Black and White Aren’t Always What They Seem

Things that are black and white have clear, obvious distinctions. In a situation that is black and white, it is easy to see what is right and wrong. But what we see can be an illusion. Our perceptions of things that are black and white may not be so cut and dried. Even the distinction between the color black and the color white may be illusive.

Alan Gilchrist is a Rutgers psychologist who studies visual perception. It is surprisingly difficult to assess color from the light reflected off an object because a brightly illuminated black surface can reflect more light than a poorly illuminated bright surface does. Alan uses elaborate constructions of white, gray, and black to probe how the brain interprets image information from the retina.

Alan took me on a tour of his laboratory, showing me several fascinating illusions that he has used to test theories of vision. He had me look across the room at a square white card, which suddenly appeared less white when he placed a brighter white square next to it. He repeated this process several times, and the original square white card progressively appeared to be a darker shade of gray. At the end, he handed me the original square “white” card. It was black.

People see many issues as black and white. Their brains’ perceptions of these issues are often far more subjective than they realize. Our perceptions may be heavily influenced by the context we bring to our observations. Being open to learning how other people view issues and why they see things the way they do is a valuable skill for us to have.

A recent National Eczema Association study on shared decision-making, highlighted in this issue, found that patients with eczema and their caregivers “overwhelmingly prioritized health care providers who elicit trust, listen to their perspectives, and value their input.” Recognizing and considering patients’ perceptions of their condition may be critical to giving them the right care and the best outcomes.