Employees need to have an answer. The University of Basel researchers found out that companies must provide applicants with certainty whether it is a yes or a no. Basically, per Science Daily, it is often bad to leave someone hanging for answers.

If applicants need to wait longer, let them know. If applicants have nothing to wait for, at least let them know too. The University of Basel has worked with Purdue University in conducting this research.

Previous research has revealed that people are very sensitive to even the smallest sign of social exclusion. These instances are said to threaten the fundamental human need for belongingness. Being ignored may ruin someone's sense of being significant to others.

In the study, per Psych Central, the experts asked the participants to play a ball-throwing game. However, participants did not receive the ball from the other players and were thus excluded from the game. In other experiments, participants took part in a fictitious search for an apartment.

Now, all these tests have shown similar results. The researchers concluded that even the smallest and the rudest attention reduces the distress of social exclusion compared to being totally ignored. Thus, it emphasized the importance of "granting minimal attention" during selection processes.

At the very least, Dr. Selma Rudert, the author from the University of Basel, said that HR managers and landlords should give rejected candidates a minimum of attention via a letter or email. Even justified criticism in the office feels more satisfying for employees than hearing nothing at all. Psychologists too are now paying more attention to whether people are being ignored by others as social rejection has mental consequences.

For the record, this research is one of the first of its kind to focus on determining which factors can improve negative emotions after social exclusion. Indeed, this will help people to better understand and care for someone else's feelings. Also, people should stop thinking that silence means yes and start believing that no one is an island.

Topics Rejection, Purdue university