The novelty effect causes a person to react positively when a new technology is introduced to them. This positive effect will eventually ware off as the person becomes accustomed to the technology or as the technology loses it novelty.
Have you ever met a person in the gym who always seemed to be on top of current exercise trends and methods? The exercise and fitness world is full of such people; people who are always keeping up with the latest exercise studies and methods and changing their ideology with the publication of every new fitness magazine. Besides doing a particularly good job at annoying the people around them, these butterflies of the exercise world are often able to stay in particularly good shape.
To many people, this might seem natural since these exercisers in question are constantly digesting new theories on exercise and purchasing new exercise equipment. If one looks a little bit closer into the situation however, they will likely realize a gaping inconsistency in the results of these people.
The inconsistency lies in the fact that although these people have supposedly found an effective exercise routine, method, or product, they will be extremely likely to drop the method as soon as a new method comes along. This begs the obvious question, why would the stop using an exercise method or product if it was yielding such results?
The reason is that this exerciser and his results are not the product of any particular method or treadmill but rather a result of the novelty effect. Basically, the exerciser who is always purchasing new products and, quote-unquote, staying abreast on the exercise breakthroughs, is doing nothing more sophisticated than entertaining a short sighted mindset.
Although the products and methods that are used by these novelists are not actually negative, the same results could actually be achieved without the purchase of a myriad of products and without the dedication to throwaway methods.
Exercising with the novelty effect is not altogether a negative thing however. If you have plenty of money, time, and unused mental power, and you are averse to promoting any aspect of your life other than your personal fitness, then exercising with the novelty effect is just right for you.
Exercisers who employ the novelty effect in their exercise regimens are even able to achieve these results without even a basic understanding of what they are doing. All they need are resources to burn, a free market economy, and access to gimmick-filled advertisements.