The Barnum effect refers to a psychological phenomenon in which people tend to believe personality descriptions that are vague and general. For instance, believers in astrology attribute themselves to astrological categorization and descriptions. This study leverages the eye-tracking method to explore the impact of the Barnum effect in astrology. In the experiment, 12 participants were randomly recruited at a shopping mall in China. The description of the western zodiac was used as stimuli. Participants read 12 zodiac descriptions without labeling the corresponding zodiac signs. And they were asked to choose items that they considered fit their personalities afterward. Participants were divided into two groups. In group one, there was no limit to the number of items they could choose. In group two, participants could choose only one item. During the experiment, an eye-tracker was used to capture their gaze patterns, which could provide quantitative data. According to the results, in group one, most participants chose at least two items, which is inconsistent with the zodiac rule. Meanwhile, group two participants showed significantly higher revisit counts than group one. This indicates it is more difficult for people to choose only one item. The finding indicates that zodiac descriptions are vague and general, which is consistent with the Barnum effect.

Cao Huizi, Xuan Yiwei. Understanding the Impact of Barnum Effect in Astrology: An Eye-tracking Study. The Frontiers of Society, Science and Technology (2022) Vol. 4, Issue 12: 74-78. https://doi.org/10.25236/FSST.2022.041210.

[1] Angst, J., & Scheidegger, P. (1976). Tierkreiszeichen und Persönlichkeit. Sozial- Und Präventivmedizin SPM, 21(1), 39–41. https: //doi.org/10.1007/bf01994375

[2] Abdel-Khalek, A., & Lester, D. (2006). Astrological Signs and Personality in Kuwaitis and Americans. Psychological Reports, 98(2), 602–607. https://doi.org/10.2466/pr0.98.2.602-607

[3] Nicholas Hume, & Gerald Goldstein. (1977). Is there an association between astrological data and personality? Journal of Clinical Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1002/1097-4679(197707)33:3

[4] Andersson, I., Persson, J., & Kajonius, P. (2022). Even the stars think that I am superior: Personality, intelligence and belief in astrology. Personality and Individual Differences, 187, 111389. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2021.111389

[5] Layne, C., & Michels, P. J. (1979). Inventory Responding as a Model of People’s Acceptance of Personality Interpretations. Journal of Personality Assessment, 43(5), 509–513. https: // doi. org/ 10. 1207/ s15327752jpa4305_13

[6] Furnham, A., & Varian, C. (1988). Predicting and accepting personality test scores. Personality and Individual Differences, 9(4), 735–748. https://doi.org/10.1016/0191-8869(88)90063-3

[7] Poškus, M. S. (2014). A new way of looking at the Barnum effect and its links to personality traits in groups receiving different types of personality feedback. Psichologija, 50, 95–105. https: // doi. org/ 10. 15388/ psichol.2014.50.4893

[8] Dickson, D. H., & Kelly, I. W. (1985). The ‘Barnum Effect’ in Personality Assessment: A Review of the Literature. Psychological Reports, 57(2), 367–382. https://doi.org/10.2466/pr0.1985.57.2.367

[9] Huber, G. P., & Lewis, K. (2010). Cross-Understanding: Implications for Group Cognition and Performance. Academy of Management Review, 35(1), 6–26. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.35.1.zok6

[10] van Rooij, J. J. (1994). Introversion-extraversion: astrology versus psychology. Personality and Individual Differences, 16(6), 985–988. https://doi.org/10.1016/0191-8869(94)90243-7

[11] Chico, E., & Lorenzo-Seva, U. (2006). Belief in Astrology Inventory: Development and Validation. Psychological Reports, 99(3), 851–863. https://doi.org/10.2466/pr0.99.3.851-863