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	P.T. Barnum effect
		The Barnum effect is the name given to a type of subjective validation in which a person finds personal meaning in statements that could apply to many people.
		If Barnum statements are validated when they have originated during a psychic reading, the validation is taken as also validating the psychic powers of the medium.
		"Barnum effect" is an expression that seems to have originated with psychologist Paul Meehl, in deference to circus man P. Barnum's reputation as a master psychological manipulator who is said to have claimed "we have something for everybody."
	skepdic.com /barnum.html (318 words)

	Pierre Ysewijn - The Barnum Effect
		But before telling you what the Barnum effect is all about, let's do a quick test (less than 5 minutes) that will allow you to get a better insight in who you really are and how you function.
		The Barnum effect seems to explain, in part at least, why so many, even highly intelligent, people believe that astrology, cartomancy, chiromancy, numerology, fortune telling, graphology, etc., "work".
		The Barnum effect is also studied in the field of paranormal psychology.
	homepage.bluewin.ch /Ysewijn/english_Barnum.htm (841 words)

	Phineas Taylor Barnum (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-26)
		Barnum first started as a store-keeper, and was also concerned in the lottery mania then prevailing in the United States.
		Barnum retired from the show business in 1855, but had to settle with his creditors in 1857, and began his old career again as showman and museum proprietor.
		Barnum wrote several books, including The Humbugs of the World (1865), Struggles and Triumphs (1869), and his Autobiography (first in 1854, and later editions including 1869).
	www.sciencedaily.com /encyclopedia/phineas_taylor_barnum (406 words)

	Pierre Ysewijn - The Barnum Effect (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-26)
		But before telling you what the Barnum effect is all about, let's do a quick test (less than 5 minutes) that will allow you to get a better insight in who you really are and how you function.
		The Barnum effect seems to explain, in part at least, why so many, even highly intelligent, people believe that astrology, cartomancy, chiromancy, numerology, fortune telling, graphology, etc., "work".
		The Barnum effect is also studied in the field of paranormal psychology.
	mypage.bluewin.ch /Ysewijn/english_Barnum.htm (812 words)

	The Archive
		Barnum was without peer in his use of advertising, newspaper articles, and what would now be called publicity stunts in his efforts to draw visitors to the American Museum.
		It also aims barbs at Barnum's support for abolition and the abolitionist movement in general, and seems to refer obliquely to controversies surrounding the earlier baby shows ("Paterfamilias" was the pen name of a Cincinnati critic in 1855).
		Barnum, at that point a staunch Democrat, reprimanded Democratic politicians who failed to support temperance and urged readers to disregard political party and support temperance as a matter of principle.
	chnm.gmu.edu /lostmuseum/searchlm.php?function=find&exhibit=heth&... (2374 words)

	Social Behavior and Personality: Does self-serving bias cancel the Barnum effect
		Typical studies of the Barnum effect have used traits which are essentially positive, although Snyder and Shenkel (1976), for example, have found that people more readily accept favorable as compared to unfavorable Rorschach-- based statements about themselves, whereas ratings for other people's traits did not show this bias.
		Conversely, a high rating for both negative and positive traits would suggest that the Barnum effect is present, and eliminates the usual self-serving bias.
		The present data for the positive traits demonstrate the Barnum effect, in its usual pattern: the subjects showed considerable credulity concerning these alleged characteristics of their personalities, and rated the accuracy of these positive traits well above the neutral point of the scale (the midpoint value of 4).
	www.findarticles.com /p/articles/mi_qa3852/is_200201/ai_n9028989 (1432 words)

	Encyclopedia: Phineas T. Barnum
		Phineas Taylor Barnum (July 5, 1810 – April 7, 1891), American showman who is best remembered for his entertaining hoaxes and for founding the circus that eventually became Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus.
		With this woman and a small company he made well-advertised and successful tours in America till 1839, though Joice Heth died in 1836, when her age was proved to be not more than seventy.
		In Brooklyn, New York in 1871, he established "The Greatest Show on Earth," a travelling amalgamation of circus, menagerie and museum of "freaks." In 1881 he merged with James Bailey to create the Barnum and Bailey Circus, which toured around the world.
	www.nationmaster.com /encyclopedia/Phineas-T.-Barnum (406 words)

	Barnum Effect
		Barnum Effect : is a term that is used in psychology.
		A good example of this can be seen when people believe what is said about them in psychometric tests, personality profiles, astrological predictions, and so on.
		This phenomenon is named after P. Barnum, who believed that a good circus had "a little something for everybody." Even though the descriptions or descriptive terms used in the inventories, typologies, and tests can apply equally well to other people, some individuals are gullible enough to believe they are unique to themselves.
	www.wyke37.freeserve.co.uk /barnum_effect.htm (145 words)

	Vagueness, The Forer Effect, & Confirmation Bias
		The effect is named after psychologist Bertram R. Forer who, in 1948, gave his students a personality test and presented them each with identical analyses copied from a newspaper astrology column.
		The effect is also known as the Barnum effect (named for P. Barnum of circus fame who was extremely good at getting people to believe what he wanted them to) and as the subjective validation or personal validation effect.
		And since the people that read horoscopes, have their palms read, and call psychics tend to be those that already think that there must be something to such supernatural or paranormal ways of learning about the world, they tend to focus on those parts of their readings that confirm their belief in such methods.
	www.jaarondaniel.com /Teaching/forer.htm (2177 words)

	Myths and Mystiques, MYTHS, MYSTIQUES and DANGERS relating to PSYCHOLOGY. DON'T INTERVIEW STRANGERS! (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-26)
		These test sellers also frequently use the Barnum Effect as the basis for what is know as ‘The Barnum Bait Validation Study’.
		Barnum also once said: "there is a sucker born every minute".
		By the way, the only questionnaire on Tests on the Net that uses the Barnum Effect technique is the 'Potential for Change and Self-improvement'.
	www.testsonthenet.com /TATC/myths.htm (804 words)

	Forer effect
		The most common explanations given to account for the Forer effect are in terms of hope, wishful thinking, vanity and the tendency to try to make sense out of experience, though Forer's own explanation was in terms of human gullibility.
		People tend to accept claims about themselves in proportion to their desire that the claims be true rather than in proportion to the empirical accuracy of the claims as measured by some non-subjective standard.
		Dickson and Kelly have examined many of these studies and concluded that overall there is significant support for the general claim that Forer profiles are generally perceived to be accurate by subjects in the studies.
	skepdic.com /forer.html (1216 words)

	A support network for victims, Santeria, Lukumi, Palo, Ifa, Voodoo, Vodou, Spiritualism, related religions.
		The Barnum effect describes how a general personality profile that fits everyone will be accepted as accurate when given to an individual, especially if it is tied to some individuating or credible source such as birth date or personality test results.
		The Barnum effect got its name from P.T. Barnum's idea that you should have a "little something for everyone." One of the keys to the success of the effect is that most of the statements in a profile could apply to anyone even though the statements may appear to be specific or unique.
		Other factors that might help explain the Barnum effect are self serving bias, selective recall, a need to feel unique, and an exceptionally accurate statement coloring the rest of the profile.
	thebelievers.freeservers.com /coldreading.htm (5252 words)

	PopMatters \| Columns \| Rob Horning \| Marginal Utility \| Celebrities and the Barnum Effect
		P.T. Barnum was one of the first to systematically exploit this psychological hook with his ludicrous and extravagant freak shows.
		Here the Barnum effect becomes exponential: Not only are we catered to with pleasing trickery, but the catering itself is a trick, fooling us into thinking we have a self that enjoys to be fooled.
		She is a walking Barnum effect, which is strengthened by every iota of attention she receives for receiving so much attention.
	www.popmatters.com /columns/horning/041201.shtml (1978 words)

	Phineas Taylor Barnum - free-definition (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-26)
		Phineas Taylor Barnum (5 July, 1810 - 7 April, 1891), American showman who is best remembered for his entertaining hoaxes and for founding the circus that eventually became Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus.
		In Brooklyn, New York in 1871, he established "The Greatest Show on Earth," a travelling amalgamation of circus, menagerie and museum of "freaks," andc.
		In 1881 he merged with James Bailey to create the Barnum and Bailey Circus, which toured around the world.
	www.free-definition.com /P.-T.-Barnum.html (365 words)

	P. T. Barnum
		Barnum first started as a store-keeper, and was also concerned in the lottery mania then prevailing in the
		45 Barnum toured with Charles Stratton in Europe and met with Queen Victoria.
		James Bailey to create the Barnum and Bailey Circus, which toured around the world.
	en.showmy.net /Phineas_Taylor_Barnum (767 words)

	Denis Dutton on Cold Reading
		Modern interest in the Barnum Effect among psychologists dates from Forer’s classic experiment in which a group of 39 undergraduate psychology students were given the Diagnostic Interest Blank.
		Subjects in general are not unwilling to admit that they have problems and faults; the most successful Barnum description is often one which allows this, but does so in the context of generally telling the subject that in the final analysis he or she is really a splendid person.
		Moreover, the Barnum description is supposed to “fit” a human personality, and it should not surprise that something as uncertain and amorphous, yet exceedingly complex, as the human personality should be subject to a large number of nearly equally plausible descriptions.
	denisdutton.com /cold_reading.htm (6303 words)

	P. T. Barnum -- Facts, Info, and Encyclopedia article (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-26)
		He made a special hit in 1842 with the exhibition of (Click link for more info and facts about Charles Stratton) Charles Stratton, the celebrated (A person who is abnormally small) midget " (Click link for more info and facts about General Tom Thumb) General Tom Thumb".
		In 1843 Barnum hired the traditional (Any member of the peoples living in North or South America before the Europeans arrived) Native American dancer (Click link for more info and facts about Do-Hum-Me) Do-Hum-Me.
		The show's primary attraction was (Click link for more info and facts about Jumbo) Jumbo, an (African elephant having enormous flapping ears and ivory tusks) African elephant he purchased from the (Click link for more info and facts about London Zoo) London Zoo.
	www.absoluteastronomy.com /encyclopedia/P/P/P._T._Barnum.htm (421 words)

	The (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-26)
		This is known in research literature as the illusion of uniqueness and occurs at least for positive traits.
		Besides the Barnum Effect there are other reasons why people believe in personality tests and types.
		It may be that the real Barnum Effect is Barnum’s comment, "There’s a sucker born every minute."
	www.psychoheresy-aware.org /barnum84.html (263 words)

	Barnum
		BARNUM, Phineas T., fathered the introduction of the peanut, the clown, and the beautiful bareback riders.
		"Barnum" is generally used as a noun (proper) -- approximately 78.26% of the time.
		"Barnum" is used about 23 times out of a sample of 100 million words spoken or written in English.
	www.websters-online-dictionary.org /Ba/Barnum.html (651 words)

	The Barnum (or Forer) Effect (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-26)
		The key to Barnum's success is that he gave out general claims that could fit anyone, but looked specific and unique.
		Psychologist Bertram Forer studied this effect, so the same phenomenon is today sometimes called the Forer Effect, although he used the term subjective validation.
		Understanding the Barnum Effect can help explaining why so many people believe that many pseudo-sciences "work": astrology, numerology, biorhythm, chiromancy, graphology and so on.
	perun.users.sbb.co.yu /articles_psychics_barnum.htm (1114 words)

	PESTS Activity #2 (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-26)
		He uses astrology in one of his demonstrations to teach students about the "Barnum Effect" (also known as the "Forer Effect").
		The horoscope demonstration is made up of bits and pieces of other "Barnum Effect" demos as well as some Kabalarian personality descriptions I got from the web.
		At the end of the course, many students spontaneously mention this demo as particularly memorable and effective in demonstrating that you don't have to be a fool to fall for schemes like this.
	www.sc.maricopa.edu /sbscience/pests/activities/kane.html (1181 words)

	The Forer Effect
		The Forer Effect (also called the Barnum Effect or Subjective Validation Effect) refers to the tendency to accept vague or general statements as being very personal and accurate.
		The Forer Effect is a serious consideration in hand analysis, for both the professional and client.
		At first glance the Forer Effect seems to give exactly the evidence needed to expose palm reading as a mere scam, but on deeper examination it does not actually disprove the accuracy of any "pseudoscience".
	www.humanhand.com /forereffect.html (818 words)

	Mar 2005 Click Fraud, Forer Effect, Predatory Lending - Fraud In Other Words by Larry Adams
		Phineas Taylor Barnum (1810–1891) said, “A good circus has something for everyone.” “Barnum Statements” is a psychological term for boilerplate personality descriptions, like those in astrology books.
		More Barnum trivia: Barnum did not originate the phrase, “There’s a sucker born every minute.” His bitter rival, David Hannum, made the sucker quote in 1869 when thousands of people flocked each day to see Barnum’s exhibition of the Cardiff Giant, a flagrant copy of Hannum’s nearby Cardiff Giant exhibition.
		Hannum filed a lawsuit against Barnum and lost, when Hannum confessed in court that both petrified giants were archeological hoaxes carved from gypsum.
	www.larry-adams.com /200503_article.htm (787 words)

	Psychology 160 note (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-26)
		What is called the Barnum Effect in psychology is accepting as accurate vague descriptions of one's personality.
		In the Barnum Effect, the vague description is the hypothesis, and you seek confirming information in your own personality.
		This is not what is called the Barnum Effect, though I can see how the confusion occurred.
	www.psych.upenn.edu /apt/p160/note8.html (1480 words)

	Gifford Weary (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-26)
		Edwards, J. A., Weary, G., Jacobson, J. A., and von Hippel, W. The effects of depression on impression formation: The role of trait and category diagnosticity.
		Weary, G. and Reich, D.A. Attributional effects of conflicting chronic and temporary outcome expectancies: A case of automatic comparison and conflict.
		Effects of depressive schemas on the social inference process.
	www.psy.ohio-state.edu /weary (3203 words)

	Barnum Effect
		Barnum Effect : is a term that is used in psychology.
		A good example of this can be seen when people believe what is said about them in psychometric tests, personality profiles, astrological predictions, and so on.
		This phenomenon is named after P. Barnum, who believed that a good circus had "a little something for everybody." Even though the descriptions or descriptive terms used in the inventories, typologies, and tests can apply equally well to other people, some individuals are gullible enough to believe they are unique to themselves.
	www.paranormality.com /barnum_effect.shtml (176 words)

	Denis Dutton on Cold Reading
		If the consistent endorsement by subjects of Barnum descriptions were merely a matter of recognizing their nearly universal applicability, subjects would not then be so prone to treat such descriptions as uniquely describing their own idiosyncrasies.
		Subjects in general are not unwilling to admit that they have problems and faults; the most successful Barnum description is often one which allows this, but does so in the context of generally telling the subject that in the final analysis he or she is really a splendid person.
		Moreover, the Barnum description is supposed to “fit” a human personality, and it should not surprise that something as uncertain and amorphous, yet exceedingly complex, as the human personality should be subject to a large number of nearly equally plausible descriptions.
	www.denisdutton.com /cold_reading.htm (6300 words)

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