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Study: Viewing cat videos boosts energy, positive emotions

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Watching a cat video might be the “purrfect” thing to cure your midday blues. A new study by Indiana University shows watching the videos does more than entertain.

According to the study, watching cat videos could boost viewers’ energy and positive emotions and decrease negativity.

Assistant professor Jessica Gall Myrick, surveyed around 7,000 people to see the effects.

“If we want to better understand the effects the Internet may have on us as individuals and on society, then researchers can’t ignore Internet cats anymore,” Myrick said.

According to the data collected by Myrick, more than 2 million videos with cats were posted to YouTube in 2014. Cat videos had more views per video than any other category on YouTube.

Overall the response to watching cat videos was “largely positive,” Myrick said.

“Even if they are watching cat videos on YouTube to procrastinate or while they should be working, the emotional pay-off may actually help people take on tough tasks afterward,” Myrick said.