The best of both worlds: Integrating conscious and unconscious thought best solves complex decisions

被引:37
作者
Nordgren, Loran F. [1 ]
Bos, Maarten W. [2 ]
Dijksterhuis, Ap [2 ]
机构
[1] Kellogg Sch Management, Evanston, IL 60208 USA
[2] Univ Nijmegen, Nijmegen, Netherlands
关键词
Judgment and decision-making; Social cognition; THINKING TOO;
D O I
10.1016/j.jesp.2010.12.007
中图分类号
B84 [心理学];
学科分类号
04 ; 0402 ;
摘要
Two studies address the debate over whether conscious or unconscious mental processes best handle complex decisions. According to Unconscious Thought Theory (Dijksterhuis & Nordgren, 2006) both modes of thinking have particular advantages: conscious thought can follow strict rules, whereas unconscious thought is better suited for integrating numerous decision attributes. Because most complex decisions require both adherence to precise rules and the aggregation of information, we hypothesized that complex decisions can best be made by engaging in periods of both conscious and unconscious thought. In both studies we found that the sequential integration of conscious and unconscious thought solved complex choices better than conscious or unconscious thought alone. In Study 2 we examined whether the sequential order of the integration condition matters. In line with our prediction, we found that integration worked best when unconscious thought followed conscious thought. (c) 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
引用
收藏
页码:509 / 511
页数:3
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