I love you. Deseret News National recently published an article dissecting how and when to blurt those three little words. The piece was all about their romantic connotation, focused on not freaking out your boyfriend or girlfriend when you finally decide it’s time. As it turns out, you might want to spend all that energy thinking about wielding a well-placed I love you on your dad instead. Whether you already say them to him often, rarely, or never at all, those infamous three little words will mean a lot to him.
Last year, just shy of Father’s Day, a UK research group published a study showing that men are actually more emotional than women—particularly when it comes to matters of the heart. (They’re just better at hiding it.) Some of the men in the study were dads, and this group turned out to be a goldmine of emotion. As one way to measure how easily their heartstrings could be tugged, the dads were shown a variety of messages that are typically included in Father’s Day cards.
Did you know that skin very briefly becomes a better conductor of electricity when a person has an emotional response to something? It’s an unconscious reaction, so that’s what researchers measured when they showed the dads the phrases. Here are the ones that most electrified the men:
- Number one dad
- You’re my favorite person in the whole world.
- I love you.
- You’re the best.
- Thanks for everything you’ve done for me.
Every one of those phrases is such a simple and even common sentiment, but it turns out they’re just what dads need to hear. So, this Father’s Day, whether you write them in a card, say them aloud, or engrave them on a gift, just know that they’re probably going to mean way more to your dad than he might let on.
