The Barnum effect, also called the Forer effect after the psychologist Bertram Forer, is the tendency of people to rate vague, general personality descriptions as highly accurate for themselves personally, even though the same description could apply to almost anyone. Forer demonstrated the effect in a 1948 study in which he gave students a personality assessment supposedly based on a personality test, but actually made up of generic statements gathered from horoscopes, and students rated its accuracy for them personally very highly on average. The effect is commonly cited to explain the persuasive appeal of astrology, fortune telling and some forms of personality profiling, and its name refers to the showman P. T. Barnum, credited with the saying that a good circus act has a little something for everyone.
Facts
Core ClaimThe effect explains why vague, universally applicable personality statements feel personally accurate, and is used to account for the persuasive pull of astrology, cold reading and many commercial personality tests. 1 First Described Year Classification
Type of Phenomenon Connections
In Branch
Source Wikipedia: Barnum effect
Sources
1. Wikipedia: Barnum effect
Wikimedia Foundationlead paragraph, definition
The Barnum effect, also called the Forer effect or, less commonly, the Barnum-Forer effect, is a common psychological phenomenon whereby individuals give high accuracy ratings to descriptions of their personality that supposedly are tailored specifically to them, yet which are in fact vague and general enough to apply to a broad range of people.
lead section, defining sentence
The Barnum effect, also called the Forer effect or, less commonly, the Barnum-Forer effect, is a common psychological phenomenon whereby individuals give high accuracy ratings to descriptions of their personality that supposedly are tailored specifically to them, yet which are in fact vague and general enough to apply to a broad range of people.
origin/history passage
Meehl coined the term "Barnum effect" in 1956 in his essay "Wanted, A Good Cookbook"
lead section, phenomenon-kind classification
This effect can provide a partial explanation for the widespread acceptance of some paranormal beliefs and practices, such as astrology, fortune telling, aura reading, and some types of personality tests.
In Branch: Cognitive Psychology, Categories
Wikipedia article 'Barnum effect' is filed under Category:Cognitive biases.
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