"One day, one night, Saturday's all right..." I think it's safe to say that everyone knows this song, considering that the National American University jingle is played on the radio and on television constantly. Chances are, too, that you find yourself singing along when you hear it. However, how did you feel about it the very first time you heard it? Did you immediately change the channel? How about the fifth time you heard it? Did you notice it start to grow on you? According to Chapter 11: Emotion and Motivation in our psychology textbook, you probably did. This chapter focuses on the seven primary emotions (happiness, sadness, surprise, anger, disgust, fear, and contempt) that humans experience, and how that influences our behavior, ranging from our needs for personal space to self-esteem. An idea that I found especially interesting was the mere exposure effect, the phenomenon in which repeated exposure to a stimulus makes us more likely to feel favorably toward it (page 414). In simpler terms, the more we hear, see, or smell something, the more we like it. At first I rejected the idea. I know with myself that I tend to get sick of things easily. I loved Katy Perry's song "Firework" the first time I heard it, and listened to it non stop for months. Now whenever I hear that song, I want to throw up. Then again, I used to hate those Education Connection commercials. Of course, they play it on television every commercial break, so I now belt out the lyrics whenever it's on. So, what has been your experience with the mere exposure effect? Do things tend to grow on you, or is it the exact opposite?
