THE GAME OF EXPOSURE: AN EXPERIMENTAL STUDY ON THE CONTRAST EFFECT, THE PERCEPTION AT SECOND SIGHT

Abstract

Background: Facial attractiveness significantly influences social interactions, decision-making, and personal judgments. The contrast effect, a cognitive bias where exposure to highly attractive stimuli alters the perception of subsequent stimuli, has been extensively studied in Western cultures but remains underexplored in collectivistic societies. Understanding this bias in such cultural contexts is crucial, as beauty standards and social influences may shape facial evaluations differently. This study examines the presence of the contrast effect in a collectivistic culture, focusing on the impact of attractiveness exposure on subsequent facial judgments while accounting for gender and relationship status differences.

Objective: To investigate whether exposure to highly attractive images reduces the perceived attractiveness ratings of neutral images, thereby confirming the existence of the contrast effect in a collectivistic cultural setting. Additionally, the study examines gender and relationship status differences in facial attractiveness evaluations.

Methods: A true experimental, repeated measures design (ABBA) was employed. A sample of 70 adults (47.1% male, 52.9% female) was selected using non-probability purposive sampling. Participants, aged 19–25 years, with similar educational backgrounds and active engagement in social media, were exposed to eight sets of facial images. Attractive images were sourced based on social media engagement, while neutral images were pre-rated by an independent sample. Ratings were collected using a 10-point attractiveness scale across control and experimental phases. Data were analyzed using SPSS, employing paired t-tests, repeated measures ANOVA, and Wilcoxon signed-rank tests, with results visualized through Excel.

Results: A significant contrast effect was observed, with mean attractiveness ratings for neutral images decreasing from M = 29.90, SD = 3.98 in the control phase to M = 17.82, SD = 6.01 in the experimental phase (t(69) = -3.33, p = .002, d = 0.07). Attractive images also saw a decline from M = 31.33, SD = 3.30 in the control phase to M = 25.64, SD = 5.66 in the experimental phase (t(69) = 12.79, p < .001, d = 0.08). A repeated measures ANOVA confirmed a significant main effect of phase on attractiveness ratings (F(2.43,167.76) = 252.98, p < .001, η² = 0.03). Gender differences were significant, with females rating both neutral (M = 50.14, SD = 3.45) and attractive (M = 59.15, SD = 2.95) images higher than males (neutral: M = 45.00, SD = 11.74; attractive: M = 53.93, SD = 2.93). However, relationship status had no significant influence on contrast effects (t(69) = -1.87, p = .07 for neutral images, t(69) = -.73, p = .51 for attractive images).

Conclusion: This study provides empirical evidence of the contrast effect in a collectivistic culture, demonstrating that exposure to attractive images significantly lowers the perceived attractiveness of neutral images. Gender differences were evident, but relationship status did not influence contrast effects. These findings offer valuable insights for social psychology, marketing, industrial psychology, and community psychology, emphasizing the role of perceptual biases in shaping aesthetic judgments and social interactions.