Quote:Can subliminal messages change
specific behaviors?, researchers conducted a well-designed experiment
that used a double-blind procedure.

Method. For several weeks, subjects listened to two different recordings titled either “Improve Self-Esteem” or “Improve Memory.” Then they rated any improvement in these behaviors. Double-blind procedure. Researchers had to control for any possible placebo effects, such as subjects showing improvement because they believed they were hearing powerful subliminal messages. Therefore, subjects were not told which subliminal messages the recordings contained. For example, some recordings labeled “Improve Memory” contained subliminal messages for improving memory, while others contained subliminal messages for improving self-esteem. !us, because of the double-blind procedure, subjects were unaware of the fact that some recordings’ subliminal messages did not match the recordings’ labels.

Results. About 50% of subjects reported improvements in either self-esteem or memory. However, subjects reported improvements in behavior based on what the recordings’ labels promised rather than on what the subliminal messages were. For example, a subject who listened to a recording labeled “Improve Self-Esteem” reported improvements in self-esteem even though the recording contained subliminal messages for improving memory. These results suggest a self-fulfilling prophecy at work. Self-fulfilling prophecies involve having strong beliefs about changing some behavior and then acting, unknowingly, to change that behavior.

Researchers concluded that subliminal messages in self-help recordings did not affect the behavior they were designed to change. Instead, any changes in behavior resulted from listeners’ beliefs that the recordings would be effective (Epley et al., 1999). Most research, in fact, suggests that subliminal messages cannot change our behaviors in any significant way (Dijksterhuis et al., 2007; Greenwald et al., 2002). There is evidence, however, that unconscious attitudes can unknowingly or subliminally influence perception.