Experiments link Mimicry With More Smoking and Lower Quitting Intention

Adults whose movements were mimicked during a brief interview later smoked an average of 2.5 cigarettes—about twice the amount of participants whose gestures were not copied—in the first of two experiments testing whether social mimicry can sustain smoking behavior. In a second experiment, synchronized smoking reduced stated willingness to quit within five years from 8.80 to 2.65 on a 10-point scale, according to the researchers at SWPS University. The peer-reviewed study was published in the International Journal of Psychology.

The laboratory experiment involved 40 adults who were briefly interviewed about their health-related lifestyles. During interviews with some participants, the experimenter discreetly mimicked the participant’s movements; the control group received no such mimicry. Participants were subsequently invited to a smoking area. Those whose movements had been copied consumed an average of 2.5 cigarettes, twice as many as controls, and also reported greater liking for the experimenter. The findings are consistent with the researchers’ “social glue” hypothesis, which proposes that copying another person’s behavior can strengthen interpersonal connection. The study was experimental and the reported outcomes were immediate, but the small laboratory sample does not establish how long any effect would last or whether it would generalize to other settings.

The researchers subsequently conducted a field experiment involving 120 participants in smoking areas of Warsaw clubs and pubs. Participants were randomly divided among three conditions. In the control condition, the experimenter did not smoke. In the synchronized-mimicry condition, the experimenter took a puff shortly after the participant and exhaled smoke in the same direction. In a third condition, the experimenter also smoked, but did not synchronize the behavior with the participant. The contrast between synchronized and unsynchronized smoking was observed in this field experiment, allowing the researchers to test mimicry rather than only the presence of another smoker.

After a short lifestyle interview and questionnaire, participants rated their willingness to consider quitting within the next five years on a 10-point scale. The mean score was 2.65 in the synchronized-mimicry condition, compared with 8.80 in the non-smoking control group, while unsynchronized smoking did not produce the same reduction. Participants exposed to synchronized smoking also showed greater stated willingness to consider switching from conventional cigarettes to e-cigarettes, with the corresponding mean score increasing from 2.65 to 8.32. This apparent increase in interest in switching did not indicate greater willingness to stop smoking altogether. Because the field results were based on questionnaire responses, they measured stated intentions rather than verified smoking reduction, long-term abstinence or changes in nicotine dependence.

Based on the findings, the researchers proposed that anti-smoking campaigns and addiction-treatment strategies could take social mimicry into account. They suggested that transforming communal smoking areas into single-person spaces could reduce contact among smokers, potentially weakening the behavioral synchronization that perpetuates the habit. They also argued that educating smokers about mimicry could complement psychological, social and environmental approaches to tobacco addiction. These were proposed applications rather than interventions directly tested in the two experiments. The authors declared no conflicts of interest.

Subject of Research: Experimental evidence on social mimicry, cigarette consumption and intentions to quit smoking.

Article Title: Mimicry connects smokers and makes quitting difficult

Article References: Mimicry connects smokers and makes quitting difficult. Original publication (Bibliographic details unavailable.)

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DOI: Not provided

Keywords: social mimicry, smoking behavior, tobacco addiction, cessation intentions, field experiment, laboratory experiment, social influence, e-cigarettes, smoking areas, public health, Mimicry, connects