The mere exposure effect The mere exposure effect applies even to ourselves. Because the human face is not perfectly symmetrical, the face we see in the mirror is not the same face our friends see. Most of us prefer the familiar mirror image, while our friends like the reverse (Mita et al., 1977). The person German Chancellor Angela Merkel sees in the mirror each morning is shown at right, and that’s the photo she would probably prefer. We might feel more comfortable with the reverse image (left), the one we see.
Dan Kitwood/Getty Images