The Birthdate Effect: An. Extension of the Mere Ownership Effect. Gary Nickell, Katie Pederson, and Cassie Rossow. Minnesota State University Moorhead

Transcription

1 Birthdate Effect 1 Running head: THE BIRTHDATE EFFECT The Birthdate Effect: An Extension of the Mere Ownership Effect Gary Nickell, Katie Pederson, and Cassie Rossow Minnesota State University Moorhead

2 Birthdate Effect 2 Abstract Studies have shown that attributes or variables associated with oneself are liked or preferred more compared to similar attributes unrelated to the self. Nuttin (1985) found that people tend to prefer the letters that occur in their own name more than the letters that do not occur in their names. This name-lettereffect was later explained as a more general mere ownership effect. The purpose of the present study is to test whether the mere ownership effect generalizes to a person s evaluation of their birthdate (month and year). One-hundred participants will be asked to evaluated a variety of dates and objects. It is expected that participants will show a significantly more positive evaluation of their own birth month and year compared to their non-birth months and years.

3 Birthdate Effect 3 The Birthdate Effect: An Extension of the Mere Ownership Effect Using a simple self-association, Nuttin (1985) found that people tend to prefer the letters that occur in their own name more than the letters that do not occur in their names. This effect regarding names and letters was later explained as a more general Mere Ownership Effect. Hoorens and Nuttin (1993) hypothesized, based on the Mere Ownership Effect, that people will like their own belongings and objects more than belongings and objects that they don t own. Beggan (1992) and others have suggested that the Mere Ownership Effect is a self-enhancing bias directed toward one s possessions. Self-enhancement involves a person s basic desire to feel good about themselves, and may involve conscious and/or unconscious processes (Pelham, Mirenberg, & Jones, 2002). Recently, Pelham et al. (2002) define unconscious self-enhancement as people s positive automatic association about themselves [that] may influence their feelings about almost anything that people associate with the self (p. 470). Cialdini and De Nicholas (1989) found that the presence of a trivial association (same birthday) between a perceiver and another person produced a more positive evaluation of that person. Similarly, Finch and Cialdini (1989) found that participants softened their negative evaluation of Rasputin the

4 Birthdate Effect 4 mad monk of Russia, if they thought they had the same birthday as he did. The purpose of the present study is to test whether the Mere Ownership Effect generalizes to people's evaluation of their own birthdate (month and year). Based on Mere Ownership Effect, it is expected that participants will show a more positive evaluation (liking) of their own birth month and birth year compared to their nonbirth months and nonbirth years. We also expected that participants will show a more positive liking for their high school graduation year compared to the average of their four pregraduation years. (Note: If this was an actual proposal I would discuss previous research and develop the background for this study in more detail) Method Participants One-hundred college students in psychology classes at a midwestern university will be asked to participated in a study called Preference Study. The participants may receive extra credit in their classes and will be treated in accordance with the ethical principles of the American Psychological Association. Procedure and Design Participants will be run in groups of (15-20). The participants will read and sign an informed consent form before

5 Birthdate Effect 5 being given the survey materials. Participants will be given the Preference Survey and asked to rate their level of liking for various dates, years, seasons, etc. on a scale from 1 (Dislike a lot) to 7 (Like a lot) (See Appendix). (Note Appendix is not included in this sample paper). The two key issues involved their rating of the month and the year of their birth. After completing the Preference Survey, they will be instructed to place the survey in a manila envelope. Next, they will be asked to complete a few basic demographic questions (including their birthdate) and to place them in the same manila envelope. Finally, participants will be thanked and debriefed. The study is a single-factor (birthdate vs. nonbirthdate) within-subjects design. Based on mere ownership effect, it is expected that participants (Ps) will show a more positive evaluation (liking) of their own birth month and birth year compared to their nonbirth months and nonbirth years.

6 Birthdate Effect 6 References Beggan, J. K. (1992) On the social nature of nonsocial perception: The mere ownership effect. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 62, Cialdini, R. B., & De Nicholas, M. E. (1989) Self-presentation by association. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 57, Finch, J. F., & Cialdini, R. B. (1989) Another indirect tactic of (self-) image management: boosting. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 15, Hoorens, V., & Nuttin J. M. (1993) Overevaluation of own attributes: mere ownership or subjective frequency? Social Cognition, 11(2), Jones, J. T., Pelham, B. W., & Mirenberg, M. C. (2002) Name letter preferences are not merely mere exposure: implicit egotism as self-regulation. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 38, Nuttin, J. M., Jr. (1985) Narcissism beyond Gestalt and awareness. European Journal of Social Psychology, 17, Pelham, B. W., Mirenberg, M. C., & Jones, J. T. (2002) Why Susie sells seashells by the seashore: implicit egotism and major life decisions. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 82,