Do Names Matter? A Comparison of Restatements and Names

Abstract

When it comes to meeting new people there is always a chance that you will walk away from the interaction with a new bestie or with feelings of wanting to become more than just a budding acquaintance. When looking at what in our experiences can contribute to these types of positive feelings when it comes to relationship building, one of the main things of use to us are the kinds of information others share with us and how we use it. In brief introductory interactions, there are many conclusions we lead ourselves to about new people we meet, either from lack of information or exposure to new information. In our study, we will be making an attempt to see which types of information are more beneficial to growth and positive friendship. In particular, we attempted to examine which different forms of personal information, that are disclosed compared to names created a positive reaction. This would then help to determine if the integration of either of these types of information, used in an approach from a stranger would produce feelings of liking. The indications of the research point towards neither kind of information affecting preference in a controlled interaction.