Self-Reference Effect in Perceptual Judgments by Individuals and Groups

Abstract

The existence of a “self-reference” effect in perception, such as that found in memory, was tested in groups and individuals. Subjects who judged a self-relevant stimulus were more accurate than those who judged a stimulus which was not self-relevant. No differences were found in the perceptual accuracy of groups versus individuals, and the self-reference effect was not more pronounced in groups or individuals. The effect may be explained in terms of the greater epistemic curiosity aroused by a self-referent stimulus and by the activation of hypothesized central nodes in the neural networks which produce perceptual judgments.