The Barnum Effect: why we love astrology and personality tests
What do astrology, aura reading, fortune telling, cold reading, and some personality tests such as the MBTI have in common? They all exploit the Barnum Effect to convince people that the generated statements are personal to them.
The statements are so vague, we interpret our own meaning, sometimes feeling in awe of their accuracy. “That’s so me!” you may think while reading your horoscope. Well, yes, the statement seems to align with your lived experience, because it is designed to align with anyone’s experience.
The Barnum Effect is the phenomenon that occurs when individuals believe that personality descriptions apply specifically to them, despite the fact that the description is actually filled with information that applies to everyone.