It may not be much fun for those around you. But boasting about yourself does make you feel better, tests have shown. A study found that it triggered the same sensation of pleasure as food, money or even sex. Participants in the research were so keen to brag about their achievements that they would rather give up money than their chance to carry on doing so. The findings applied to boasting not only in person but also on online social networks such as Facebook, according to Harvard University neuroscientists. The results showed that whenever participants talked about themselves there was increased activity in the meso-limbic dopamine system, the area of the brain linked to the feeling of reward.