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The Hidden Brain Revealed in a Yoghurt Shopping Trip
We believe we choose our behaviour. We assume most of the time we make conscious intentional decisions about what we do. We are wrong.
Conscious vs unconscious
The differences between the conscious and unconscious parts of the mind have been studied for a long time. Freud is famous for making us aware of the influence of the unconscious, however most of his theories have been since proven false. More recently Kahneman’s Thinking Fast and Slow defines System 1 and System 2 thinking. System 1 can be loosely identified with unconscious decisions, and System 2 with conscious decisions.
Johnathan Haidt has an even more popular metaphor: the Elephant and the Rider. The Elephant is the emotional, instinctive side (unconscious), while the Rider is the rational, analytical side (conscious).
These perspectives are valuable, yet they suffer from an inherent bias. They presume we consciously choose most of our behaviour. We assume The Rider leads the Elephant. System 1 appears to take charge only when we are not paying attention. I believe this assumption is wrong.
Most of our behaviour is driven by our unconscious.
