I debunked psychology’s greatest myth
Nudge23 Jun 2025

I debunked psychology’s greatest myth

I interviewed 60 Brits to debunk one of psychology’s greatest myths. Priming is one of the best-known biases in behavioural science. Kahneman mentions it 35 times in his best-selling book Thinking Fast and Slow. And yet, I’m not convinced it really works. In five separate experiments, I tested it. Does priming work, or is it a myth? The studies: Authenticity study: https://ibb.co/5W14DM2N Creativity study: https://ibb.co/FbxxNMDf Guilty study: https://ibb.co/XrTLXrY4 Anchoring + priming study: https://ibb.co/99LLw7G9 Reading time study: https://ibb.co/LDYc18yF --- Subscribe to the (free) Nudge Newsletter: https://nudge.ck.page/profile Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/phill-agnew-22213187/ Watch Nudge on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@nudgepodcast/ Learn more about Voxpopme: https://www.voxpopme.com/ --- Sources: Bargh, J. A., Chen, M., & Burrows, L. (1996). Automaticity of social behavior: Direct effects of trait construct and stereotype activation on action. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 71(2), 230–244. Chernev, A. (2011). Semantic anchoring in sequential evaluations of vices and virtues. Journal of Consumer Research, 37(5), 761–774. Doyen, S., Klein, O., Pichon, C. L., & Cleeremans, A. (2012). Behavioral priming: It's all in the mind, but whose mind? PLoS ONE, 7(1), e29081. Fitzsimons, G. J., Chartrand, T. L., & Fitzsimons, G. M. (2008). Automatic effects of brand exposure on motivated behavior: How Apple makes you “think different”. Journal of Consumer Research, 35(1), 21–35. Goldsmith, K., Cho, E., & Dhar, R. (2012). Priming creativity: The effects of subliminal priming on creative problem solving. In Z. Gürhan-Canli, C. Otnes, & R. Zhu (Eds.), Advances in Consumer Research (Vol. 40, pp. 472–473). Association for Consumer Research. Kahneman, D. (2011). Thinking, fast and slow. Farrar, Straus and Giroux. Kahneman, D. (2012, September 26). A letter to the priming research community [Open email].

Episoder(285)

Did I Get It Wrong? | Revisiting Priming

Did I Get It Wrong? | Revisiting Priming

A few weeks back I debunked five studies on priming. But did I get it wrong?  Today’s guest on Nudge thinks I missed something.  Tune in to hear consumer behaviour expert Philip Graves explain his ...

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‘New Coke’ and the marketing blunder of the century

‘New Coke’ and the marketing blunder of the century

In 1985, Coca-Cola changed its flavour. You probably know that this was a complete failure. ‘New Coke’ was discontinued after just 79 days. But you probably don’t know the true reason why New Coke ...

11 Aug 202529min

How your brain can reveal what you buy

How your brain can reveal what you buy

Paul Zak can predict what customers buy without speaking to them.  He’s even able to boost charitable donations by spraying a donor with hormones. Find out how in today’s episode of Nudge.  ---  R...

4 Aug 202531min

How this indie movie used psychology to beat Hollywood

How this indie movie used psychology to beat Hollywood

97% of independent films fail. Boiling Point did not. Today, I chat with executive producer Paul Mellor to learn how this movie applied psychological principles to outperform its peers and compete aga...

28 Jul 202525min

Why naming a dish “field-grown” doubled sales

Why naming a dish “field-grown” doubled sales

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21 Jul 202526min

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Three tricks Super Mario uses to keep gamers hooked

Super Mario Bros is 40 years old. It’s an incredibly simple game (it takes up the same memory as a smartphone wallpaper), yet it’s incredibly popular. Over 40 million people have played it. Why? Becau...

14 Jul 202521min

This single text made girls 45% more likely to get vaccinated

This single text made girls 45% more likely to get vaccinated

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7 Jul 202522min

A surprisingly effective way to persuade (almost) anyone

A surprisingly effective way to persuade (almost) anyone

It’s a psychological principle that helped end South African apartheid.  It reversed the Pope’s declining popularity.  It reduced university students’ binge drinking by 30%.  And can predict romant...

30 Jun 202525min

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