AP PSYCHOLOGY

Detailed explanation-1: -The dress itself was confirmed as a royal blue “Lace Bodycon Dress” from the retailer Roman Originals, which was actually black and blue in colour; although available in three other colours (red, pink, and ivory, each with black lace), a white and gold version was not available at the time.

Detailed explanation-2: -Remember, the dress is actually blue and black, though most people saw it as white and gold, at least at first. My research showed that if you assumed the dress was in a shadow, you were much more likely to see it as white and gold. Why? Because shadows overrepresent blue light.

Detailed explanation-3: -This made the image appear more yellow in hue, hence people saw the dress as white and gold. The people who saw the dress as blue and black subtracted the longer wavelengths which were red in colour, to align with their assumption that the photo was taken in warm, artificial light.

Detailed explanation-4: -The retailer of the dress confirmed that the real color of the ‘Lace Bodycon Dress’ was actually blue and black. So, although the dress is blue and black, your unconscious overthinking makes you see it as white and gold.

Detailed explanation-5: -However, if people believed the dress was just shadowed in natural light, they thought it was gold and white. “Shadows are blue, so we mentally subtract the blue light in order to view the image, which then appears in bright colors-gold and white, ” Wallisch explained in a statement.