butt-brush effect

noun

A loss of interest in buying a product in a crowded store if one is inadvertently touched from behind by another shopper passing by.

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Meanings

nounbutt-brush effect (uncountable)
  1. informaluncountableA loss of interest in buying a product in a crowded store if one is inadvertently touched from behind by another shopper passing by.

    One of Underhill's main findings has to do with what he calls the “butt-brush effect”: touch someone, especially a woman, from behind, and she'll immediately move away from the merchandise and often leave the store.

    2008, Richard H. Robbins, Cengage Advantage Books: Cultural Anthropology: A Problem-Based Approach
Cite this entry
APA

butt-brush effect. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/butt-brush%20effect

MLA

“butt-brush effect.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/butt-brush%20effect. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “butt-brush effect,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/butt-brush%20effect.

Source: butt-brush effect on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.