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What is World Kindness Day?
World Kindness Day is marked on 13 November.
It aims to inspire and highlight good deeds in communities across the globe.
It began as part of an international coalition of kindness organizations in the late ‘90s and has spread across many countries.
The world’s largest study of kindness — in brief
In 2021, BBC Radio 4 invited people to take The Kindness Test, designed by psychologists at the University of Sussex and presented by Claudia Hammond.
More than 60,000 people took part, making it the largest in-depth study of kindness conducted so far.
The findings were unpacked in the Radio 4 series The Anatomy of Kindness and in summaries by the Sussex team and Hammond.
What did the researchers learn?
Plenty — and most of it is surprisingly hopeful.
Ten insights from The Kindness Test (in plain English)
Kind acts are common.
Many of us receive kindness from close friends and family “often” or “nearly all the time”.
A large share of people reported a kind act in the last day.Helping when asked is the top everyday act.
The most frequent kindness is simply helping when someone asks.
Opening doors, doing small favours, or picking up something someone dropped also ranked high.The pandemic nudged us to care.
Two-thirds of participants felt the pandemic made people kinder in their communities — perhaps because tough times made us more attentive to one another.Kindness and wellbeing move together.
People who notice, receive, or perform more kind acts tend to report higher wellbeing on average.
This echoes wider research in psychology.Extroversion helps — but anyone can be kind.
On average, people higher in extroversion, agreeableness, and openness reported giving and receiving more kindness.
But kindness is not limited by personality; it’s a choice and a habit.Home is the kindness hotspot.
Participants saw more kind acts at home than anywhere else, followed by medical settings, workplaces, green spaces, and shops.Women and people who are religious reported slightly more kindness.
Self-reports showed small differences by gender and religiosity, echoing earlier work from the Sussex group.We worry our kindness may be misread.
A top barrier was fear of being misunderstood.
Time pressure and the tone of social media were also cited as reasons people hold back.Talking to strangers matters.
Those who chat with strangers tend to notice and receive more kindness — even after accounting for personality.
Independent studies show that brief conversations with strangers can lift mood and reduce loneliness.Income doesn’t predict kindness.
Earnings showed little link with overall kindness.
In a “windfall” thought experiment, the average amount people said they’d give away was substantial, with both the lowest and highest earners saying they’d give less on average than middle earners.
What kindness does to your brain and body
Kindness isn’t soft.
It’s physiologically active.
Heart health & hormones: Acts of care are tied to the release of oxytocin, which can widen blood vessels, support blood flow, and reduce blood pressure.
Stress buffering: Caring touch and supportive interactions can trigger relaxation responses that reduce stress markers.
Immune activity: Experiments suggest that doing kind acts is associated with favourable changes in immune-cell gene expression profiles.
Happiness returns: Multiple trials and replications show that prosocial spending — using money to help others — can boost happiness, though effect sizes vary by context.
Cardiovascular benefits from giving: In some studies, spending on others improved outcomes among older adults with high blood pressure.
The takeaway is simple:
Kindness is good for others — and good for you.
21 easy kindness ideas you can try today
Short, doable, and designed for busy lives.
Send a 30-second voice note to someone you haven’t checked on lately.
Thank a public-facing worker — the guard, the bus conductor, the delivery person.
Let someone merge in traffic; give a friendly hand signal.
Carry an extra cloth bag and offer it at a shop to someone who forgot theirs.
Compliment a skill, not appearance — “You explained that so clearly.”
Pay it forward: buy a tea/coffee for the next person at a local stall via UPI.
Offer directions to a confused tourist or newcomer.
Write a quick LinkedIn/Koo recommendation for a colleague or vendor.
Leave a bowl of water for animals outside your home in summer.
Share notes or books with a junior at school or college.
Pick up litter during your evening walk; two minutes is enough.
Donate mobile data or hotspot for a student in need during an online class.
Hold the lift instead of rushing to close the doors.
Share surplus food using a local community fridge or neighbourhood group.
Offer your seat to someone who looks tired or unwell.
Tip fairly when service is honest and attentive.
Talk to a stranger in a safe setting — a short, warm chat counts.
Plant or gift a hardy sapling and commit to watering it.
Teach a quick skill — how to scan a QR, how to compress a PDF.
Set aside “kindness money” each month, even ₹50–₹100, and spend it on others.
Smile first — it lowers barriers more than we think.
FAQs (fast and practical)
Is kindness a weakness at work?
The Kindness Test suggests people perceive kindness as valued at work, especially in healthcare, education, hospitality, and social work. Kindness builds trust and psychological safety — both linked to performance.
I’m introverted. Can I still “do” kindness?
Absolutely. While extroverts report more frequent kind exchanges on average, brief, low-pressure interactions still help introverts feel better — and you can practise kindness in quieter ways (notes, thoughtful emails, behind-the-scenes help).
More money doesn’t automatically mean more kindness. But choosing to spend on others can lift mood across income levels — a small, regular habit works best.
Quick plan for World Kindness Day at school, office, or housing society
Start with a 5-minute stand-up: invite everyone to share one kindness they received recently.
Create a “Kindness Board” (physical or WhatsApp) where people post shout-outs.
Run a “talk to a stranger” mini-challenge in a safe, public setting; compare stories at day’s end.
Pool micro-donations (₹10–₹50 each) and fund a local need — refills for a community water cooler or library books for a nearby school.
Sources and further listening
World Kindness Day origins and date: World Kindness Movement; overview pages. theworldkindnessmovement.org+2Wikipedia+2
The Kindness Test & Anatomy of Kindness: University of Sussex summaries; Claudia Hammond’s pages and articles. University of Sussex+1
Talking to strangers & wellbeing: Work by Dr. Gillian Sandstrom and colleagues; APA and BPS explainers; recent interventions. American Psychological Association+2bps.org.uk+2
Health science on kindness: Harvard Medicine Magazine; American Heart Association; RCTs on prosocial spending and biological markers. magazine.hms.harvard.edu+2www.heart.org+2
Final word
Kindness isn’t about grand gestures.
It’s a string of small choices made daily.
Smile first. Help the needy. Talk to one new person.
That’s how World Kindness Day becomes a habit — and a culture. University of Sussex+1
