The authors reviewed research about a profound misconception that is present among college students, namely, the belief that the process of vision includes emanations from the eyes, an idea that is consistent with the extramission theory of perception, which was originally professed by early Greek philosophers and which persisted in scholarly circles for centuries. The authors document the strength and breadth of this phenomenon and the object failure of traditional educational techniques to overcome this belief, and they reveal that students are leaving psychology courses with a flawed understanding of one of the most studied processes in the history of psychology--visual perception. Some suggestions are offered for overcoming this misconception in traditional college classroom settings.

Children and adults, like many ancient philosophers, believe that seeing involves emissions from the eye. Several experiments tested the strength of these "extramission" beliefs to determine whether they, like other scientific misconceptions, are resistant to educational experiences. Traditional college-level education had little impact. Presenting a simplified lesson, stressing visual input, and a lesson directly counteracting the vision misconception had an impact, but for older participants the effect was evident only on short-term tests. Despite some gain due to learning, overall the results demonstrated the robustness of extramission beliefs.

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Providing career preparation for our students continues to be a focus for faculty, departments, and institutions. Professional development is most effective when accessible to students in a number of ways. This article presents how career preparation can be incorporated in advising, through programming and assessment in a career center, and in the curriculum. We discuss the importance of career discussions in advising, the types of resources available in a career center, and finally, we review a number of courses in which faculty can incorporate discussions and assignments focused on careers in psychology. Through this multifaceted approach, students are more likely to obtain important career information, as they consider what path to take after their undergraduate education.