Main evidence and numbers
| How study classify am | Estimate | Scoring rule wey dem use |
|---|---|---|
| Low-imagery range | 3.9% | VVIQ total 16–32 |
| Complete absence wey person report | 0.8% | VVIQ total 16 |
| Dim or unclear imagery inside low range | 3.1% | VVIQ total 17–32 |
The paper join two samples of 502 participants. E identify 39 people for the wider low-imagery range, and eight of dem get the lowest total. This difference matter because broad definition of low imagery give different prevalence from when dem require say imagery no dey at all. For the questionnaire scoring here, lower totals mean weaker imagery. Dance et al., 2022
Wetin the questionnaire dey measure?
The Vividness of Visual Imagery Questionnaire dey ask about how person experience pictures for mind. Na Marks original work introduce the measure; later aphantasia studies use am with clear scoring rules. If dem reverse the way dem score answers, the meaning of the total go change, so no copy cutoff without checking the version. MARKS, 1973 Dance et al., 2022
Wetin person report fit tell us about their experience, but e no be the same as task wey test how their senses perform or direct measurement of the brain. Keogh and Pearson use binocular-rivalry method to study sensory imagery, to show how researchers fit ask related question with another method. One measure no automatically fit stand in for another. Keogh et al., 2018
Aphantasia mean say person no get imagination?
No broad conclusion like that follow from this. The research dey concern particular imagery experiences, especially voluntary visual imagery. Reports from Zeman and colleagues, and the wider review of imagery, distinguish extremes of vividness from all kinds of thinking, creativity or knowledge. Person fit understand and reason about a scene without reporting a clear picture inside their mind. Zeman et al., 2015 Zeman et al., 2020 Pearson, 2019
Wetin dey affect am?
How about memory and dreams?
Dawes and colleagues describe how people wey identify with aphantasia report imagery, memory and dreaming. These na patterns for groups, and people differ plenty; e no mean say everybody get the same dream experience or memory difficulty. The way dem measure and recruit people still matter for how to understand the findings. Dawes et al., 2020
Bainbridge and colleagues' drawing study find difference between performance for object memory and spatial memory. E no support saying people wey no get visual imagery no get visual memory or no fit represent how things relate in space. Dem need assess different parts of memory separately. Bainbridge et al., 2021
Age and sex determine how common e be?
For the pooled prevalence paper, estimates for females and males no get statistical difference under the definitions wey dem check. That no prove say dem exactly equal for every population. The samples, their ages and the cutoff wey dem choose limit how far we fit apply the findings; online community wey focus on imagery go recruit people another way. Dance et al., 2022
Wetin you fit really learn from online test?
Questionnaire fit help describe the imagery wey you report and explain the words people dey use for am. E no suppose turn low score to medical diagnosis or claim about intelligence. The categories for the prevalence study na definitions wey dem use for research, no be universal rule for every online questionnaire. Dance et al., 2022 MARKS, 1973
These sources no establish any training plan wey guarantee say person wey no report vivid imagery go start to get am. The realistic use na to understand how people differ and the limits of the measurement, instead of promising cure or improvement. Pearson, 2019 Zeman et al., 2020
The 3.9% and 0.8% figures useful because dem carry their definitions along with dem. If you remove the definitions, e go make two different questions look like say dem get one answer wey dey contradict. Dance et al., 2022
Try the free test wey connect to this one
Aphantasia test
Try the aphantasia questionnaire to explore how you describe voluntary visual imagery. Read which way the scale dey go, and treat your result as wetin you report about yourself. The published percentages no prove your diagnosis or your percentile among Helibrain users.
Common questions
Na 0.8% or 3.9% be the prevalence?
Both figures come from the same pooled study, but dem use different definitions: complete absence wey person report versus the wider low-imagery range. Dance et al., 2022
Aphantasia mean say person no dey dream?
No universal rule follow from this. The study of cognitive profile report say imagery and dreaming experiences differ from person to person. Dawes et al., 2020
Weak imagery mean weak spatial memory?
E no be always so. The drawing study show the difference between object and spatial memory instead of treating all memory as one ability. Bainbridge et al., 2021
Sources
- Dance et al. (2022). How common aphantasia (weak imagery) dey among the general population.
- MARKS (1973). Differences in visual imagery when people dey remember pictures.
- Keogh et al. (2018). The blind mind: No sensory visual imagery in aphantasia.
- Zeman et al. (2015). Life without imagery – Congenital aphantasia.
- Zeman et al. (2020). Phantasia–The psychological importance of lifelong extremes in visual imagery vividness.
- Pearson (2019). Human imagination: Cognitive neuroscience of visual mental imagery.
- Dawes et al. (2020). Cognitive profile of different sensory imagery, memory and dreaming in aphantasia.
- Bainbridge et al. (2021). Measuring aphantasia through drawing: People without visual imagery get difficulty with object memory but not spatial memory.
Cite dis page: How common aphantasia dey?. Helibrain. 2026. https://helibrain.com/pcm/answers/how-common-is-aphantasia. CC BY 4.0.
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