Cross-Sensory Correspondences and Naive Conceptions of Natural Phenomena

Cross-sensory correspondences automatically intrude on performance in elaborate laboratory tasks (see Spence 2011 Attention, Perception, & Psychophysics 73 971–995, for a review). Outside such tasks, might they be responsible for some popular misconceptions about natural phenomena? Four simple demonstrations reveal how the correspondences between surface-lightness and weight, and between surface-lightness and auditory pitch, generate misconceptions about the weight and movement of objects and the vocalisations of animals. Specifically, people expect darker objects to be heavier than lighter-coloured objects, to free-fall more quickly, to roll across a table more slowly, and to make lower-pitched vocalisations when they come to life.