I do not know about you, but charlotte London escorts miss the physical contact and emotional closeness that used to be between people. In my experience, there is a huge difference between how people cuddle today and how they did in the past. People used to cuddle because they were close friends or romantic partners who enjoyed being so close. Nowadays, however, it seems as though people just want to snuggle or sleep next to one another for warmth or comfort rather than physically bond through cuddling.
This phenomenon has been coined “cuddle deprivation” and can lead some of us towards severe depression or even have certain physiological effects such as decreased immune system function and increased risk of diabetes. Cuddle deprivation, or “CD”, can affect us all in different ways.
Charles Darwin (1872), the famous biologist and evolutionist, once commented that “No social animal ever existed, which could compel its members to visit each other. A dog sometimes wags his tail to his fellow, but that is not co-operation.” He was quite right. Small groups of closely related animals with the same social structure form across species and over time because they are more efficient ways to conserve resources and exploit them.
If you have ever observed a pack of wolves roaming through the woods, you may have noticed that there is a dominance hierarchy within wolf packs. The alpha wolf, the most dominant member of the pack, has a lot of power and can do as he or she pleases; however, most of the pack members are submissive and follow orders without question. These social structures have been observed to evolve over time in many species including humans (Hrdy 2002).
Humans are literally the exception to Darwin’s theory of evolution. Most species in the animal kingdom do not form social groups where each member of a group can exert their dominance over others. Take a look at a litter of newborn puppies, for instance; they are all equal and cannot compete with each other to gain dominance over any other individual pup.
So why do humans form groups when they could just as easily live on their own? That’s a good question. And the answer is that we are social beings by nature and have developed this collective, cooperative way of life to obtain the most “bang for our buck” in terms of survival efficiency. Many animals can survive on their own, but few animals cannot prosper when living cooperatively.
Take, for example, the bonobo chimpanzees. These apes are at the top of the food chain and usually live alone; however, when food becomes scarce bonobos join forces to share resources in order to ensure that all members get nourishment (Havighurst 1957). This is a prime example of the evolution of social structure.
People in the modern world are beginning to seek new ways to interact with one another, ways that are not as forceful or competitive as our traditional, competitive social structure. Some people understand that we need each other, but they do not know how to cooperate. We all need a sense of belonging and intimacy in order to be healthy and happy. When we have a good friend or significant other who listens and cares about us, who helps us out when we are in a tough spot, we feel safer and better equipped to face challenges and survive.
A sense of belonging also goes hand-in-hand with trust.…