Gossip.
It’s as compelling as a car wreck, irresistible as a whispered conversation at a nearby table. You indulge and then feel ashamed, like a dieter after dessert.

But maybe you don’t have to feel guilty after all.

Researchers say that a little bit of gossip is healthy. It's what keeps the culture going, greasing the social machinery.

It’s almost like being told that cigarettes are good for you.

“It’s a social skill, not a character flaw,” says Frank McAndrew a professor of psychology at Knox College in Galesburg, Ill. “It’s only when you don’t do it well that you get into trouble.”

Knowing when to zip it.
So, is all gossip good?

No, says McAndrew. Gossip is only good when people use it selectively for the good of their social group.

“It’s important to share information, but not indiscriminately,” he explains. “It’s bad when it serves no purpose but to ingratiate yourself with a group by saying awful things about someone else.”

-an abstract from msnbc.