The U.K. mind trickster, illusionist and show-man Derren Brown, in his T.V. series, Trick or Treat, re-created a veritable human Skinner Box, based on experiments by the Psychologist B.F. Skinner. This, he reasoned, was to prove the way in which superstition is established.
The following is a quote from the following website:
http://www.rmjs.co.uk/db/tv02g.htm
• Programme Six Series Finale: Friday 6 June (C4) and Saturday 7 June (E4), 2008
o All of the participants in the series meet to celebrate the end of the series, but DB explains they are to participate in a "sociological experiment designed to unlock the irrational mindset behind superstitious thinking".
o They are told they have to earn 100 points within 30 minutes to open the door and win the named bundles of £500 appear outside the door. The room contains a variety of objects. The participants start moving things around and a display shows their points increasing.
o DB explains that the experiment is based on B F Skinner's experiments into behaviour in the 1960s. He shows footage of Skinner's experiment with pigeons in which they are rewarded with food during the course of the experiment. The pigeons believed that the food was delivered in response to them repeating certain actions when the food was, in fact, delivered at random. This led to the pigeons simply repeating behaviour for no purpose. Skinner explained this as has superstition works where humans make false connections between cause and effect. DB explains the the participants' score is increasing a result of a pair of goldfish's movements in a tank.
o DB discusses superstition with Joey, an applicant for the programme, and during their conversation at DB's instruction she does several superstitious things (walking under ladders, breaking a mirror, opening an umbrella inside, etc.). At their destination they play a game in which she is blindfolded and has to throw a dart at a deck of cards which have been arranged on the wall; if she wins she gets a bottle of champagne. She names a card (QH) and throws the dart. It lands in the QH and she wins the champagne. On the bottle there is a note which tells her she has won £50 if she got the dart in the circle. She removes the QH and it is the only card with writing on the back: there is a circle and the dart has landed in the circle.
o Return to the participants who are still trying to work out, unsuccessfully, what is causing their score to increase.
o The participants are shown again now 15 minutes into the experiment. DB shows that after 5 minutes of the experiment he revealed another sign on the roof telling them that the doors were unlocked and they could walk out and collect £150,000. They, however, are still to intent on trying to work out how to increase their score to see the sign.
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