Mere Exposure Effect
Version 1.0.0 · Updated 2026-07-28
CORE DEFINITION
The mere-exposure effect is a psychological phenomenon by which people tend to develop a liking or disliking for things merely because they are familiar with them. In social psychology, this effect is sometimes called the familiarity principle. The effect has been demonstrated with many kinds of things, including words, Chinese characters, paintings, pictures of faces, geometric figures, and sounds.
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The mere-exposure effect is a psychological phenomenon by which people tend to develop a liking or disliking for things merely because they are familiar with them. In social psychology, this effect is sometimes called the familiarity principle.
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The mere exposure effect, proposed by Zajonc, refers to the phenomenon that mere repeated exposure increases liking. The mechanism is that familiarity is misattributed as safety or liking.
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Source support: Explicit
- en.wikipedia.orghttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mere-exposure_effectverified
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