Expressing Your Opinion Is Good For Mental Health

Not agreeing with others or thinking differently makes us stressed  due to the fact that we are social beings who feel comfortable when we belong to a group. This is why it can sometimes be scary to express your opinion. We do not want to be rejected, offended or encourage instability in the environment.

But not expressing our personal opinion for fear of being rejected or excluded makes us deviate from who we are. This can also lead to  stagnation in the group or society. A group cannot develop if all its members are constantly in agreement.

The great breakthroughs in the world were possible thanks to the people who decided to raise their voices and express their opinion, even when others did not agree with them. If Martin Luther King had not expressed his views on discrimination based on skin color, civil rights would never have changed. Another perfect example is Nelson Mandela and many others throughout history.

It takes courage to express your opinion, especially when it contradicts others. People seek mutual identification through consensus. Those who put the group at risk are often expelled,  at least initially. Such exclusion includes everything from small gestures of disapproval to exclusion from the group.

The majority usually tend to force themselves, and when we express an opinion that differs from it, we put ourselves in the spotlight. And when we feel overwhelmed, we are guaranteed to feel psychological pressure. That’s why you need to be brave when expressing your opinion.

This is an  almost  instinctive question. People need other people to survive. Your physical and psychological survival depends on it, as it will be difficult for you to survive if you are completely alone. To go against the majority, you must defy this survival instinct. And it’s not easy.

In the 1950s, Solomon Asch – an American psychologist – performed various experiments on peer pressure and its effects. He demonstrated that it was very difficult to deviate from the majority.

In his experiments, researchers under the guise of forcing incorrect answers on others. The result? Less than 37% of the individuals studied chose the majority’s incorrect answers, even though they thought they were incorrect.

A few years later, neuroeconomist Gregory Berns studied how the brain changes when someone isolates themselves from the majority. He concluded that  by disagreeing, one increases activity in the amygdala, which processes emotions such as fear. However, those who followed the group showed lower stress levels.

It is emotionally easier to adapt to a group than to express an opinion that goes against the majority. But if we all behave like a flock of sheep following only others, we will probably contribute to the cementing of totalitarianism, and there would be no collective progress.

Researcher Charlan Nemeth from the University of California, Berkeley, proved that  jury trials were much fairer when one of the members did not agree with the majority. These disagreements tend to encourage a reassessment of facts and circumstances.

When someone questions the opinion of the majority, those who agree with it will feel compelled to gather more evidence to prove their point of view. And that’s a good thing.

Expressing your opinion is very important. You have to be loyal to yourself. You may be wrong, but it does not matter. The most fundamental thing is to let your conscience guide you and regain your right to think differently.

As a social species, it is important to learn to listen to those who think differently, and focus on the most valid arguments without thinking about how many agree or disagree.