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Identification with another person: Manipulated by means of subliminal stimulation
Author(s) -
SMITH GUDMUND J. W.,
CARLSSON INGEGERD,
DANIELSSON ANNA
Publication year - 1985
Publication title -
scandinavian journal of psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.743
H-Index - 72
eISSN - 1467-9450
pISSN - 0036-5564
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-9450.1985.tb01143.x
Subject(s) - subliminal stimuli , psychology , stimulus (psychology) , perception , social psychology , projective test , cognitive psychology , audiology , psychoanalysis , neuroscience , medicine
Studied problems of identification, using a meta‐contrast design. The first stimulus (A) was always the word ME. In experiment 1 , the second stimulus (B) depicted an aggressor and a victim facing each other. The subliminal A was flashed either on the victim or the aggressor or completely withheld. In experiment 2 , B showed two persons standing against different backgrounds: an open horizon or a closed room. It was assumed that the subject would be “forced” to identify with that figure in B on which A was flashed. Subjects in experiment 1 were 18 psychiatric patients and in experiment 2 , 32 professional artists. The results showed that the subliminal manipulation had been effective: e.g., when led by A to identify with the aggressor, projective‐sensitive and borderline subjects were confused and even reported perceptual difficulties; when led to identify with the open side, highly creative artists, as opposed to less creative ones, reported more positive impressions of the B theme.