Long ago, a couple named Iyengar, a psychologist, and Fisman, an economist, organized speed dating nights, their purpose was not to match people and create relationships, but to understand the dynamics of selecting a partner. To do this, participants had to fill out questionnaires before and after the speed dating sessions, rating their potential matches on a scale from 1 to 10 based on; things in common, attractiveness, sense of humor, intelligence, sincerity, and ambition.
Iyengar and Fisman both would have a comprehensive breakdown of what happened by the end of the session. After closely observing participant behavior interactions, they noticed a peculiarity.
During one session, a short young woman with curly, blonde hair and a tall man with long brown hair were chatting, exhibiting what appeared to be an instant attraction. However, if we were to ask the question, did the young woman's initial personality evaluation of who she would find attractive match whom she actually found attractive? Iyengar and Fisman can easily answer that question with a resounding NO. If she said at the beginning she is attracted to an ambitious person with shared interests, by no means translates to she'll be attracted to only that specific categorization. She may be attracted to a funny, attractive man and not necessarily an ambitious person with shared interests. When asked to describe who her ideal man is after the session, she may say funny, and attractive. But, this doesn't last for long as after a month, participants revert back to their original description of a "perfect" partner.
We can see in the example that there is a subtle yet significant distinction between the two results. When prompted, we got a well-thought-out answer that aligns with what the person consciously believes to be best for them. However, during active participation, the unconscious system makes the judgment, resulting in a completely different outcome.1
The Adaptive Unconscious
Not to be mistaken by the unconscious which most notably Sigmund Freud describes as the black box packed with memories and fantasies that were too frightening to face consciously.
First coined by Daniel Wegner, this adaptive unconscious is a tool that we use without paying attention to it. It helps us navigate situations and make decisions, especially when we cannot afford to take our time briefing and analyzing. It is a significant murmur that shapes our thoughts, behaviors, emotions, survival and to keep functioning as human beings.2
We all like to consider ourselves moderately informed people, and consistent, and we base our decisions on careful consideration, analysis, and facts. However, that is not accurate. Unconscious biases and heuristics can sway a large proportion of our decisions. We are not necessarily aware of it.
It is much more prominent than one might think; heart beating, breathing, blinking, and sneezing are largely regulated by the autonomic system, which normally operates unconsciously and can influence our behavior in different ways.
For example, have you ever noticed that when meeting someone new, you have a "hunch" about whether you like that them or not? Or when you are told something that seems harmless at first glance but you have this odd feeling inside your gut? Something feels off, you just can't word it out?
These are intuitions that we developed as a result of our unconscious which is picking up on the subtle cues, that otherwise wouldn't have been picked up by our conscious mind.3
Trusting The Adaptive Unconscious
How can we use this knowledge to our advantage?
In certain situations, it's important to trust our adaptive unconscious. We are constantly told: "Don't judge a book by its cover", and "Patience is key". However, we encounter times when we are rushed, stressed, and simply cannot afford to delay a decision.
Knowledge: In critical situations, having a deep understanding of what's happening can help us make better decisions and steer away from making mistakes. Additionally, knowing what is relevant or irrelevant accelerates the process of filtering what's important more quickly.
Experience: Repeating a task and improving over time gets us in a comfortable state where we can quickly assess what needs to be done, whereas someone who's not as experienced would take longer to make a decision, or makes the wrong one.
Combining these skills can be a powerful weapon. Lionel Messi, a legendary footballer, is known for his exceptional control of the ball and incredible passing and scoring skills. If we observe his gameplay, he makes split-second decisions and reacts quickly to the opponent's defense strategies, which is a great example of how he utilizes his adaptive unconscious to his advantage by filtering through situations presented to him and ignoring what's irrelevant while focusing on what matters.
War generals such as Napoleon Bonaparte are known to possess coup d'oeil which means a quick glance, which gives them a comprehensive view of the battlefield and makes sound decisions with little to no time.
Pitfalls
As powerful as it is, our unconsciousness is fallible. That tool is filled with a lot of insignificant information and doesn't automatically sift through inaccurate and irrelevant materials whenever an issue presents itself.
Distractions: When we are distracted our attention is divided thus making it difficult for our unconscious to clearly function and process information. Additionally, when we are in a distracted state our gut feeling is less reliable, making us pick up on possible false cues and irrelevant information.
Inconsistencies: Same way we assume we are rational beings, we often assume we are consistent. This is not the case either. When we make snap decisions and get different results, it makes us doubt ourselves internally, lose confidence and begin to mistrust our unconscious. For example, some people dislike making new friends due to past negative experiences such as betrayals and hurt feelings. Despite being presented with an opportunity to make friends with people who have proven to be good people.
Context: In 1975 Pepsi launched a marketing campaign in which they had blind sip tests. The test consisted of two drinks Coca-Cola and Pepsi, and Pepsi promoted that even Coca-Cola drinkers preferred Pepsi. At first, Coca-Cola was in denial, disputing its validity. However, upon conducting their own test, the results came back similar. This resulted in a panic mode in Coca-Cola's management team, as they started losing their market share to their direct competitor Pepsi.
In an effort to battle this, throughout the years Coca-Cola started "enhancing" its soft drink formula by "rounding" and "smoothing" it. And finally, in 1984, Coca-Cola beat Pepsi in the sip test and the new drink got the go-ahead. The CEO of Coca-Cola at the time stated: "The surest move the company's ever made." However, that stance did not last long, as they come to find out it was a disastrous decision. Coca-Cola drinkers despised the drink and after a few months, they were forced to go back to the previous formula.
So what was the mistake? Pepsi has a little bit more sweetness than Coke, which in a sip test would taste really good, but, when it comes to drinking the whole thing, it can get too much. Pepsi's campaign revolved around that sip test. The drinkers simply take a sip of the beverage, they did not drink it entirely. People who choose to drink soft drinks, Coca-Cola in this case do not just simply take a sip of the can on a table test. They sit and drink it. That is fundamentally different than taking a sip of a beverage.4
Summary
It is definitely possible to know when we should listen to our adaptive unconscious and when not to. If we put effort into understanding where our expertise lie, we can better use it to our advantage. A doctor with significant knowledge and experience allows them to identify an illness faster and more accurately than others less experienced. A musician with a good ear can identify notes better and faster than a novice. An advanced programmer can debug code much more effectively than a beginner. You get what I am trying to say.
It is important to correlate our judgment to what we know and experience at the same time. This goes past just ourselves, but rather integrating such a system is important to thrive as a society and have better more competent leaders. This is articulated concisely in a quote by the Greek historian Thucydides:
"The society that separates its scholars from its warriors will have its thinking done by cowards and its fighting by fools."
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1 Malcolm Gladwell. Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking.
2 Unconscious Behavioral Guidance Systems.John A. Bargh.Department of Psychology, Yale University. 10-11
3 Pinker, 1994, pp. 101-102
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