Attribution and Insomnia: A Replication Failure

Abstract

We attempted to replicate the negative placebo effect described by Storms and Nisbett (1970), whereby placebos described as arousal pills or relaxing pills resulted in reports of decreased or increased sleep onset latencies, respectively. Design improvements included lengthening both assessment and “treatment” periods and balancing instructions for both groups. Our negative results, consistent with other recent replication failures, suggest the need for caution in the clinical application of attribution theory.