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The chameleon effect: the perception-behavior link and social interaction.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Chartrand, TL; Bargh, JA
Published in: Journal of personality and social psychology
June 1999

The chameleon effect refers to nonconscious mimicry of the postures, mannerisms, facial expressions, and other behaviors of one's interaction partners, such that one's behavior passively and unintentionally changes to match that of others in one's current social environment. The authors suggest that the mechanism involved is the perception-behavior link, the recently documented finding (e.g., J. A. Bargh, M. Chen, & L. Burrows, 1996) that the mere perception of another's behavior automatically increases the likelihood of engaging in that behavior oneself. Experiment 1 showed that the motor behavior of participants unintentionally matched that of strangers with whom they worked on a task. Experiment 2 had confederates mimic the posture and movements of participants and showed that mimicry facilitates the smoothness of interactions and increases liking between interaction partners. Experiment 3 showed that dispositionally empathic individuals exhibit the chameleon effect to a greater extent than do other people.

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Published In

Journal of personality and social psychology

DOI

EISSN

1939-1315

ISSN

0022-3514

Publication Date

June 1999

Volume

76

Issue

6

Start / End Page

893 / 910

Related Subject Headings

  • Social Psychology
  • Social Perception
  • Social Behavior
  • Posture
  • New York City
  • Multivariate Analysis
  • Models, Psychological
  • Male
  • Interpersonal Relations
  • Imitative Behavior
 

Citation

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Chartrand, T. L., & Bargh, J. A. (1999). The chameleon effect: the perception-behavior link and social interaction. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 76(6), 893–910. https://doi.org/10.1037//0022-3514.76.6.893
Chartrand, T. L., and J. A. Bargh. “The chameleon effect: the perception-behavior link and social interaction.Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 76, no. 6 (June 1999): 893–910. https://doi.org/10.1037//0022-3514.76.6.893.
Chartrand TL, Bargh JA. The chameleon effect: the perception-behavior link and social interaction. Journal of personality and social psychology. 1999 Jun;76(6):893–910.
Chartrand, T. L., and J. A. Bargh. “The chameleon effect: the perception-behavior link and social interaction.Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, vol. 76, no. 6, June 1999, pp. 893–910. Epmc, doi:10.1037//0022-3514.76.6.893.
Chartrand TL, Bargh JA. The chameleon effect: the perception-behavior link and social interaction. Journal of personality and social psychology. 1999 Jun;76(6):893–910.

Published In

Journal of personality and social psychology

DOI

EISSN

1939-1315

ISSN

0022-3514

Publication Date

June 1999

Volume

76

Issue

6

Start / End Page

893 / 910

Related Subject Headings

  • Social Psychology
  • Social Perception
  • Social Behavior
  • Posture
  • New York City
  • Multivariate Analysis
  • Models, Psychological
  • Male
  • Interpersonal Relations
  • Imitative Behavior