Danni King
Being embarrassed is a normal part of life but experts have revealed there's a specific thing you should do you when embarrass yourself.
We all get embarrassed at times, though some of us end up red-faced more often than others.
Whether it's mixing up names, tripping over or spilling something, it can be difficult to not let yourself get too embarrassed.
A new study saw researchers ask over 3,000 participants to read about each other's embarrassing moments, such as waving at the wrong person or walking into a door.
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These participants were shown how the people involved in the mishaps reacted to their accidents.
The research, conducted across six online experiments, found that the participants found those who laughed at their mistakes to be warmer, more authentic and competent compared to those acted embarrassed.
Outlining the results of the study, co-author Övül Sezer, from Cornell University, said: "Our findings suggest that people often overestimate how harshly others judge their minor social mistakes.
"For minor, harmless blunders, laughing at yourself can signal social confidence, reduce tension and communicate that the mistake was accidental."
In these situations, embarrassment was seen as excessive, researchers claimed, while laughing off the mishap signalled that the person acknowledged the mistake was an accident or unintentional.
"Observers tended to think that actors who displayed embarrassment were feeling more embarrassed than the situation warranted, while laughing signalled that they recognized the mistake was minor," Sezer added.
The only factor that impacted the participants' judgement was the nature of the mistake - it had to be harmless.
For example, if a person accidentally tripped and broke their arm, or they tripped and broke a colleague's arm, and their response was to laugh at themselves, their behaviour may be seen as inappropriate.
Sezer noted that it is important to match 'the reaction to the seriousness of the mistake'.
Previous research has revealed that there can be advantages to acting embarrassed as it can signal remorse and demonstrate an understanding of social norms.
The study, published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, reads: "When a faux pas causes minimal or no harm to others, actors maximize reputation by displaying amusement.
"But when a faux pas harms others, amusement becomes inappropriate, decreasing its reputational benefits."
Researchers plan to look into how other factors impact their findings in the future, with things like humor, gender norms and settings such as workplaces being taken into consideration.