The Mimicker is a Mirror of Myself: Impact of Mimicking on Self-Consciousness and Social Anxiety

I was looking for articles about consciousness and this one seemed interesting. Other research has shown that participants who have been mimicked reported liking the mimicker more than participants who were not mimicked. The researchers hypothesized that mimicry would have an effect on the self-perception of the participant would enhance self-consciousness in participants. This experiment deals with mimicry, also called the chameleon effect. It refers to the unconscious imitation of postures, facial expressions, mannerisms, and other verbal and nonverbal behaviors.

Thirty-six female undergraduate business students, between the ages of 18 and 20 years, were randomly assigned to the experimental conditions. When the participant entered the laboratory, they were asked to sit in a chair that was placed so it half-faced the confederate, who was presented as an assistant. In this experiment, the confederate was asked to mimic the behavior of the participant when the participant was asked to describe something. In the control condition, the confederate did not mimic the participant’s behaviors. After the participants completed the task, they moved to a second room and completed the Self-consciousness Scale. Then the participants were fully debriefed.

The results of this experiment show that participants in the mimicry condition expressed more self-consciousness than did participants who were not mimicked. In this experiment, it was found that mimicry was associated with a decrease in social anxiety scores. From this experiment,  it could be inferred that the participants being mimicked had feelings that they were able to positively interact with a  stranger. This experiment shows that there are human desires to interact socially, and by mimicking another person gives them the perception that they are liked. I guess it goes back to that saying, “Imitation is the greatest form of flattery.”


GUÉGUEN, N. (2011). The Mimicker is a Mirror of Myself: Impact of Mimicking on Self-Consciousness and Social Anxiety. Social Behavior & Personality: An International Journal, 39(6), 725-1NULL. doi:10.2224/sbp.2011.39.6.725

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