We’re in the home stretch of the semester, which means it’s almost time for college students to go home for the holidays. With winter break on the horizon, I’m sure you’re looking forward to seeing your family and friends, celebrating (if you do), and having a break from school assignments — so you can say goodbye to those dreaded Blackboard or Canvas notifications (at least for the time being). But returning home also means feeling a sense of familiarity as you spend time visiting your old stomping grounds in your hometown. If you were homesick while away at college, this can feel comforting. But it can also feel stagnant or boring. Luckily, there might be a way to add some excitement back into your hometown — or at least in the way you look at it.
Enter: TikTok’s Japan effect. The trend uses people’s fascination with Japan to trick your mind into seeing the inherent beauty of your surroundings… even if you live in The Middle Of Nowhere, U.S.A.
You might have seen the trend already: People posting about the Japan Effect typically show two identical videos or photos of a specific place, and then label and tag the post as being in Tokyo, Japan, instead of where the photo actually takes place. In the trend, people are claiming that the same simple photo instantly looks more beautiful or interesting when framed as being in Japan over anywhere else. I know it sounds a bit out-there — I mean, how can the same exact photo cause such a different reaction?
One TikTok from creator @shotandforgot that thoroughly explains the Japan Effect mentions that part of the reason it works is because it is making use of a psychological phenomenon called contextual framing. It basically means that the way information is presented or framed to people influences how it is interpreted or perceived. With the Japan Effect, what your brain once considered to be a dull or drab image, now becomes something that is seen as more beautiful or aesthetic simply because it has Tokoyo, Japan labeled as the location. Nothing really changed in the photo except how you feel about it.
So, how can you use the Japan effect when home for the holidays?
Remember how I mentioned that coming home for the holidays can bring upon a familiar feeling? Well, usually when something is familiar, it becomes more favorable because it’s a safe option — but sometimes the opposite can also be true. When something is overly familiar, it becomes repetitive to the point where you lack interest in it and want something different.
As someone who has personally grown up in New York City, I find there is some truth to this. From my experience, I grew up seeing landmarks like Times Square, the Empire State Building, and Central Park — places that someone visiting New York for the first time might find special. But to me, it’s a building or park that I’ve seen countless times, so it’s lost that wow-factor. The same thing can be said about any college student visiting their hometown. But the Japan effect can help mitigate that feeling by tricking your mind into bringing a new perspective to it.
So, if you’re shopping at the same poorly lit grocery store as always, or walking in the same park you played at since you were 5, you can use the Japan effect to remember that these spots are actually innately beautiful. The effect can allow you to romanticize your surroundings and see the beauty in things that you otherwise might have overlooked or taken advantage of. You might just see your hometown in a whole new light.