False-Positive Effect in the Radin Double-Slit Experiment on Observer Consciousness as Determined With the Advanced Meta-Experimental Protocol
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Plain English Summary
Dean Radin's famous double-slit experiments claimed that human consciousness could subtly alter how light behaves at the quantum level. This study put that claim to the ultimate test — and it was commissioned by the same funder who backed Radin's work. The clever trick: they ran real experiments with human observers alongside sham experiments with nobody watching, across 10,000 trials. The consciousness effect? Not confirmed. But here's the kicker — the empty-room sham experiments actually produced a statistically significant result that was ten times larger than the claimed mind-over-matter effect. That strongly suggests the original findings were false positives caused by equipment or environmental quirks, not consciousness.
Research Notes
The most rigorous methodological critique of the Radin DS experiments, commissioned by the same funder (Fetzer Franklin Fund) and performed by the same investigator. Central to the double-slit PK controversy and the direct target of Radin et al.'s (2020) rebuttal Commentary already in the library.
A commissioned conceptual replication of the Radin double-slit experiment on observer consciousness employed the Advanced Meta-Experimental Protocol (AMP), which pairs true-experiments (with test subjects) against sham-experiments (without test subjects) across eight pre-specified test categories (10,000 total trials). The replication failed to confirm the original anomalous consciousness effect. The sham-experiment identified a statistically significant false-positive effect (p = 0.021, sigma = -2.02, N = 1,250) in exactly the test category predicted for a true-positive consciousness effect. The false-positive effect size (0.016%) was approximately 10 times larger than the claimed consciousness effect (0.001%), and its statistical significance was comparable to that reported in the original study.
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Response: Commentary: False-Positive Effect in the Radin Double-Slit Experiment on Observer Consciousness as Determined With the Advanced Meta-Experimental Protocol
False-Positive Effect in the Radin Double-Slit Experiment on Observer Consciousness as Determined with the Advanced Meta-Experimental Protocol
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📋 Cite this paper
Walleczek, Jan, von Stillfried, Nikolaus (2019). False-Positive Effect in the Radin Double-Slit Experiment on Observer Consciousness as Determined With the Advanced Meta-Experimental Protocol. Frontiers in Psychology. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.01891
@article{walleczek_2019_false_positive,
title = {False-Positive Effect in the Radin Double-Slit Experiment on Observer Consciousness as Determined With the Advanced Meta-Experimental Protocol},
author = {Walleczek, Jan and von Stillfried, Nikolaus},
year = {2019},
journal = {Frontiers in Psychology},
doi = {10.3389/fpsyg.2019.01891},
}