Emotions: The Voice of the Unconscious Matthias Rauterberg Industrial Design Eindhoven University of Technology The Netherlands

© Matthias Rauterberg, 2010

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In 1915 the discoveries of Sigmund Freud about the unconscious in particular were revolutionary. His treatment of neuroses allowed inspection of a “hidden” part of the mind. Freud divided the mind into two parts: the preconscious (ideas and memories capable of becoming conscious), and the unconscious (desires, impulses, and wishes of a mostly sexual and sometimes destructive nature). All human thought is partly a conflict between the preconscious and unconscious, and partly a compromise to pursue pleasure whilst avoiding danger and dealing with the realities of life.

(1856-1939)

Freud, S. (1915). The Unconscious. The Standard Edition of the Complete Psychological Works of Sigmund Freud, Volume XIV (1914-1916): On the History of the Psycho-Analytic Movement, Papers on Metapsychology and Other Works, 159-215

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Salem, B.; Nakatsu, R.; Rauterberg, M. (2009). Kansei experience: Aesthetic, emotions and inner balance. International Journal on Cognitive Intelligence and Natural Intelligence, vol. 3, no. 2, pp. 18-36.

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Daniel Kahneman Map of Bounded Rationality: A Perspective on Intuitive Judgement and Choice . Nobel Prize Lecture, 8 December 2002

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content

appeal

relationship

self disclosure

Friedemann Schulz von Thun Miteinander reden 1: Störungen und Klärungen. Allgemeine Psychologie der zwischenmenschlichen Kommunikation. Rowohlt-TB, Reinbek bei Hamburg 1981

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ACTIVATION

UNPLEASANT PLEASANT

DEACTIVATION

tense

nervous

stressed

upset

contented

serene

relaxed

calm

sad

depressed

lethargic

fatigued

alert

excited

elated

happy

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Ap Dijksterhuis, Bos M.W., Nordgren L.F. and van Baaren R.B. (2006). On making the right choice: the deliberation-without-attention effect. Science, vol. 311, pp. 1005-1007.

Fig. 1. Percentage of participants who chose the most desirable car as a function of complexity of decision and of mode of thought (n 0 18 to 22 in each condition). Error bars represent the standard Error.

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© Matthias Rauterberg, 2009 10/26

© Matthias Rauterberg, 2009 11/26

consciousness * propositional representation * synchronization via global workspace

phenomenal consciousness * internal processing

unconsciousness * parallel processing in modular subsystems

verbal behaviour

nonverbal behaviour

multi modal sensory input

mul

ti m

odal

act

uato

r out

put

Hofmann, W., & Wilson, T. (2010). Consciousness, introspection, and the adaptive unconscious. In B. Gawronski & B. K. Payne (Eds.), Handbook of Implicit Social Cognition: Measurement, Theory, and Applications (pp. 197-215). New York: Guilford Press.

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Three main conclusions can be drawn: (1) Conscious processing is limited

(2) Unconscious processing is highly underestimated

(3) The individual unconscious connects via emotional signals Thank you for your attention.

© Matthias Rauterberg, 2010