What kind of people are likely to suffer from the 'frog phenomenon' - the sudden feeling of disgust towards someone they like?
The phenomenon of feeling disgusted for some reason the moment you find out that someone you like likes you back, or feeling uncomfortable or disgusted by a small action of your crush and starting to dislike them, is commonly referred to as the '
The ick: Disgust sensitivity, narcissism, and perfectionism in mate choice thresholds - ScienceDirect
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0191886925000480
According to Brian Collison of Azusa Pacific University, the frog phenomenon can be triggered by very small things, like an awkward handhold, your partner resting their head on your shoulder, or licking their fingers while turning the page of a book.
Collison and his colleagues analyzed 86 videos on TikTok to find out what triggered people to experience the frog phenomenon, and found that the behaviors that triggered the frog phenomenon differed slightly between men and women. Here is a list of the triggers mentioned in the videos:
woman | male | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| example | frequency | example | frequency |
| Overly feminine behavior, such as resting his head on my shoulder | 44 times (40%) | Your partner is overly trendy, like being obsessed with astrology | 14 times (29%) |
| Embarrassing yourself in public, such as using the music search app 'Shazam' in a nightclub | 31 times (28%) | Being embarrassed in public, such as going on a 'girls trip' | 10 times (21%) |
| Every time I do something he says 'Wow, without me?' and makes annoying remarks. | 24 times (22%) | The other person's remarks, such as using strange slang | 10 times (21%) |
| Wearing jorts (denim shorts) is uncool | 15 times (14%) | Her feet don't even reach the floor, making her look bad. | 7 times (15%) |
| Misogynistic behavior, such as silencing other girls by shouting | 15 times (14%) | Hypermasculine behavior, such as spitting gum into a trash can | 6 times (13%) |
| footsteps | 10 times (9%) | Social media behavior, such as excessive Instagram photo captions | 5 times (10%) |
| Social media actions such as posting polls (surveys) on Instagram | 9 times (8%) | Talking about a girl you just met as your 'best friend' | 5 times (10%) |
| Poor appearance, such as the crack of the buttocks being visible when bending over | 7 times (6%) | Too much makeup | 4 times (8%) |
| Being too conscious of trends and trying desperately to fit in with others | 5 times (5%) | ||
The frog phenomenon occurs when people choose a partner and decide how to tolerate them in a long-term relationship, eliminating potential risks that could have a negative impact on their future lives. To find out what specifically triggers the frog phenomenon and why it occurs over trivial matters, Collison and his colleagues recruited 164 participants and conducted a questionnaire survey.
Previous research has shown that people are generally more sensitive to losses than to gains, so that they react more strongly to similar behaviors if they perceive them as losses. It has also been found that accepting an incompatible partner consumes one's own resources, reduces the probability of reproductive success, and has a negative impact on long-term relationships, while rejecting a compatible partner means missing out on a long-term relationship but with less direct risk. These studies lead to the hypothesis that people have a strong desire to minimize costly choices, and that this desire causes the frog phenomenon.
Collison and his colleagues hypothesized that people who are more sensitive to disgust are more likely to be triggered by minor cues, and speculated that this sensitivity may vary from person to person.
For example, narcissists who have inflated self-esteem may expect their partner to live up to the ideal they hold up, and they may be especially sensitive to any deviations from that ideal, even small things that they find unacceptable.
The same is true for perfectionists who expect perfect behavior from others. Such people tend to evaluate their partners by strict, idealistic standards, and have a strong aversive reaction to behavior that falls short of their expectations, making them more likely to experience the frog phenomenon.
The results of the questionnaire survey showed that people who were simply more sensitive to disgust, who had narcissistic tendencies, and who had perfectionist tendencies were all positively correlated with the likelihood of experiencing the frog phenomenon, but there was no correlation with the frequency of the experience. This means that while people are not likely to be bothered by every single behavior of their partner and experience the frog phenomenon frequently, they are more likely to be sensitive to certain behaviors than others.
For example, female perfectionists and narcissists were more sensitive to both appearance and public embarrassment, like seeing their butt crack through their trousers or searching for songs in a nightclub, while in men they were more sensitive to strange slang and overly trendy behaviours.
The survey collected data from 125 people, excluding participants with incomplete answers, and found that about 64% of them answered that they had experienced the frog phenomenon while dating. However, the frequency of this phenomenon varied, with 46% saying that they 'rarely experience the frog phenomenon' and 44% saying that it 'only happens occasionally.'
Experiencing the frog phenomenon can affect your future relationships. Of those who have experienced the frog phenomenon, 42% said they would end the relationship at a later date, and 26% said they would end it immediately. However, 32% chose to continue the relationship despite experiencing the frog phenomenon.
There were also differences between men and women, with only 39% of men knowing the word 'The Ick,' compared to 63% of women. There was also a difference in the percentage of people who had experienced the frog phenomenon in the past, with 75% of women reporting it, compared to 57% of men.
From these results, Collison et al. concluded that 'disgust is an evolutionary avoidance mechanism that originally protected humans from exposure to pathogens, but later expanded to control mate choice and social behavior. In the context of romance, we show that people with high disgust sensitivity tend to impose strict mate selection criteria and may select partners based on immediate reactions rather than on substantial relevance. However, it is not known whether frogification is a disadvantage or advantage in long-term romance. To find out whether frogification leads to romantic failure or helps us to distinguish poor partners and choose the best one for ourselves, we need to examine whether it is associated with relationship stability, satisfaction, and reproductive success.'
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