benefit other people.
Initially, the scientists recorded the participants’ brain activity during a typical night’s sleep using sensors. The following day, volunteers played a game in which they were given tokens worth real money. Participants decided whether to keep the tokens or donate a portion “for the greater good.”
Results showed that people with higher levels of slow-wave sleep activity (a marker of deeper sleep) were more likely to donate money.
That brain activity showed up in the right temporal lobe, a region linked to thinking about other people, the Daily Mail reported. The duration of participants’ sleep did not appear to affect their decisions during the game.
In their report, the team wrote: “Prosocial behavior is vital for maintaining the integrity of our society. These results contribute to the formation of a new concept explaining the connection between sleep and prosocial behavior.”
Good sleep quality is typically defined by the ability to fall asleep quickly (within 15 minutes) and to stay asleep without waking up frequently throughout the night.
People who sleep soundly and for longer periods usually feel rested throughout the day and report satisfaction with their nighttime sleep.
The findings of the study were published in the journal Neuroscience.
A previous study by researchers at the University of Calgary (Canada) also found a significant link between a person’s sleep quality and their ability to empathize with others.
