Temporal Aspects of the Chameleon Effect and Hospitality: The Link Between Mimicry, Its Impact, and Duration

Abstract

In an experiment conducted in natural settings (in a restaurant), we explore the uninvestigated link between mimicry, its impact on hospitality, and the time during which the mimicry takes place. Under particular experimental conditions, the waitress either did not verbally mimic the customer, mimicked the customer only at the initial stage of the interaction, only at the final stage of the interaction, or at both the initial and the final stage of the interaction. The tip left by the customer and its amount were the indicators of the hospitality experienced throughout the time spent in the restaurant. The outcome was that both indicators of noticeable hospitality were the highest where the verbal mimicry was applied twice.