Reactions to Heard Words: Varying Emotional Content and Frequency of Exposure

The authors aurally presented words varying in emotional content and frequency of exposure to 56 participants during (a) a study phase in which 288 words (72 separate words with repetitions) were presented and (b) a test phase in which participants were presented with the 72 words from the study phase along with 24 new words. In the test phase, participants responded to these 96 words with either a recognition response or a likability response. The recognition results indicated that increased exposure produced increased recognition; however, high arousal and negative valence words produced higher false positive scores. The likability scores revealed an overall mere exposure effect (MEE). However, words of low arousal and of positive valence did not show the MEE.