People tend to develop a preference for things merely because they are familiar with them.
Zajonc's 1968 studies used nonsense syllables and Chinese characters and showed that repeated exposure can raise liking. The stronger demonstration, that preference can appear even where recognition is at chance, came later in Kunst-Wilson and Zajonc's 1980 work.
In practice
- A logo everyone found ugly at launch is the one customers say they prefer three years later.
- A colleague you found abrasive in month one is unremarkable by month six, and neither of you changed.
- Further reading
- Wikipedia
- Subject
- Psychology & Behavior
- Essay
- A century and a half of measuring the mind