Qwerty effect

The QWERTY effect (or qwerty effect) emphasizes ways that modern keyboard layouts have influenced human language,^[1] naming preferences^[2] and behavior.^[3][4]

One area this affects is how words are perceived in terms of positive vs. negative association. For example, Jasmin and Casasanto (2012) found that words that contain more right-hand letters are perceived more positively than those with more left-hand letters, and that this phenomenon affects both real and nonsense words for speakers across multiple European languages.^[5] Garcia and Strohmaier (2016) find this effect applies both when text is interpreted and when text is composed.^[6]

This phenomenon applies even to personal names, such that Casasanto et al. (2014) find evidence that the QWERTY layout is influencing the choice of children's names in the United States.^[7]

The Wubi effect references the same process of influence driven by autocomplete, Chinese input methods for computers (such as the Wubi method), and real time input suggestions from search engines based on current events.^[8]