Why are oddly satisfying videos, satisfying?
I wanna make sure we’re on the same page here. We’re talking about the well-known satisfying videos, like the ones cutting soap, playing around with slime, removing paint from the bottom of a bucket, or the ones with the hydraulic press crushing things; or straight up cleaning videos: A pressure washer removing the dirt off a street, or a video of some guys cleaning a room or restocking food on shelves.
So
In the past days I quit my old day job and got a new one, moved to a different studio, the one you saw in the last video, also got into a different gym and with all those changes I decided it would be good to clean my house and take out a lot of useless stuff that is basically rubbish. On Tuesday I cleaned the garage and it felt so satisfying taking out everything that I needed to throw away… and it kept feeling satisfying throughout the days, just looking at the almost empty and now clean room, but why?
I am never satisfied with a half ass response so I researched a
little bit about the pleasure we get from those videos and how it may also
translate into daily life. Here’s what I found:
Chapter 1: ASMR, relief and symmetry.
Oddly satisfying videos affect our eyes in a way similar to
ASMR affecting our ears. The response may not be as strong, as most people
don’t feel a strong tingling sensation (the one who ASMR audio causes) but the
principle is basically the same, a brain massage, something that may relax us or
relieve stress or anxiety at least a little bit, due to the release of
serotonin and dopamine. (anyway, these videos are not a substitute for
therapy. Please look for professional help if you need it.)
It may also help you if you suffer from OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder) like I do, as the main goal from most the videos is to make a surface smooth or clean, and some of the videos trigger a sense of completion, like you’re done with something. It appeals to the human preference for symmetry and perfection. We like to see a perfectly drawn circle, or square, same with a perfectly clean street or paint bucket.
However, some of these videos like the slime ones are not
cleaning up or making the surface smoother, but instead rougher or making kind
of a mess; then why are they satisfying as well? Simple, because they send the
idea of a tactile response to your brain, you can imagine how smooth the
surface may be, you can almost feel the sensation on your fingertips; and that
is relatable, which works as a Segway into the next chapter.
Chapter 2: The videos are relatable.
Even if there are exceptions to this rule, as some
of the videos are recorded in factories with enormous machines and dangerous
jobs, a lot of the other actions performed can be replicated by anybody, for
example the slime videos, slime tends to be really cheap to buy or to make,
same with the soap cutting ones, as all you need is a bar of soap and a cutter
or a knife. It also works with cleaning, like I did this week. It was
satisfying to see cleaning videos, same with cleaning myself. I can relate to
the content because is something I can do myself, with my hands.
Dr Anita Deák, a psychology professor at the University of Pécs,
thinks that one of the reasons why people are saying that watching these videos
help them feel relaxed is because of something called mirror neuron theory.
(narrated) “Mirror neurons are motor neurons in the
brain that become active when we see someone doing an action, but these neurons
are also active when we do the action.”
In essence, viewers are deriving pleasure from these videos as
if they were actually conducting the action themselves.
According to Professor Robert Colombo, these are the same neurotransmitters
that fire when humans eat sugar, have sex, or get a notification on their
phones. Pleasure, in common language.
To finalize, I would like to point out that, even if I mentioned that watching these videos doesn’t substitute professional mental help, they can help as an extra support to said therapy. If cleaning, playing with slime or watching heavy machinery makes you relief anxiety, stress and overall feel better, please keep watching them. I am glad you can help yourself in a harmless way.
All the articles I read to research, will be down below. Please also visit my website: blaxonk.jimdosite.com and my social media. You have a new idea for a video? Send me a message or comment on any video, I’d love to read what you wanna see here. For now, have a nice night and keep dnzng!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oddly_satisfying_videos
https://www.wired.co.uk/article/oddly-satisfying-videos-explained-psychology-youtube
https://www.lemonade.com/blog/oddly-satisfying-videos-instagram-reddit/
https://www.bustle.com/wellness/texts-comfort-feeling-anxious-therapists
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