# Professor Adam Alter explains the impact that a person's name can have on his or her success in life, drawing from his research

1 Faculty News September 9, 2018 ![CBS News logo](/sites/default/files/styles/246w/public/assets/images/con_031726.jpg?itok=XPqKNXWl)>

Excerpt from [CBS](http://https://www.cbsnews.com/news/why-parents-opt-for-unusual-baby-names/) -- "We know that we pay a lot of attention to our names. There's an effect known as the cocktail party effect. And it's this idea that if you're at a cocktail party, there could be 100 people in a room. You could be at one corner of the room. There's a lot of noise. But if someone at the other corner of the room says your first name, you will hear it."

[Read more](http://https://www.cbsnews.com/news/why-parents-opt-for-unusual-baby-names/)