The Effects of Incidental Similarity with a Stranger on Mimicry Behavior

Abstract

Aims: For social psychologists, mimicry could serve a function of "social glue", binding people together and creating harmonious relationships. Design: In three experiments, we used the paradigm of incidental similarity in order to enhance the desire to create affiliation and rapport between a participant and a stranger, and to evaluate its effect on mimicry behavior. Findings: Undergraduates who believed they had the same first name (Study 1), birthday (Study 2) or fingerprint similarity (Study 3) as a female-target presented on a videotape were more likely to mimic the nonverbal behavior of the target than participants who did not perceive a similarity with the target. Conclusions: These results support the notion that mimicry will help us to create affiliation and rapport because the desire to build such relations enhances when incidental similarity exists between two strangers.