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Unconscious Decisions

Adam Elenbaas
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A recent study suggests that our conscious choices are heavily swayed by unconscious factors. Researchers Hakwan Lau and Richard Passingham have shown that our rational decision making process faces steep competition, all of the time, from less-conscious factors like habit, background objects, memories and emotions.

Their conclusion, while seemingly simple, could have profound implications. It seems that empirical research, by extension, could be pointing to the shadow-side of our collective consciousness. Even seemingly straightforward, simple or arbitrary choices are heavily influenced by much deeper currents of energy and awareness within the psyche.

Comments

i feel this to personally

Submitted by Dak on Fri, 11/09/2007 - 23:09.
i feel this to personally true. i wonder if this will reach, and affect mainstream culture. this is illustrative of the astrological concept of the moon underlining all other forces, especially mercury (who by some standards is the one who travels between rational and unconscious subtleties). it also is sounds like the theory of the 8 circuit brain. c-3 (the intellect) is usually completely undermined by emotional and physical intelligence. we take in a signal, it creates a somatic reaction which instigates an emotional response (or bias) which then triggers the mind to start thinking. hopefully more people realize this. i feel like i should mail a copy of antero alli's book "angel tech" to everyone in the english speaking world, but we all know what happens when you give monkeys gold. hahahaha! just as the sun obscures the stars by day, so does conscious obscure the fact that we are still dreaming... -P.J.Carroll

Old news?

Submitted by tvmystic on Sat, 12/08/2007 - 19:25.
I don't think this is the first time such things have come to light. Perhaps this is new in the sense that it is now being empirically tested, but I have trouble seeing how they could do that, do to the fact that our unconscious is not something at all subjective and hard to understand. This theory though is definitely an old, previously proposed psychological theory. Never the less it is a very potent and interesting thought. It really makes you question how often do you make unconscious decisions that are based off of something ridiculous. I also think that we should give it more thought and try to use this as a realization that we should live more in the moment, aware of ourselves and our surroundings. So many people just shutdown and go onto autopilot.

intuitive thought

Submitted by el tortugo on Thu, 12/20/2007 - 13:32.

A quick search on intuitive thought in business will bring up not a little about how employees (management) are being trained in intuitive thinking to make better and quicker decisions. I often measure a theory or idea by the scientific data and/or its use in the business world. If it doesn't work, they won't bother with it in the Biz.

 

Not to say the above article is on intuitive thought, but this thought process is a large part of what the article points to.

 

http://resistancetraining.wordpress.com/2007/06/26/the-power-of-intuitio... http://resistancetraining.wordpress.com/2007/06/26/draw-on-your-intuitiv...