To test the duration and impact of emotions, researchers Philippe Verduyn and Saskia Lavrijsen from the University of Leuven in Belgium asked 233 high school students to remember recent emotional episodes and how they tried to cope with them. The researchers found that among 27 different emotions, sadness lasted the longest, by far. It typically took people 120 hours to stop feeling sad, but just 30 minutes to get over feelings of disgust and shame. Feelings of hatred typically lasted for 60 hours, followed by joy for 35 hours. And while it may seem like an eternity, the feeling of boredom was also listed among the shorter-lived emotions.
Results interesting, but limited:
- While the results were interesting, the study’s sample size has been considered small and too limited in scope for a cross-sectional study.
- It also was pointed out that young students, with an average age of 17, may be more likely to report feeling sad for longer periods than other age groups.
- Critics said that the results would probably be different for other age and demographic groups.