Perceived Novelty

Perceived Novelty

Reviewed by Faisal Zaidi

How new or unfamiliar something feels.

What it is

In the food additive studies it carried the link between a hard-to-pronounce name and a higher harm rating. It is drawn from work by Hyunjin Song and Norbert Schwarz (2009).

In effect

In the article on why an easy name feels safer, hard-named rides also sounded more exciting.

What it does not say

It carried the link in the food additive studies. In the third study, hard names also made rides sound more exciting and adventurous, so a hard name does not always read as a negative.

Sources

  1. Song, H., & Schwarz, N. (2009). If It's Difficult to Pronounce, It Must Be Risky: Fluency, Familiarity, and Risk Perception. Psychological Science, 20(2), 135-138.