Finding Oneness in Wonder: Awe Fosters a Powerful Sense of Unity

What is it about?

Have you ever felt a sense of profound wonder—while stargazing, listening to epic music, or seeing a natural wonder—and felt a deep connection to the people around you? Our research explored this powerful feeling. We found that the emotion of awe makes us feel a 'visceral sense of oneness' with the groups we belong to. In our most novel experiment, we used virtual reality to immerse people in an awe-inspiring underwater scene with giant, glowing jellyfish. This experience, though completely unrelated to politics or nationality, actually strengthened participants' sense of connection to their country. This shows that awe doesn't need to be about the group to unite us; rather, any intense experience of awe seems to place us in a state of 'readiness', making us open to forming deeper bonds with the communities that are important to us.

Featured Image

Photo by NASA on Unsplash

Photo by NASA on Unsplash

Why is it important?

In today's world, we often face a conflict between our personal goals and the needs of our communities or even the planet. Our research points to awe as a potential solution to this problem. We found that awe doesn't just make us feel close to a group; it helps to align our personal and collective goals. By fostering a deep sense of oneness, awe channels our individual energy and ambition toward collective causes. This is critical because it suggests that cultivating awe could be a key to unlocking the motivation needed to tackle large-scale collective challenges. While this unifying power can be used to foster positive community bonds, like those felt at music festivals or in volunteer groups, it's also important to understand how it can be misused to create the intense, unthinking loyalty seen in nationalistic rallies. Understanding this emotional mechanism is the first step to harnessing it for good.

Perspectives