Blind Experiment
An experiment in which information about the test is masked (kept) from the participant, to reduce or eliminate bias, until after a trial outcome is known. If both tester and subject are blinded, the trial is called a double-blind experiment.
EverydayConcepts.io
Origin
The first blinded design appeared in Benjamin Franklin's 1784 report evaluating Franz Anton Mesmer's techniques using blindfolded subjects. French physiologist Claude Bernard advocated blinding researchers in his 1865 Introduction to the Study of Experimental Medicine. The UK Medical Research Council's 1943 trial of patulin for the common cold was the first double-blind controlled trial, followed by their landmark 1946 randomized trial of streptomycin for tuberculosis.
Updated February 22, 2026