The Effects of Tactile History on Attitudes toward and Frequency of Touching Behavior

Abstract

This study measures (1) the relationship between an individual's tactile history and attitude toward touch in public, and (2) the relationship between an individual's tactile history and the frequency of that person's touching behavior exhibited in public. The results indicate that attitudes toward touch are to a high degree predicted by past familial touch experience, but that an individual's tactile history has no statistically significant effect on the frequency of touching behavior exhibited in public.