Barnum Effect
The Forer effect is more frequently referred to as "The Barnum Effect". This term was coined in 1956 by American psychologist Paul Meehl in his essay, "Wanted - A Good Cookbook". He relates the vague personality descriptions used in certain "pseudo-successful" psychological tests to those given by entertainer and businessman P.T. Barnum, who was a notorious hoaxer.
Read more about this topic: Forer Effect, Origin of Term
Famous quotes containing the words barnum and/or effect:
“There’s a sucker born every minute.”
—Phineas Barnum (1810–1891)
“As soon as I suspect a fine effect is being achieved by accident I lose interest. I am not interested ... in unskilled labor.... The scientific actor is an even worker. Any one may achieve on some rare occasion an outburst of genuine feeling, a gesture of imperishable beauty, a ringing accent of truth; but your scientific actor knows how he did it. He can repeat it again and again and again. He can be depended on.”
—Minnie Maddern Fiske (1865–1932)