Clean, Proper and Tidy Are More Than the Absence of Dirty, Disgusting and Wrong

Abstract

The desire to feel clean and pure might not merely be the absence of contamination and resulting feelings of disgust. Instead, it might have a social function because early in evolution social grooming not only involved improved personal hygiene and cleanliness, but also increased group cohesion. Thus, knowing that one’s body is clean, proper and tidy might have social implications that go beyond morality.