{"id":8376,"date":"2014-08-15T09:16:37","date_gmt":"2014-08-15T06:16:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.learning-mind.com\/?p=8376"},"modified":"2020-08-30T21:48:01","modified_gmt":"2020-08-30T18:48:01","slug":"the-power-and-psychology-of-words-on-our-minds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.learning-mind.com\/the-power-and-psychology-of-words-on-our-minds\/","title":{"rendered":"The Power and Psychology of Words on Our Minds"},"content":{"rendered":"
\u201cNo matter what people tell you, words and ideas can change the world.\u201d<\/p>\n
~Robin Williams<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
There is this overwhelming notion among a large part of society that “words don’t matter” and until action sees the light of day, then what we say does not matter. But the psychology of words tells a different story.<\/p>\n
To those people and naysayers, I would love to explain to you why it is that words do matter and the profound effect they have on each and every one of us<\/strong>.<\/p>\n
Because unless someone stands up to those with hearts full of doubt, nothing will ever get better, and this world deserves to become a place where words can both lift us from the precipice and send us on an adventure through the lens of our neighbor.<\/p>\n
The Psychology of Words and Our Brains<\/h2>\n
Let’s begin with how words function and process within our brains. University of College London’s Dr. Scott<\/strong> explains,<\/p>\n
“The brain takes speech and separates it into words and ‘melody’ – the varying intonation in speech that reveals mood, gender and so on. Words are then shunted over to the left temporal lobe for processing while the melody is channeled to the right side of the brain, a region more stimulated by music.”<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
This new research<\/a> is ground-breaking because it explains why the rhythm and intonation of a person’s voice affect us on such a deep emotional level<\/strong>.<\/p>\n
The reason when we listen to someone like Dr. Martin Luther King<\/a> give a speech in comparison to an average person read aloud his “I Have A Dream” speech, the two are going to give you two very different reactions<\/strong>.<\/p>\n
The strong and melodic manner of speaking that Dr. King gave on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial instills a sense of awe and admiration in people listening.<\/p>\n
The content of his words was only half of the magic that allowed his speech to touch millions, the other being his intonation and the rhythm in which he spoke those famous words, “I have a dream.<\/em>”<\/p>\n
How Words Predict Our Behavior<\/h2>\n
Words are more than simply tools for us to change our emotional state or express how we feel. Recent studies and insight from leading behavioral specialists have begun to utilize the words of people<\/a> as accurate predictors of their behavior and mental state.<\/p>\n
Psychology-chair at the University of Texas Dr. James W. Pennebaker says<\/a>,\u00a0“The way that people refer to themselves and others is highly diagnostic of their mental state.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n