Animated stick figures that can be perceived as walking away (less hostile) or toward (more hostile) the viewer can be used to provide insight into anxiety. (Photo credit: Heenan A, Troje NF (2014))
A classic optical illusion has provided insight into how anxiety influences our view of the world. Researchers used animated stick figures to assess participants’ perceptions. These figures have no depth, allowing them to be perceived as either walking toward the viewer (i.e. more hostile) or away (less hostile).
Participants who had completed an anxiety reduction task (breathing exercises similar to those used in yoga) perceived the stick figures to be walking away more often than those asked to perform a control task. A second experiment showed that exercise also reduces this facing-the-viewer bias, possibly because physical activity helps relieve anxiety.
Click here to see a demo of the optical illusion
Original research paper published in the journal PLoS ONE on July 2, 2014.
Names and affiliations of selected authors
Adam Heenan, Queen’s University, Ontario
Nikolaus Troje, Queen’s University, Ontario
