Washington, June 16 (ANI): We often watch our favourite movie or listen to our favourite song until we can’t stand it. Now, researchers suggest a new way that would help people continue to enjoy the products and experiences they once loved.

Jeff Galak from Carnegie Mellon University, Joseph P. Redden from University of Minnesota, and Justin Kruger from New York University have found a quick and simple way to recover from satiation.

“We demonstrate that simply thinking about the variety of similar experiences one has had since last being exposed to the now-disliked stimulus accelerates recovery from satiation,” wrote the authors.

“For example, if someone is sick of listening to her favourite song, she could think about all the other songs she has listened to since last listening to her favourite,” they added.

The researchers said that such simulations act as ‘virtual’ variety, providing much of the same reduction in satiation as actual variety.

“The reason this process works is because people suffer from what we term ‘variety amnesia’; they tend to forget all of the variety they had in their lives and instead focus on how repetitive their experiences have been,” said the researchers.

The team had conducted three studies, which proved that prompting people to think about variety helped them recover from satiation.

In a pilot study, people were more willing to socialize with a close friend after thinking about all the other friends they had socialized with.

In the next study, participants who listened to a song 20 times enjoyed it more three weeks later if they thought about other songs they had listened to in the previous weeks.

And the third study replicated the findings with jellybeans.

“If consumers wish to keep enjoying their favourite experiences, then they should simply think of all the other related experiences they have recently had,” the authors write.

“For example, the next time you find yourself in the all-too-common situation of not wanting to eat the same thing for lunch, try to recall all of the other things you have eaten since yesterday’s lunch.

“Our findings suggest this will make your current lunch taste just a little bit better,” they added.

The findings appear in Journal of Consumer Research. (ANI)