Physical proximity as pleasure or pain? A critical review of employee–customer proximity in sales and services settings

This paper presents a critical review of published findings pertaining to the physical proximity between employees and customers in various sales and service settings. Following an overview of this stream of research, reflections are then offered on how the concepts of personal space and physical proximity may have changed in terms of their financial and well-being-related effects as a function of the COVID-19 pandemic. Due to the risk of infection in interpersonal interactions, and despite the affiliative aspects associated with physical proximity, recent recipes for success—as advocated by academics—may eventually have a negative impact on multiple crucial metrics in a post-pandemic world, such that employees' physical proximity to customers may soon come with a wide array of costly consequences. The article concludes with a set of future research directions.

Without a mask: Judgments of Corona virus exposure as a function of inter personal distance

In order to minimize the risk of infection during the Covid-19 pandemic, people are recommended to keep interpersonal distance (e.g., 1 m, 2 m, 6 feet), wash their hands frequently, limit social contacts and sometimes to wear a face mask. We investigated how people judge the protective effect of interpersonal distance against the Corona virus. The REM model, based on earlier empirical studies, describes how a person's virus exposure decreases with the square of the distance to another person emitting a virus in a face to face situation. In a comparison with model predictions, most participants underestimated the protective effect of moving further away from another person. Correspondingly, most participants were not aware of how much their exposure would increase if they moved closer to the other person. Spectral analysis of judgments showed that a linear ratio model with the independent variable = (initial distance)/(distance to which a person moves) was the most frequently used judgment rule. It leads to insensitivity to change in exposure compared with the REM model. The present study indicated a need for information about the effects of keeping interpersonal distance and about the importance of virus carrying aerosols in environments with insufficient air ventilation. Longer conversations emitting aerosols in a closed environment may lead to ambient concentrations of aerosols in the air that no distance can compensate for. The results of the study are important for risk communications in countries where people do not wear a mask and when authorities consider removal of a recommendation or a requirement to wear a face mask. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Neural underpinnings of social difficulties of lonely people

Loneliness is subjective experience of perceived social isolation that occurs when a person feels their network of social relationships is deficient either quantitatively or qualitatively. Loneliness is a prevalent condition with harmful effects on physical and mental health. Evolutionary theory suggests that loneliness had evolved as an internal signal to drive people to reconnect, much like hunger drives people to seek food. However, chronic loneliness may result in a negative bias, leading individuals to believe their social environment would not provide them with protection and help, which results in an activation of neural, neuroendocrine, and behavioral responses geared towards self-preservation and survival. Those reactions paradoxically end up driving lonely individuals away from social interactions. Loneliness was associated with altered structure and function of several brain areas, comprising neural networks related to visual attention, empathy, self-efficacy, pain processing, reward, craving, self-other representation, and social cognition. In this dissertation I focused on one network that was repeatedly found to be involved in social interactions and is relevant for loneliness, which is the Mirror Neuron System (MNS). The MNS was proposed to enable the understanding and interpretation of the meaning of actions performed by others, and it includes the action observation (AO) network, and specifically two main areas that are the inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) and the inferior parietal lobule (IPL). The AO network was suggested to be involved in various psychiatric conditions;however little was known with regards to its involvement in loneliness.This dissertation focused on three basic components, all of which are critical to achieving positive social interactions. The 1st component was approaching or allowing another person to get physically close, which is crucial for the initiation of contact. The 2nd component was engaging in a joint activity that becomes increasingly synchronize, which is critical for the creation of feelings of connectedness and satisfaction from the interaction. The 3rd component was perceiving positive social touch, which is critical for the creation of closer relationships and social connectedness. Each of these behaviors naturally involves various neural networks. However, there is evidence that all three involve common areas central to the AO system, further justifying our focus on this network in the dissertation. The goal of the studies reported in this dissertation was to investigate the social behavior of lonely individuals on a behavioral and a neural level, using neuroimaging and neuro-stimulation methods.In the first study, 479 participants completed an online task that experimentally assessed interpersonal distance preferences in four conditions-passively being approached by a friend or a stranger, and actively approaching a friend or a stranger. The study was conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic, and therefore it presented an opportunity to examine another type of loneliness, which was more situational in nature. This was due to social distancing, and, at times, complete isolation demands during the pandemic. Therefore, a secondary aim of the study was to explore whether perceived situational loneliness that is related to COVID-19 impacts interpersonal distance preferences differently than chronic, trait loneliness. Results showed that high chronic loneliness was related to a greater preferred distance across conditions. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Exploring the effects of COVID-19 on motorcycle riding patterns and its importance.

A motorcycle refers to a two-wheeled, personal mobility vehicle used for daily transportation and leisure activities. Leisure enables social interaction, and motorcycle riding could be an activity that facilitates social interactions and distancing. Therefore, grasping the importance of riding motorcycles during the pandemic-which involved social distancing and limited leisure activities-can be valuable. However, researchers have yet to examine its potential importance during the pandemic. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the importance of personal space and time spent with others in the context of motorcycle riding during the COVID-19 pandemic. We specifically explored the effects of COVID-19 on riding patterns and importance of riding motorcycle by examining whether these factors differed regarding changes in the frequency of motorcycle riding before and during the pandemic in daily and leisure-oriented transportation. Data were collected from 1,800 motorcycle users in Japan using a web-based survey conducted in November 2021. Respondents replied to questions concerning the importance of personal space and time spent with others attributed to motorcycle riding before and during the pandemic. Following the survey, we conducted a two-way repeated measures analysis of variance (two-factor ANOVA) and performed a simple main effect analysis using the SPSS syntax editor in case of interactions. The valid samples for motorcyclists with leisure motive (leisure-oriented users) and daily transportation motive (daily users) numbered n = 890 and n = 870, respectively (total n = 1,760, 95.5%). Each valid sample was divided into three groups based on the differences in motorcycle riding frequency before and during the pandemic: unchanged, increased frequency, and decreased frequency. The two-factor ANOVA results showed significant differences in the interaction effects for leisure-oriented and daily users regarding personal space and time spent with others. The mean value of the "increased frequency" group during the pandemic indicated significantly higher importance of personal space and time spent with others than the other groups. Motorcycle riding could enable daily transportation and leisure-oriented users to practice social distancing while simultaneously spending time with companions and alleviating loneliness and isolation during the pandemic.

Interdigitated Columnar Representation of Personal Space and Visual Space in Human Parietal Cortex.

Personal space (PS) is the space around the body that people prefer to maintain between themselves and unfamiliar others. Intrusion into personal space evokes discomfort and an urge to move away. Physiologic studies in nonhuman primates suggest that defensive responses to intruding stimuli involve the parietal cortex. We hypothesized that the spatial encoding of interpersonal distance is initially transformed from purely sensory to more egocentric mapping within human parietal cortex. This hypothesis was tested using 7 Tesla (7T) fMRI at high spatial resolution (1.1 mm isotropic), in seven subjects (four females, three males). In response to visual stimuli presented at a range of virtual distances, we found two categories of distance encoding in two corresponding radially-extending columns of activity within parietal cortex. One set of columns (P columns) responded selectively to moving and stationary face images presented at virtual distances that were nearer (but not farther) than each subject's behaviorally-defined personal space boundary. In most P columns, BOLD response amplitudes increased monotonically and nonlinearly with increasing virtual face proximity. In the remaining P columns, BOLD responses decreased with increasing proximity. A second set of parietal columns (D columns) responded selectively to disparity-based distance cues (near or far) in random dot stimuli, similar to disparity-selective columns described previously in occipital cortex. Critically, in parietal cortex, P columns were topographically interdigitated (nonoverlapping) with D columns. These results suggest that visual spatial information is transformed from visual to body-centered (or person-centered) dimensions in multiple local sites within human parietal cortex.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Recent COVID-related social distancing practices highlight the need to better understand brain mechanisms which regulate "personal space" (PS), which is defined by the closest interpersonal distance that is comfortable for an individual. Using high spatial resolution brain imaging, we tested whether a map of external space is transformed from purely visual (3D-based) information to a more egocentric map (related to personal space) in human parietal cortex. We confirmed this transformation and further showed that it was mediated by two mutually segregated sets of columns: one which encoded interpersonal distance and another that encoded visual distance. These results suggest that the cortical transformation of sensory-centered to person-centered encoding of space near the body involves short-range communication across interdigitated columns within parietal cortex.

Neural underpinnings of social difficulties of lonely people

Loneliness is subjective experience of perceived social isolation that occurs when a person feels their network of social relationships is deficient either quantitatively or qualitatively. Loneliness is a prevalent condition with harmful effects on physical and mental health. Evolutionary theory suggests that loneliness had evolved as an internal signal to drive people to reconnect, much like hunger drives people to seek food. However, chronic loneliness may result in a negative bias, leading individuals to believe their social environment would not provide them with protection and help, which results in an activation of neural, neuroendocrine, and behavioral responses geared towards self-preservation and survival. Those reactions paradoxically end up driving lonely individuals away from social interactions. Loneliness was associated with altered structure and function of several brain areas, comprising neural networks related to visual attention, empathy, self-efficacy, pain processing, reward, craving, self-other representation, and social cognition. In this dissertation I focused on one network that was repeatedly found to be involved in social interactions and is relevant for loneliness, which is the Mirror Neuron System (MNS). The MNS was proposed to enable the understanding and interpretation of the meaning of actions performed by others, and it includes the action observation (AO) network, and specifically two main areas that are the inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) and the inferior parietal lobule (IPL). The AO network was suggested to be involved in various psychiatric conditions;however little was known with regards to its involvement in loneliness.This dissertation focused on three basic components, all of which are critical to achieving positive social interactions. The 1st component was approaching or allowing another person to get physically close, which is crucial for the initiation of contact. The 2nd component was engaging in a joint activity that becomes increasingly synchronize, which is critical for the creation of feelings of connectedness and satisfaction from the interaction. The 3rd component was perceiving positive social touch, which is critical for the creation of closer relationships and social connectedness. Each of these behaviors naturally involves various neural networks. However, there is evidence that all three involve common areas central to the AO system, further justifying our focus on this network in the dissertation. The goal of the studies reported in this dissertation was to investigate the social behavior of lonely individuals on a behavioral and a neural level, using neuroimaging and neuro-stimulation methods.In the first study, 479 participants completed an online task that experimentally assessed interpersonal distance preferences in four conditions-passively being approached by a friend or a stranger, and actively approaching a friend or a stranger. The study was conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic, and therefore it presented an opportunity to examine another type of loneliness, which was more situational in nature. This was due to social distancing, and, at times, complete isolation demands during the pandemic. Therefore, a secondary aim of the study was to explore whether perceived situational loneliness that is related to COVID-19 impacts interpersonal distance preferences differently than chronic, trait loneliness. Results showed that high chronic loneliness was related to a greater preferred distance across conditions. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Post COVID-19 Personal Distancing and Personal Space: Analysis of Behavioural Changes and Spatial Characteristics

After the outbreak of COVID-19 epidemic and its massive global spread as a pandemic, most countries used personal distancing as one of the most effective ways to limit public interaction and consequently minimize further spread of the pandemic. Since personal distancing is a manifestation of personal space, this study reviews the personal space concept and how relevant spatial behavior changed during COVID-19, using qualitative approach. Numerous behavioral changes were developed, most remarkably is the increased size of the personal space and the use of body language to maintain it in addition to wearing a facial mask and gloves became a mechanism to preserve one's personal space. Accordingly, hiding one's identity by wearing a mask functioned as a mechanism to maintain an individual's personal space, contrary to the commonly held view that personal space is a mechanism to achieve privacy. The study observed that salient patterns of human daily behavior during COVID-19, and found that there are three types of changes: 1) personal, 2) environmental of spatial, and 3) interactive between humans and their surrounding environment. The study concludes by analyzing the changes of users' behavior pertinent to personal space in mosques, shopping centers, restaurants and coffee shops. It also looks into doors, elevators, chairs and sitting areas and waiting lines. Moreover, it gives short-term emergency recommendations and guidelines to improve building design and operation.

Privacy and housing: research perspectives based on a systematic literature review.

Grounded in psychological and social constructs, the need for privacy is reflected in human socio-spatial behaviour and in our own home. To discuss housing privacy, this article presents a systematic literature review (SLR) that identified theoretical and methodological aspects relevant to the topic. The research was based on consolidated protocols to identify, select and evaluate articles published between 2000 and 2021 in three databases (Web of Science, Google Scholar and Scielo), with 71 eligible articles identified for synthesis. The results showed a concentration of studies in the American, European and Islamic context, and the increase in this production since 2018. This was guided by the inadequacy of architectural and urban planning projects, by new forms of social interaction and, recently, by the COVID-19 pandemic. From a theoretical point of view, the SLR demonstrated the importance of investigating privacy in housing from a comprehensive perspective, observing its different dimensions (physical, social and psychological) and characterizing the issues involved and the context under analysis. Methodologically, the main instruments identified were: (i) to behavioural analysis, questionnaires, interviews and observations; (ii) to built environment evaluation, in addition to the previous ones, space syntax analysis, architectural design and photographs analysis; (iii) for the general characterization of users, the data collection regarding the socio-demographic and cultural context and the meanings attributed to spatial organizations; (iv) to characterize the participants of the investigations, the analysis of personality traits, the ways to personalize the space, user satisfaction/preferences and the influence of social interactions on these perceptions.

The psychological experience of the Internal Medicine patients during the COVID-19 pandemic

Premises: The current pandemic period caused an intensification of the psychological difficulties experienced during hospitalization with important consequences on emotional and cognitive area of the patient. Methods: A descriptive analysis of psychological interviews and observation cards was carried out to detect emotional and cognitive reactions during the hospital stay of a sample of 88 patients who were admitted to the U.O. of Internal Medicine - Critical Area of the Garibaldi Hospital. Results: The emotional reactions manifested are mainly anxiety (87.5%) fear (67%) sadness (49%) distrust (25%) anger (9%) and despair (12%). The mood deflected in 39% of patients. The length of hospitalization in 64% ranged from 7 to 14 days, in 21% it was longer than 14 days and in 13% within 7 days with a diagnosis of transient emotional reaction in 86% of patients. The motivations related to emotional reactions were: health conditions, distance from family, inability to meet family members, sense of abandonment, fear of getting infected, changing habits, noises, limitations of personal space, loss of intimacy, undergoing painful or invasive clinical trials, relationships with medical and nursing staff. Conclusions: The pandemic and the resulting limitations may intensify the experience of strong psychophysical stress caused by hospitalization. An appropriate and continuous psychological support may improve the emotional state of the patient and consequently the doctor-patient relationship and compliance, reducing the healing time and the length of hospitalization.

Online therapies and the person-centered approach

This special issue came about in reponse to the coronavirus pandemic and the rapid shift (in April and May 2020) of psychotherapy, counseling, and other psychological therapies from face-to-face in person to face-to-face online. In May 2020, Keith wrote to David, enquiring as to whether there were any plans for a special issue of I PCEP i on this subject;David said that there were none, but asked if Keith would be interested in proposing one;the rest, as they say, is history! The third article, by Kate Dunn and John Wilson, invites us to take a step back to consider online therapy as a form of therapy "at a distance" which has a number of historical antecedents (including letter writing and telephone counseling/therapy). [Extracted from the article] Copyright of Person-Centered & Experiential Psychotherapies is the property of Routledge and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Effects of Modulated Emotion and Facial Masking Encounter on Personal Distance.

In this study, we examined the effects of participants' emotional states on personal space when an approaching person's face was either masked or unmasked. We used the participants' uncomfortable stop-distance as our method of measuring personal space. Inducing a positive emotion narrowed perceived personal space, whereas inducing a negative emotion widened personal space. For both positive and negative emotions, the perceived interpersonal distance was shorter when the approaching face was unmasked than masked. There was no interaction effect on personal space between induced affect and masking or unmasking the approaching face. This study might provide insight into interpersonal behavior during a pandemic juncture.