The Flushtration Count Illusion: Attribute substitution tricks our interpretation of a simple visual event sequence

Cyril Thomas*, André Didierjean, Gustav Kuhn

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

<jats:p>When faced with a difficult question, people sometimes work out an answer to a related, easier question without realizing that a substitution has taken place (e.g., Kahneman, 2011, <jats:italic>Thinking, fast and slow</jats:italic>. New York, Farrar, Strauss, Giroux). In two experiments, we investigated whether this attribute substitution effect can also affect the interpretation of a simple visual event sequence. We used a magic trick called the ‘Flushtration Count Illusion’, which involves a technique used by magicians to give the illusion of having seen multiple cards with identical backs, when in fact only the back of one card (the bottom card) is repeatedly shown. In Experiment 1, we demonstrated that most participants are susceptible to the illusion, even if they have the visual and analytical reasoning capacity to correctly process the sequence. In Experiment 2, we demonstrated that participants construct a biased and simplified representation of the Flushtration Count by substituting some attributes of the event sequence. We discussed of the psychological processes underlying this attribute substitution effect.</jats:p>
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)850-861
Number of pages0
JournalBritish Journal of Psychology
Volume109
Issue number4
Early online date17 Apr 2018
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Nov 2018

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