As if more were needed...

It seems that there is yet more support for the value of the "Socratic method". Not that any more is needed, of course - but it's always gratifying nonetheless.

A new study has been done which suggests that "people who engaged in social interaction displayed higher levels of cognitive performance" [via ScienceDaily]. So not only does the Socratic method allow for the clear and logical exchange and development of ideas, but it also reflects (and takes advantage of) the value inherent in social intercourse.

The paper itself argues something which struck me as possibly misleading. It does not regard the main result of the research, which was fully supported, but rather an observation that "our society appears to be in a state of social decline". This is certainly true in many respects - a reduction in membership of social and other organisations, for instance - and in some cases could prove worrisome, such as the research which indicates that people have fewer "close others" they can talk to about their innermost thoughts and feelings. However, I felt that there was a very important oversight in this passage - though perfectly forgivable as it was not within the ambit of the paper.

Basically, the definition of "social interaction" was a little narrow for my liking. It seemed to define it solely in terms of "face-to-face" interactions, even though part of the reason for the decline in these interactions is the now-widespread ability to interact socially while not in the same room. I would imagine that visiting friends and family began a shallow decline with the advent of the telephone; a decline which only steepened with the coming of the internet. However, especially in the last ten years, there has been an explosion in what might be called virtual interactions. Millions of people subscribe to social networking sites, fora, blogs, and recommendation networks such as Digg and del.icio.us. In some ways if not in others, we are a more socially connected global society than were just a few decades ago.

There is nothing (at least that I can think of) that would be missing in a long-distance interaction which would negate the apparent cognitively beneficial aspects of social discourse. Unless you want to propose the benefits of proximity to brainwaves from others, of course; but until I see respectable research on that, I'm going to assume it's baloney.

While consideration of this new level of social interaction is unlikely to impact upon the outcome of the research done in this paper, it adds another dimension to the issue. Of course, it's a complex enough issue as it is - needless to say, not all social interactions benefit cognition (it would be hard to believe if that were the case - people exchanging mindless dogmatic racial slurs are thinking more sharply because it's a social activity?); and yet I still embrace this news as reinforcement of the value of Socrates' most important contribution to the world.

[Ybarra, O., Burnstein, E., Winkielman, P., Keller, M.C., Manis, M., Chan, E., Rodriguez, J. (2007). Mental Exercising Through Simple Socializing: Social Interaction Promotes General Cognitive Functioning. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 34(2), 248-259. DOI: 10.1177/0146167207310454]