The Heart of the Matter: Why Context Rules

GeekNurse has posted a tracing of a baby’s heart activity. It’s one of those occasions where a straight reading might have prompted concern that there was a major cardiac problem. However, with the nurse’s special understanding of the context, the trace is correctly interpreted as innocent of any sinister problem (I’m not giving the solution here, it’s a nice surprise). [April 2006 edit. Sadly, this excellent blog has been taken down so this example is no longer available. The solution was that the nurse had been present when the baby hiccoughed, causing the irregularity in the trace.]

I’m attracted to this example because it is a striking instance of the need to understand the full context of data before interpreting it appropriately. And this is yet another re-working of my continued thinking on the topic of whether unhappiness is a symptom or a passing phase.

Unhappiness is inevitable as a response to life events: it is appropriate in the current context of that life. There may come a point when the degree of unhappiness paralyses a person’s ability to function on many levels, both socially and economically. Somewhere on that continuum unhappiness became a symptom in need of a remedy or intervention, whether pharmacological or psychosocial. Identifying that point of cross-over seems to be an art-form.

Positive psychology emphasises the many benefits of positive emotions, from greater personal success to better immune systems and improved longevity. One of the most repeatable findings seems to be that unhappiness is inevitable, but it is our resilience to life events and circumstances that governs our outcomes. It seems that we can cultivate resilience by cultivating positive emotions.