Several studies have consistently shown that individuals perceive people who mimic them positively. In the seminal experimental work on this topic, Maurer and Tindall (1983) asked a counselor to mimic a client’s arm and leg positions and reported that mimicry enhanced the client’s opinion of the counselor’s level of empathy far more than in a control condition where the counselor was instructed not to mimic the client. Chartrand and Bargh (1999) observed that participants who were mimicked by a confederate reported liking that confederate more than those
participants who were not mimicked. In a selling field situation,Jacob, Guéguen, Martin, and Boulbry (2011) reported that salespeople who were instructed to mimic some of the verbal expressions and nonverbal behavior of their customers during the sales process were evaluated by the customers as being more pleasant friendly, and competent. During speed-dating sessions, Guéguen (2009) instructed women to mimic or not the verbal content of the messages sent by the men with whom they were interacting for 10 min. It was found that men who were mimicked evaluated women more positively than those who were not mimicked.