Chocolate and roses are some of the most popular tokens of love around Valentine's Day. But to find out just why that is, Cornell University researchers launched a new study. Phillip O'Driscoll tells us what they found out.
Valentine's Day is a chance to show your appreciation for that special someone in your life.
Researchers at Cornell University felt it would be the perfect holiday to examine how culturally-shared events shape how we view common items.
"For example, when you receive a red rose during Valentine's Day, might that mean more because we're imbuing it with all these other associations about its meaning regarding love?" asked Vivian Zayas, an associate professor of psychology at Cornell. "And the same things with chocolates. If you get a box of chocolates during Valentine's Day, might we view it differently because we're now viewing it through a lens of what it represented symbolically in our culture?"
Researchers analyzed Google trend data and found that these items had a predictable spike in the week leading up to February 14. But as the research indicates, other holidays see similar patterns.
"Mother's Day, you get a huge spike in roses, and we don't have the data in terms of ... do people's evaluations of roses change during Mother's Day as the same way they change on Valentine's Day?" Zayas said.
While the perception of flowers and chocolate grows more positive leading up to the holiday, for some, those associations extend beyond Feb. 14.
"On Valentine's Day, I don't really buy it, but in two days, my friends and I are going to Target to buy the candy that's on sale," Cornell sophomore Angela Bui said.
The study did not find a similar increase in positivity toward an online dating ad, likely because those sites are not considered symbols of love.