This article is written by By Sean Coughlan, BBC Family and education correspondent

A study from Goldsmiths, University of London, says the psychology used by magicians to deceive audiences can also be used to influence consumer choices.

Magic tricks use “powerful tools” to control behaviour, say the researchers.

The psychologists looked at how tricks create an “illusion of choice”, when the audience has no real control.

The research – Mind control trick: magicians’ forcing and free will, by psychologists Alice Pailhes and Gustav Kuhn – examines how magicians control their audiences’ decisions – and how this can be applied to other areas.

Read the full story here.