Behavioural inhibition, behavioural activation, and the preference for familiarity

Although infants have been found to generally prefer novel stimuli, this preference appears to change early in childhood such that many adults tend to have an emotional preference for the familiar. The individual differences associated with this preference for familiarity among adults, however, have been relatively neglected. Behavioural inhibition and activation appear promising constructs with which to understand this phenomenon, given their motivational significance as well as their theoretical connection to novelty. It might be hypothesized that behavioural inhibition is positively associated with a preference for familiarity, given that novelty is an input and hypervigilance an output of this system. Alternatively, behavioural activation might be hypothesized to be negatively associated with a preference for familiarity, given that novelty-seeking is a manifestation of BAS activity. Two undergraduate samples completed self-report measures of BIS and BAS sensitivity and then observed and rated their preference for pictures of Ontario universities. Results indicated that undergraduates preferred pictures of their own university to those of others, and that this preference was particularly pronounced in those with a sensitive behavioural inhibition system.