ANALYSIS
ANALYSIS
Matters of the heart
In The Joy of Winning and the Frustration of Losing, Astor, Adam, Jähnig and Seifert found that a losing bidder’ s heart rate drops further than a winner’ s heart rate does in the couple of seconds after the hammer falls. And that the winner enjoys a far bigger spike in heart rate in the few seconds after that. In other words, losing hurts. And winners, well, they have the sensational thrill of winning.
Source: Astor et al.( 2013).
More than this, the higher the stakes, the greater the emotional response. Winning feels good. Winning big feels even better.
38 REI MAGAZINE NOVEMBER 2025