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Westermarck effect

the proposal that people who grow up together in the same household do not find one another sexually attractive later in life. It is based on the observation that people who had extensive contact with one another as children rarely ever married, despite being available as mates. [Edward Westermarck (1862–1939), Finnish anthropologist]

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Psychology term of the day

February 11th 2025

balance

balance

1. n. a harmonious relationship or equilibrium of opposing forces or contrasting elements. See autonomic balance; balance theory; homeostasis.

2. n. the sense of equilibrium mediated by the vestibular system of the inner ear.

3. vb. to adjust forces to maintain something at a level from which it would ordinarily deviate.