Why do we hug: 69.5% remember a hug that comforted them

Why do we hug, and why does the same gesture comfort one person and make another uncomfortable? A University of Bristol study, published on 28 October 2026 in the scientific journal PLOS One, asked more than fifteen thousand adults in the United Kingdom to think back to the hug they remember most.

The main finding is reassuring: for most people, the hug that stays in the memory is the one that brought comfort, support or the feeling of being understood. For anyone who works in communication, though, the most useful finding is another one: how much a hug matters depends largely on the person receiving it.

The study in brief

The research, led by Anna Lena Dueren of the School of Psychological Science at the University of Bristol, analysed data from the Touch Test, a large questionnaire on physical contact commissioned by Wellcome Collection and promoted through BBC programmes. Responses were collected between January and March 2020, almost all before the restrictions on social contact introduced in the United Kingdom on 26 March that year.

Participants were asked whether they remembered a hug for its positive emotional effect and, if so, for what main reason. The questionnaire also measured empathy, attachment style, body perception and everyday hugging habits.

The key figures:

• 15,049 adults living in the United Kingdom, aged between 18 and 92;
• 10,457 people, 69.5% of the sample, remember a hug for its positive emotional effect;
• 4,589 people do not remember any hug of this kind;
• comfort is the most frequently cited reason, physical arousal the least;
• 7.2% of the answers on the reason say “other” and were excluded from the analysis.

Why do we hug: comfort first of all

The authors read these data in the light of affection exchange theory, which holds that people need to give and receive affection, but in different ways from one another. A hug is one of the most direct channels of this exchange: no words are needed to say “I'm here”.

The fact that almost seven people in ten remember a hug for the comfort or support it gave suggests how much physical contact, at the right moment, can say more than any sentence. It is worth noting, however, that the study measures the memory of a hug, not its effects on health: it tells us what people keep in memory, not what happens in the body.

What changes from person to person

The statistical analysis identified a number of traits linked to a higher or lower likelihood of remembering a hug positively.

The likelihood is higher in people with high empathy scores, both cognitive (understanding what the other person feels) and emotional (feeling it in turn), in those with greater awareness of their own body and in those who usually greet family and friends with a hug. It is also higher in people with an anxious attachment style, who fear emotional distance and seek reassurance.

The likelihood is lower, on the other hand, in people who tend towards avoidance, preferring to rely on themselves and keep their distance, in those who say they don't like hugs and in those who admit they don't really know how to hug. One finding is surprising: how often a person hugs has no significant link with the memory. The same goes for age and gender.

Men and women remember different reasons

Gender does not change the likelihood of remembering a hug, but it does change the reason. In the sample, women more often cited comfort and understanding, men more often friendliness and physical arousal. The authors urge caution: among those who gave a reason, there were 2,197 men and 7,506 women, and the association is weak.

The other limitations declared by the study are also worth keeping in mind. The sample was self-selected and only British, while norms around physical contact vary greatly from one culture to another; the data capture a single moment and do not allow cause and effect to be established. Finally, the measured effects are small: the odds ratios range from 0.871 for people who dislike hugs to 1.177 for those who greet with a hug.

What it teaches people who work with people

Moving from the lab to the office calls for caution, but one principle stands out clearly: the same gesture is read in different ways. For some, a hug is the natural greeting; for others it is an intrusion into their personal space, even when the intention is affectionate.

In a professional setting, this suggests a few concrete points of attention:

• let the other person set the degree of closeness they prefer;
• watch body signals, such as a step back, stiff arms or an outstretched hand, before moving closer;
• see a handshake or a warm verbal greeting as respectful choices, not cold ones;
• remember that with clients and colleagues from other cultures, habits around contact can be very different;
• agree as a team on a consistent style of welcome, so no one is left to improvise.

Touch as part of communication

Physical contact is non-verbal communication in every sense, and like any language it only works if it is understood by the person receiving it. Knowing how to measure it is a form of attention towards others.

With In-Linea, CG Imagine's corporate training, this is exactly what we work on: defining with the team how to welcome clients and colleagues, from the greeting to the right distance, so that a gesture almost seven people in ten remember as comfort is offered only to those ready to receive it.

Photo by maks_d on Unsplash