Unconscious Participation At High-Level Of Cognitive Processes - Research Paper Example

Unconscious Participation At High-Level Of Cognitive Processes INTRODUCTION Studies had been done in the past regarding the existence of the unconscious mind, but researches were only focused on the automatic processes that the unconscious mind exhibit. Studies have confirmed that unconscious mind has some form of influence with the cortical activities that should have been connected to the conscious processes. Such studies opened a new possibility in the science of the unconscious mind. A good example is the so-called subliminal stimuli that can be changed upon directing the focus on something else. The perception affects it which involves attention and spatial recognition. In short, mind setting affects the activity of the unconscious mind. The unconscious mind shows some promising involvement in high-level thinking processes and it can even activate the prefrontal cortex (Wokke et. al., 2001, p. 1). Subliminal stimuli can influence the behavior of humans. A good example is the claim of a man in 1957 that a movie called Picnic flashed the words “buy Popcorn” and “drink Coke” in the screen of the movie theater and later on the sales of Coke increased by 15 percent and the popcorn sales increased by 58 percent. Two reasons were attributed to such influence: subliminal stimuli can influence the behavior, and subliminal stimuli have the power to change the beliefs and opinions of people (Bernstein et. al., 2011, p. 164). Statement of the Problem A number of issues arise from the intense research that is conducted about the unconscious mind. The concern on how complicated is the system of unconscious cognition. The evidences may not be enough right now to prove whether the unconscious cognition is an abstract knowledge or concrete in nature. The form is not yet clear whether it is implicit knowledge or related to memories. The implicit and explicit systems are not yet finalized if they interact or act independently in mediation (Sternberg, 1999, p. 476). Source of the Problem Some researchers and scientists might still have the notion to discredit the participation of the unconscious mind to the high-level thinking processes because the results obtained from the past studies came from experiments “with task performance on the same stimulus” (Wokke et. al., 2001, p. 1). Another possible reason is the control learned after behavioral repetitions that the “stimulus-response associations may have caused the unconscious stimuli to target the behavioral and neural effects” (Wokke et. al., 2001, p. 1). The claims were supported by many studies that showed scarcity in moving from the “trained conscious mind to untrained conscious mind” explains the possible effects of the unconscious mind might be linked to the “strong sensory motor links connected to learning” (Wokke et. al., 2001, p. 1). The existence of the subconscious is part of the three states of consciousness of human beings: the conscious, subconscious and the unconscious. Conscious mind is the available thinking that people have pertaining to the logical and rational thinking. Subconscious mind is the unnoticed part of thinking which can readily be shifted to conscious thinking. Unconscious mind is very hard to be noticed since it is unconscious or the opposite of conscious. It is like the iceberg wherein the tip which is visible is the conscious mind and the majority of the iceberg remains hidden like the unconscious. The unconscious is the source of power like the past memories, feelings and thoughts that are not instantly available to the conscious mind (Markopoulos, Ruyter and Ijsselsteijn, 2008, p. 15). Significance of the Problem Unconscious information processing is somewhat complex and the current understanding of the unconscious mind is not very clear or still in debate. The probability of unconscious mind to be tapped for higher levels of learning like high-level cognitive functions such as decision-making, inhibitory control and task selection is high that it may help in understanding the way people learn. Unconscious mind is not limited to involuntary movements like beating of the heart, breathing of the lungs and reflex action of the nervous system. Unconscious information processing has the great potential in knowing the nature of learning. Implicit memory is related to unconscious cognition. Several proposals had been made that point out implicit memory to have been acquired before explicit memory as proven by ontogenetic and phylogenetic studies. The study can answer the mystery in the relationship between implicit and explicit representations of information and the stage between implicit and explicit knowledge representations. The benefit would not just be interesting but also influence the development of explicit and conscious processes (Goswami, 2002, p. 254). Feasibility of the Problem for Study The study is not easy to be quantified and measured since unconscious mind is deeper than conscious mind. A new paradigm must be developed that will ensure the success of the study through the response of the experiment participants. Scope of Literature Review Conscious mind is the programmer of the unconscious mind. The conscious mind has two strategies: Push strategy which is the will power and the Pull strategy which is the programmer. In such a strategy, unconscious mind depends upon the conscious mind as it follows what the latter learns and commands. Unconscious mind is error-free which means it sends the message throughout the body the exact way the conscious mind tells it to do. The ability of the unconscious mind has several implications: it has unlimited storage, it learns stores and responds; it is a loyal servant of the conscious mind (Bidaoui, 2008, pp. 76-85). Because the mainstream has believed in the past decades that conscious mind is responsible for the actions of humans, the unconscious cognition was considered as an escape clause in psychological theories. It is believed to influence behavior without the objective thought ass the claim must still be verified by further studies. Some researchers considered to use the concept of unconscious cognition to explain the learning process without the use of memory and perception. The concept is used because of the occurrence of acquiring and mastering skills without noticing how the skills are acquired and responding to visual stimuli without noticing that they are doing so (Lee, 1998, pp. 59-61). Theoretical Context of the Problem The unconscious cognition could be hard to study though it may be involved in the learning of humans without the use of memory. Certain non-conscious stimuli can trigger the non-conscious cognition to take place. The development of the Go and No-Go Paradigm would be helpful to further enhance the research to support the claim about high-level performance of unconscious cognitive processes. Hypothesis/Research Questions Unconscious cognition happens when unconscious stimuli happen on the same level of conscious stimuli. Variables of Interest The study is concerned with the existence of unconscious participation at high-level of cognitive processes. METHODOLOGY Description of the Design The creation and use of the Go and No-Go paradigm is easy to perform but lacks heavy scientific or proven method. It is in pioneering form. Twenty-seven female participants from the age bracket of 19 to 26 participated in the experiment. The age difference may be a factor to affect the accuracy of the experiment because quality performance may be dependent upon the age of the participant. White stimuli was used together with black background and cue cards were used to signal a Go or No-Go. Eight trials were done which passed the ethical statement as approved by the Psychology department of University of Amsterdam. Behavioral analysis and EEG analysis were done to measure the accuracy of the study. Control of Extraneous Variables Eight trials were conducted to reduce the errors from the experiment. Also the three duplicates were done to assure the accuracy of the study. The cue cards were used to signal the Go or No-Go for the participants to whether press the button or not. EEG was used at 1048 Hz through an ANT 64-channel system. Sixty-four scalp electrodes were the source of data while four electrodes were used to detect eye-movements. After gathering the raw data, the data gathering was reduced to 256 Hz based upon the channel average and 0.5 Hz high-pass filter, 30 Hz low-pass filter and of 50 Hz notch filter were used. Principal Component Analysis was used to reduce the errors from eye movements by choosing the EEG segments highly filled with errors containing many eye blinks across the recorded data. “Principal Components Analysis method was used to determine the topographies of the artifact-free brain signals and the artifact signals” (Wokke et. al., 2001, p. 6). Assessing Internal and External Validity EEG analysis was used to measure the internal validity of the experiment while behavioral analysis was used to verify the flexibility of unconscious cognition. Later on the relationship of the two analyses were compared to come up with the overall conclusion. Sampling Design Two by two by two type of experimental design was used leading to eight conditions: Square cue type, Square prime type, Square target type, No-Go prime identity and No-Go target identity; Square cue type, Square prime type, Diamond target type, No-Go prime identity and Go target identity; Square cue type, Diamond prime type, Square target type, Go prime identity and No-Go target identity; Square cue type, Diamond prime type, Diamond target type, Go prime identity and Go target identity; Diamond cue type, Square prime type, Square target type, Go prime identity and Go target identity; Diamond cue type, Square prime type, Diamond target type, Go prime identity and No-Go target identity; Diamond cue type, Diamond prime type, Square target type, No-Go prime identity and Go target identity; Diamond cue type, Diamond prime type, Diamond target type, No-Go prime identity and No-Go target identity. Measuring Instruments Two measuring instruments were used in the study: behavioral instrument and EEG. The custom-designed experiment named Go and No-Go experiment was used for measuring the behavior of the participants. The outside manifestation was measured through behavioral parameter while the internal process was measured using the EEG. Reliability and Validity of the Instruments Two-tailed tests were used to examine the impact of unconsciously triggered response inhibition in all participants. The tests were done using the mean RT upon Go targets and the same processes were done for the Go versus No-Go prime. A test measured the validity of the Go prime result which was “lower than the square root inhibition rates when a No-Go target was preceded by a No-Go” (Wokke et. al., 2001, p. 6). Two reaction times were not included in the analyses: 100 and .1000. Lastly, binomial test with a p-value of 0.05 was used to measure the accuracy of detection performance of the individual participants (Wokke et. al., 2001, p. 6). Sources of Measurement Error The errors from behavioral measurement may come from human errors because no human being is perfect. Also the perception or the reaction of participants may cause errors because it is subjective. EEG may have errors in terms of malfunction of the tool. Ethical Considerations All parts of the actual experiment performance were conducted and governed by the related laws and institutional rules. The study was also approved by the ethics committee of the Psychology department of the University of Amsterdam. Participants made written informed consent before the actual experimentation (Wokke et. al., 2001, p. 5). DATA ANALYSIS Data Analysis Procedures After gathering the data, statistics were used to compute for the errors of the study. Afterwards the behavioral result and the EEG were analyzed side by side to get the relationship in finding out the flexibility of unconscious cognition. Presentation of Results; Use of Tables The use of separate graphs for showing the results of behavioral and EEG tests were really great to focus on internal and external manifestations of unconscious cognitive processes. Afterwards a graph was shown that relates the behavioral result with EEG. Interpretation of Results The explanations regarding the results shown in the form of graphs were detailed and can be understood because proper labels were given to relate the paragraph with the figures presented. COMMUNICATION FINDINGS Discussion of Findings The discussion was a bit short and not properly arranged. Usually the discussion should be placed after the results. The results then must be placed after materials and methods but the materials and methods were written at the last part. The sentences should have been written in the third person point-of-view since it was a scientific study. The use of third person point-of-view is a must in scientific studies and papers to prevent biases and prevent personal judgments from messing up the accuracy of the report. The use of citations was properly administered to strengthen the claims and explanations regarding the result of the study about the flexibility of unconscious cognition. Limitations The flexibility of unconscious cognition was the focus of the paper. Go or No-Go response is the very core of the experiment using the masked Go or No-Go method devised by the authors. They measured the unconscious cognition by the response of the participants in terms of the unconscious stimulus following the target that can be either Go or No-Go. Further limitations of the study were expressed as: Because the identity of the prime was changed on each trial, participants had to renew their S-R associations flexibly on each trial. The experimental set-up allowed to test if PFC-mediated cognitive control processes can be manifested in a flexible and non-automatic manner (Wokke et. al., 2001, p. 3). Alternate Explanations No alternate explanations were seen in the paper. Probably it would be better next time to give more details and additional references. Implications for the Practitioner The practitioner should have given simpler but more profound explanations regarding the report. It was confusing because of the non-standard way of presenting the study. It would also be better to put subheadings to prevent confusion. Also the introduction should not contain any paragraphs or explanations about the result. Implications for Future Research Further development of experiments or improve the Go and No-Go paradigm to measure the behavioral aspect of unconscious cognition. Also the EEG can be used along side with another quantifying tool for the manifestation of unconscious cognition. References Bidaoui, S. (2008). Anatomy of success: The science of inheriting your brain's wealth and Power. Canada: Bay Root Publishing. Goswami, U. (2002). Blackwell handbook of childhood cognitive development. USA: Blackwell Publishing. Markopoulos, P., de Ruyter, B. and Ijsselsteijn, W. (2008). Fun and games: Second international conference, Eindhoven, The Netherlands 2008 Proceedings. Sternberg, R. J. (1999). The nature of cognition. USA: Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Wokke, M. E., van Gaal, S. H., Scholte1, S., Ridderinkhof, K. R., and Lamme1, V. A. (2011). The flexible nature of unconscious cognition. PLoS One. Retrieved from http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0025729 Read More