Saturday, July 10, 2010

We Are Unaware

The theory of Reflexology believes that thought and behavior are two separate entities and that one causes the other; that all human action is in respeonse to external stimulation as opposed to thought or intention. We are aware of the connection between thought and behavior but most often are unaware of the original stimulus that triggers thought.
The Auto-Motive Hypothethis says that the unconscious activation of motives and intentions by environmental stimuli affect those motives and therefore behavior. Past associations of the stimuli and their mental representations arouse motives which then arouse behaviors to satisfy those motives.
Motives are primed by external stimuli and behavior follows suit.
For example: A few months ago my friend and I were at a bar. A female walked into the bar whom we went to high school with who had always been popular. My friend through her body language disrespectfully ignored me and excluded me from the conversation between her and this female as if I was not there. She even blocked me from physically removing myself from the circle so I did not look or feel rejected as they were both blatently ignoring me. My friend who up until this point had been a true extremely supportive friend had her need for Belongingness triggered. Therefore, she behaved in a way that would please the other female who had the attitude of being above me in order to be accepted and affiliated by and with her. At a later time, I confronted my friend about her behavior. She was completely unaware of her behavior and in denial of what her motive was.
This and many many other examples I have observed of others and myself makes me a believer in Human Reflexology. We humans love to think of ourselves as being so aware and in control of our actions but so many of us so much of the time are no different than animals.

2 comments:

  1. I think an example of this is when you do something for a subconcious reason. Sometimes a person can take action based on emotion or the way they feel about something but they are unaware that their emotions are what caused them to act in such a way.

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