The Emotion that Opens us Sky-Wide

A Story

A few weeks ago I was sitting at my dining room table, across from a new Mom-friend, sipping tea. Our kids, new school friends, played rambunctiously in the other room. We talked about where we grew up and our careers. Then we got talking about religion and spirituality, and she asked me more about my background, and if we were introducing any faith to our kids? 

I loved this question, though I had no clear answer. I rambled, sharing that I’m agnostic now, and what my experiences with religion were like growing up. But, I mentioned, something simple like admiring a rainbow with my kids – or better yet, being preoccupied with something when one of my kids interrupts me with, “Mom, it’s rainbow weather!” (dark rain clouds passing and sun peaking out), and “We better go look out the windows or outside for rainbows!” – this is my kind of spirituality. 

When I turned the question on my friend, she said something far more succinct and poignant: “I know what you mean, I’m similar – I want our kids to feel a sense of awe about the world.”

It got me thinking about this pithy word, awe. What is it exactly? Is it an emotion, a cognitive response, or something else? And why does spotting a giant rainbow out of the blue, visiting an ancient ruin at sunrise, or meeting someone we really admire feel so powerful and beneficial to our well-being? Can we invite it into our lives, or does it just come, on its own time?

The Science

What is Awe?

Awe is considered an emotion, usually positive. But unlike other positive emotions, it doesn’t make us smile. Rather, our eyebrows lift, our eyes widen, our jaws drop, and we visibly inhale. Researchers speculate that these physical displays of awe help us see better, and cause moderate physiological arousal, which enhances our experience of awe. It's miraculous to me that awe may run in a sort of loop, reinforcing itself.

Two of the pioneering researchers on the topic, Jonathan Haidt (yes, that Jonathan Haidt, who later turned to focusing on the epidemic of teen mental illness and wrote the best-sellling book “The Anxious Generation,”) and Dacher Keltner proposed in their seminal 2003 paper that awe involves two key appraisals: 

1. Perceiving “vastness” – something larger than ourselves whether in size or just conceptually, and 

2. “A need for accommodation,” (a term borrowed from Jean Piaget) or having to adjust how we think about the world.

After all, things are awe-inspiring because they don’t quite fit with our everyday order of what we expect. We may react with surprise, a mood lift, or overwhelm. Sometimes the overwhelm feels threatening or scary; awe is not always a pleasant experience. But I’m curious about the times it is pleasant, and how it impacts us.

How Does Awe Benefit Us?

1. Awe Shifts us Out of Self-Centeredness

While emotions like joy and surprise tend to keep us focused on ourselves, research shows awe moves us beyond ourselves and towards something larger. And it can actually feel comforting and assuring to feel “small.” I think of most every time I’ve taken in the expansive view from the top of a mountain. I not only enjoy the physical beauty, I love feeling like one small spec in the giant web of life.   

2. Awe Opens up our Sense of Time

Awe can make us feel less restricted for time, even if nothing has changed in our circumstances. In 2012, Rudd, Vohs and Aaker conducted a study in which participants engaged in a series of things they were told were unrelated. Participants in group one watched a commercial with vast and potentially overwhelming content, like astronauts in space and waterfalls. Participants in group two watched a commercial of a group of people encountering a lively and joyful parade. After watching these commercials, participants in group one (the awe-struck group) reported feeling like they had more time at their disposal. For most of us in our highly demanding, scheduled culture, feeling expansive about time really reduces stress. 

3. Awe Inspires Us to Be Better People

Awe may well cause us to be more empathic and caring. In the study I described above in which participants watched commercials, the group that watched the awe-inspiring commercial responded afterwards they were more willing to volunteer their time to a charity, compared to the other group. 

Further, in a 2014 experiment lead by Paul Piff, an experimenter took a group of undergraduate students to a spot on campus. Group one was directed to look up at a huge stand of eucalyptus trees. Group two was instructed to look up at a building. As we might guess, the students who looked up at the trees reported feeling more awe. Next, not knowing this was planned, the experimenter tripped and dropped a bunch of pens. Which group helped pick up more pens? The group who had just looked up at the trees.

Can We Make Ourselves Feel Awe?

I'd say we can't force or manufacture any emotion, but I think it’s clear we can set ourselves up for awe, whether or not it actually manifests. People already do this all the time, whether it’s going to see fireworks on the fourth of July, visiting a national park, or hearing their favorite musician in concert. But these are one-off events that can take money, time and planning.

To really harness awe for our mental health and sense of connectedness and meaning, I think it needs to be invited into our daily lives in more simple, doable ways.

Looking for ways to feel awe more often? Here are a few of my ideas: 

1. Start an “Awe Folder” on your phone or device, and add photos of people, things or places (whether you know them or just saw them on the internet) that amaze you. When you’re tempted to mindlessly scroll, look at these images instead. Really take your time and savor them. Add new photos as you find them, and swap out ones that have lost their oomph.

2. Make an “Awe Playlist” of music. What are the songs that most take your breath away, maybe because of their beauty, or because they remind you of a particular powerful experience you had? When you play the songs, consider just sitting back and listening.

3. Go on an “Awe Walk.” Simply look out for anything vast or mind-boggling. For me, it’s often looking up at the sky. The sky is huge, varied, and constantly changing. Even on a typical winter-in-the-PNW overcast day, there is a certain quality of light, shades of white and gray, and incredible spaciousness. And you never know – on some rare days, there’s even a rainbow.

Let’s Look at You

When are some times you have felt awe?

How might you invite more awe into your new year?