Free Hugs Milwaukee

A Social Psychology Experiment

The Problem

America today is not a very loving place. People are generally just concerned with their own well being and with making sure nobody infringes on their personal space. Many people are uncomfortable with public displays of affection, even when the gesture is merely friendly, and not at all sexual. Most people would not be willing to step outside of their comfort zone and show kindness to a stranger, or even accept kindness from a stranger.

Observations

Often, a friendly greeting to a stranger will go ignored. Asking a stranger how they are doing will often earn you looks of surprise. Approaching a stranger and offering a hug might be construed as sexual harassment, and can land you in jail.

However, in 2004, one man, named Juan Mann, in Sydney, Australia set out to brighten his day in a way that would also brighten the day of a stranger. He went out in public, holding a sign upon which he had written the words, "FREE HUGS". After a long time of being ignored, eventually people let their guard down and hugged him.

Since then, the Free Hugs Campaign has turned into a worldwide movement, thanks to its popularity on the internet through a YouTube video, as well as Facebook groups and the campaign's own website. However, it was, at one point, banned in many places, even in Mann's hometown of Sydney, where Mann had not obtained public liability insurance. However, due to a petition signing, the movement was once again allowed there. There is still a great deal of locations that will not allow it. In Shanghai in 2006, eleven people were detained when organizing a Free Hugs event because they did not have a permit to hold a gathering in a public space.

Hypothesis

The willingness of a person to receive a hug depends on his or her age. A high school or college student would be more willing to receive a hug from a stranger than an older adult would be.

Method

This experiment follows the same formula as Mann's original actions: my research assistant, Ms. H. and myself take turns holding a sign offering "FREE HUGS" in a public place, giving hugs to everyone who wants one. We then judge people's reactions, gauging how people look at us, whether or not they hug us, or even if they talk to us.

There was some trouble finding a location. The original plan was to perform the experiment in a shopping mall, but Mayfair Mall in Milwaukee refused someone previously, saying that holding a sign and offering something to patrons could qualify as soliciting. Likewise, Southridge Mall in Greenfield denied us the opportunity, saying that someone might take the action "the wrong way", citing liability issues.

Having rejected the heart of downtown Milwaukee due to safety and parking, as well as downtown Wauwatosa due to lack of foot traffic, we settled on the campus of Marquette University, outside of the Student Union. Some might criticize, saying that there would only be students available to test, but there is a fair amount of older adult traffic.

Data

Ms. H. and I received a total of 37 hugs, me having received 23 hugs and her having received 14 hugs. What was interesting was that, despite the amount of both younger and older people passing by, the overwhelming majority of hugs were taken by the students. In fact, only two hugs were ever given to people who were not in their late teens or early twenties.

Some reactions of interest:

Before we reached the location where the experiment was to take place, I carried the sign as we walked down the sidewalk. A man walking down the street saw the sign, grinned, and asked how I was doing.

The first hug of the day was a result of a young woman running up to me, almost out of nowhere, and throwing her arms around me.

An elderly gentleman stopped and asked me, "Are you looking for a girlfriend?" I replied that that was not the case, but that there is not enough love in the world and that people need to hug each other more. He then left, saying, "Well, God bless." It should be noted that he did not hug me.

One college age couple, holding hands, had an interesting request: "We want a double." I then proceeded to hug them both at the same time.

As our location was right beneath the freshman-only dormitory building, we often had people yelling down from their windows to us.

Often, people would ask me either a.) Why I was offering free hugs, or b.) If I was doing this for a class.

One young man did not want to hug me, but when offered the opportunity, chose to hug Ms. Hauf instead.

Conclusion

My hypothesis was largely supported by the data we received. It appears that it is true that younger people prefer to receive hugs from strangers than older people. That having been said, there were other variables at play. Both times an older person received a hug, they were men hugging Ms. Hauf. This, and the notice that a young man opted to hug Ms. Hauf over me, make me wish to try to draw conclusions about the role of gender in the reception of a Free Hug. However, to fully reach such a conclusion, I would have to repeat the experiment, with more time, with more assistants, in more locations, and setting a definite period of time for each person holding the sign. Truth be told, those are the conditions that would be required to truly be completely accurate with the conclusion. However, there were a great deal of older adults that passed by me without hugging. Many even refused to make eye contact.

If my conclusions are correct, which evidence suggests they are, then there must be some correlation between how old a person is and how reserved or how willing they are to open up to strangers.