YKS 2019 · Soru 77

(I) Humans need social interaction, so depriving them of social contact, like when prisoners are sent to solitary confinement, is recognised by psychologists as a form of torture. (II) On the other hand, too much social interaction can be tiring; engaging with someone is a lot of work for the brain. (III) This explains the apparent contradiction between humans needing social interaction, but also needing privacy. (IV) The social brain hypothesis, first put forward in the 90s, suggests that our sociable nature is why we have such developed brains. (V) Social interaction wears our brain out, so we need privacy to get away for a bit and recharge.