Flower Power turns 40

Research Proves What the Flower Children Knew 40 Years Ago...

Forty years after the poet Allen Ginsberg coined the term Flower Power! (1965), research proves that blossoms actually do spread the happiness and joy the hippies once believed. Several university studies conducted between 2000 and 2005 point to the psychological, emotional, behavioral and environmental benefits of flowers and plants. “We aren’t surprised by the collection of positive findings about flowers”, says Peter Moran, CEO of the Society of American Florists. “Flowers help us celebrate virtually every occasion in our lives, from monumental, joyous occasions to simple, relaxed dinners at home”.

The Real Power of Flowers...

“Flowers really do communicate the peace, beauty and love that they symbolized in the 60’s,” said Rebecca Cole, author of a design book entitled Flower Power. “Best of all, they have the power to make us happy! What could be better than that?”

Flowers Make an Emotional Impact

Most recently, The Journal of Evolutionary Psychology published, "An Environmental Approach to Positive Emotion: Flowers." The article describes three research studies conducted by Jeannette Haviland-Jones, Ph.D., director of the Human Development Lab at Rutgers University. "Flowers have immediate and long-term positive effects on emotional reactions, mood, social behaviors and even memory for both males and females," Haviland-Jones said. "Perhaps flowers have evolved to induce positive emotion in humans, just as other plants have evolved to induce other kinds of responses in nature." In her first, and perhaps most heralded study, Haviland-Jones and her team found that the presence of flowers triggers happy emotions, heightens feelings of life satisfaction and positively affects social behavior -- far beyond what is normally believed.