With a specially designed apparatus of cardboard and embossed with Braille lines, 9 blind Ss, 3 born blind, 3 blinded in childhood, and 3 blinded as adults, all exhibited the haptic illusion to an extent comparable to the optical illusion of 4 normal controls, whose haptic illusion, while blindfolded, was much less pronounced and more variable. Those blinded at birth or in childhood showed a greater illusion with the preferred hand. My theory emphasizes the total impression in explaining optical and haptic Mueller-Lyer illusions.
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