Personal Space: Your Questions, Answered!

What is personal space?

~Personal space is the space immediately around you that you claim as your own. If anyone gets too close to you under the wrong circumstances, you feel uncomfortable because your personal space has been invaded.

How big is your personal space?

~If you could see your personal space, it would probably look something like a bulky space suit, a little bigger in front of you than beside or behind you. Your personal space may “shrink” when you’re around people you trust, and may likewise “grow” when you’re around people you fear or feel uncomfortable with.

Why do you have personal space?

~Scientists still aren’t sure why people have personal spaces. One idea is that it keeps you from bumping into people or having things spilled on you. Another theory is that keeping your distance helps to prevent the spread of germs.

What part of the brain controls our feelings about personal space?

~The amygdala is suspected of processing people’s strong reactions to personal space violations since these are absent in those in which it is damaged and it is activated when people are physically close.

What is a normal reaction to a violation of personal space?

~According to psychologist Robert Sommer, one method of dealing with violated personal space is dehumanization. For example, on the subway, crowded people often imagine those intruding on their personal space as inanimate. Behavior is another method: a person from India attempting to talk to someone from Britain can often cause situations where one person steps forward to enter what they perceive as a conversational distance, and the person they are talking can step back to restore their personal space.