Mere Exposure Effect

The tendency for people to like people or things more with more exposure to them.

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Key Insights & Principles

Psychology

1. Exposure to people or things can lead to an increased affection, even when we are not consciously aware of the stimulus.
2. Overexposure to certain stimuli (music for example) can lead to a decline in affection beyond a certain point.
3. Mixing novel ideas with familiar concepts can help with engagement and curiosity.
4. We are naturally fearful of new things in our environment, but repeated exposure followed by nothing bad is a safety signal, and we reduce our fear of that which we have repeated exposure to.
5. We have a tendency to equate unfamiliarity with increased risk.

Book References