Environmental experience and exposure can alter an individual's aesthetic preferences for beauty
Evidence from psychological, neurological, and sociological studies supports the claim that environmental experiences, including repeated sensory exposure, social media consumption, and living conditions, can shape and alter an individual's aesthetic preferences.
The retrieved papers provide robust empirical and review evidence showing that environmental exposure—ranging from physical stimuli and digital algorithms to ambient violence and geographic location—directly influences and alters aesthetic evaluations and preferences. Therefore, the claim is supported.
Martina Jakesch, C. Carbon. The Mere Exposure Effect in the Domain of Haptics. 2012. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0031215
Demonstrates that repeated haptic and cross-modal exposure changes stimulus evaluation and liking, supporting environmental influence on aesthetic preference.
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Alisen Huang, S. Fabi. Algorithmic Beauty: The New Beauty Standard.. 2024. https://doi.org/10.36849/JDD.8074
Shows how digital environmental exposure via social media algorithms can shape and alter users' aesthetic desires and beauty ideals.
Mustafa Öztunç, Nesrin Akıncı Çötok, Mustafa Enes Işıkgöz, Kübra Biricik. Digital culture and aesthetic orientation: associations with body perception and beauty perception on social media. 2025. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-025-03517-y
Finds that social media aesthetic orientation and exposure to curated visuals are positively associated with individual beauty perception.
Petr Tureček, V. Černý, Mame Yoro Diallo, Ngoné Cissé, Šimon Pokorný, Karel Kleisner. Violence exposure is associated with preference for masculine faces: evidence from Senegal.. 2025. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2024.3105
Reveals that personal experience with environmental factors such as violence significantly alters facial feature preferences for attractiveness.
Rob Watts. Children’s images of beauty: environmental influences on aesthetic preferences. 2018. https://doi.org/10.1080/03004279.2018.1508243
Demonstrates that children located in contrasting urban and rural environments exhibit differences in aesthetic preferences, highlighting environmental influences.
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