Its sympathetic, our species relies entirely on social acceptance, everything in our brains is made to convince others that we fit in and spot why others dont fit in, so cringing shows to anyone looking at you “i sympathise with that person and share in their pain” in an effort to make them think “hmm that person belongs”.
your brain is still that of a caveman, sometimes it has trouble discerning between physical damage and social damage. when you’re about to get run into by something you “cringe” to protect your head and vital organs from major damage. knowing the emotional and social implications of someone doing something embarrassing sends a signal to your brain that you’re seeing something “dangerous” and your immediate reaction is to protect yourself.
The vargus nerve! It’s a small neural group/muscle on our head that is directly attached to the emotional center of the brain. It processes our phsycial reaction to emotional thoughts.
Dacker Kilter does a great lecture on this. Apparently the development of the vargus nerve directly correlates with the ability to empathize and other social – emotional intelligence.
It kind of feels like pain. I might make a wincing face when cringing. I’ve heard that emotions like disgust although highly symbolic it is “felt” in our guts. Broken heart syndrome is felt as pain in the chest often confused with a heart attack. Perhaps the cringe emotion is processed highjacking the pain receptors. Perhaps we can use language as clues. I think of bombing (on stage) and getting burned as cringe worthy. Both are painful: getting burned and exploding. Maybe cringe highjacks our nevous system?
Edit: I’m just a human not a scientist.
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