Cambridge academics reveal the secret to win x factor
International
oi-Staff
London
(ANI):
Researchers
at
Cambridge
University
have
uncovered
the
secret
to
winning
the
x
factor
-
sing
last.
They've
found
that
contestants
are
more
likely
to
be
voted
off
if
they
sing
near
the
start
of
the
show.
The
researchers
compiled
data
from
150
editions
of
the
x
factor
and
Pop
Idol
to
prove
the
theory
that
a
contestant's
fate
does
not
boil
down
to
whether
they
can
sing.
They
found
that
in
eight
live
x
factor
shows
this
year,
four
singers
were
eliminated
after
being
either
the
second
or
third
act
to
perform.
When
contestants
performed
later
in
the
evening
they
were
less
likely
to
be
eliminated,
the
study
showed.
Dr
Lionel
Page,
the
behavioural
economist
at
Cambridge
University's
Judge
Business
School,
who
undertook
the
research
with
the
University
of
London,
said
that
none
of
the
people
who
sang
last
on
this
year's
series
of
the
x
factor
had
been
eliminated.
''If
the
show
is
about
singing,
it
shouldn't
matter
if
they
were
performing
first
or
last
but
it
does," the
Telegraph
quoted
Page
as
saying.
"We
believe
people
tend
to
be
biased
when
there
is
a
sequence.
You
are
influenced
by
the
fact
that
you
remember
people
depending
on
whether
they
were
singing
first
or
last.
Memory
can
have
a
huge
effect
on
how
we
judge
performances,''
he
added.
However,
Page
said
that
the
first
singer
to
perform
in
the
x
factor
is
not
at
the
greatest
advantage,
but
less
likely
to
be
eliminated
than
those
in
second
or
third
place.