Baader-Meinhof phenomenon (frequency illusion): meaning & examples

Introduction

Have you ever bought or considered a new car and suddenly everyone seems to be driving the same model? This is no coincidence; it's the Baader-Meinhof phenomenon at work. In this article, SME entrepreneurs discover how this phenomenon can affect their business choices and what they can do practically with it.

What is the Baader-Meinhof phenomenon?

The Baader-Meinhof phenomenon, also called the frequency illusion, is the illusion that a topic or word that came to your attention recently seems to occur at a higher frequency the period after it (Zwicky, 2005).

The Baader-Meinhof phenomenon gets its name from the Baader-Meinhof group, a former terrorist organization active in the Federal Republic of Germany. A reader of the newspaper the St. Paul Pioneer Press, Terry Mullen, had the idea in 1994 that he suddenly came across the name a lot, having first heard about it recently. He called it the Baader-Meinhof phenomenon. It wasn't until 2005 that scientist Arnold Zwicky gave the phenomenon the name frequency illusion.

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How does the Baader-Meinhof phenomenon arise?

Your brain unconsciously pays more attention to the things you just learned. You suddenly see the "new" thing everywhere or hear everyone talking about it. You are unconsciously paying a lot of attention to it. The frequency illusion occurs when our brain focuses on a particular topic or word, making it seem like you suddenly see it more often in the streets. There are two psychological processes driving the phenomenon, confirmation bias and selective attention (Zwicky, 2006).

Confirmation bias (Wason, 1960) is a cognitive fallacy in which we continually seek confirmation for the ideas or beliefs we hold. So we give more attention to "proof" that the name and/or topic is indeed more common. With selective attention, you give more attention to those things that you think are important, where your focus or attention is going or what is going on in your life at that moment. Everything else you can easily ignore. Before, that new thing wasn't important to you either, so your brain ignored it then, even though it was there then, too.

Examples in practice

• When choosing your new company car, your eye has fallen on a particular model. In the following weeks, you suddenly see that quite a few people are driving around in this beautiful model.
• You are approached about a potential partnership with a company. Suddenly you see company vehicles with this company name driving around remarkably often.
• After attending a seminar on, let's say, "agile project management," you suddenly start coming across references and applications of this approach everywhere in professional literature and conversations.
• Industry jargon: You are introduced to a specific term or business phrase during a meeting. Not long after, you hear and see this term constantly in reports, presentations and conversations

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Using the frequency illusion to your advantage

Whereas you yourself may feel you are being fooled by the frequency illusion, as an entrepreneur you can easily use this phenomenon to your advantage:

• Highlight how many people are already using a product or service. You can use influencers, celebrities, reviews or phrases like, "9 out of 10 moms already use the product." How could you do without it?
• Make sure you have a visible presence in as many places as possible, both online and offline. Try to connect potential customers with your product or brand name as often as possible.
• Make it clear that all your marketing communications are from you. Think of a clear logo, in a recognizable corporate identity with your slogan. Read more about Distinctive Brand Assets.

Resources

Wason, P. (1960), "On the failure to eliminate hypotheses in a conceptual task," Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 12 (3): 129-140

Zwicky, A (2005): "Language Log: Just between Dr. Language and I". University of Pennsylvania.

Zwicky, A. (2006): "Why Are We so Illuded?" Stanford University.