Consciousness and Cognitive Control - Book Report/Review Example

 Consciousness and Cognitive Control Conventional studies show that cognitive control is directly associated with individual consciousness. According to these studies, human beings exerts control over their behaviours if they are aware of the outcome of their actions, the reasons for their actions as well as the manner in which an action can successfully attains its intended objective and goal. Although it is in professional domain that an individual has full control over their behaviours, various professionals have come up with suggestions that contradict the traditional school of thought. Traditional thinkers confirm their argument by citing various activities that are controlled by individual influence such as neurological cases of extinctions, neglect, and blind sight (Wilfried Heiko and Andrea, 2010). Recent studies have criticised the previous argument by claiming that numerous behavioural events that are construed as the outcome of cognitive controls can also be motivated by events that are unknown to the actors. There are enough evidence to confirm that a good number of individual activities in modern society are not controlled by the previous experiences and knowledge. The knowledge on possible reasons for inconsistencies on human actions will therefore play a vital role in understanding some of the factors that affects individual actions. Based on the presented evidence, the consciously registered events play a critical role in influencing individual behaviours and reactions to emerging activities. Traditional studies have confirmed that unconscious stimuli have a critical role in influencing individual behaviours. A classical demonstration of this case is particularly related to various neurological cases such as extinction, neglect, and blind sight. In healthy department, the role of unconscious stimuli is indicated by means of subliminal priming. In this case, subliminal priming participants reacted to target that are preceded by prime stimulus. Although there are various researches that affirms the role of conscious aspects in shaping individual behaviours, the study on the role of unconscious behaviours are at its infant stage. The debate on the role of unconscious instinct has also raised endless controversy in modern psychological and social disciplines. Modern studies have affirmed that there exist two types of controls that evoke events, the implicit and explicit events. Explicit events are distinct stimuli that have a direct impact on individual actions and behaviours. Explicit events also help restricting actions and activities that can have detrimental events on one mental and physical health. In most instances, explicit events are actions generated from the environment. They include activities and factors that are socially and culturally generated. Based on the available statistical and empirical evidence, it is clear that cultural factor have a critical role in influencing and in shaping individual operations and activities. The outcome of any social act is largely influenced by the existing cultural beliefs and practices. Being born either a male or a female has specific cultural and social expectations that influence their behaviours. However, despite understanding the existing social and cultural expectation of either a male or a female, some biological reactions such as reproduction activities can influence one action. For instance, biological reactions that are linked to pregnancies or monthly period can largely influence one reaction irrespective of their cultural and social orientation. Contrary to conventional argument that individual behaviours is influenced by the expected outcome of an action, it is clear that other unknown cultural and social factors can have a critical role in shaping one daily activities and actions (Ansorge, Heumann & Scharlau, 2002). On the other hand, implicit events entail events that are internal in nature. Although implicit events have to some extent been influenced by external factors such as environment, social factor, social factors and political factors, implicit activities are largely influenced by internal activities and changes. Based on the available empirical evidence, it is clear that implicit factor have a critical and noticeable role in shaping individual behaviours and activities. In addition, human beings have limited influence on implicit activities. For instance, human being does not have the control of activities that result from individual mental and physical complications. In such cases, the victims do not also understand the outcome of their actions. The activities that are influenced by individual general health status are also an indication that there are some activities and behaviours that an individual cannot control. As a result, other factors such as health and environmental factors have the main control over such events. Recent literatures has also reviewed that some unconscious information and activities can have a critical role in shaping and in influencing high level processes in individual life. In other instances, unconscious information can also serve as cognitive control and working memories that shape individual activities especially in modern changing and complicated society. In some situations, subliminal activities and information can be integrated and accumulated spatially across visual field (Vietze & Wendt, 2009). Experiment on this field has therefore confirmed the fact that human activities are not one-sided. Although some of the known factors have a vital role in shaping daily happenings, some unknown factors influence human behaviours and the outcome of the prescribed behaviours. Modern studies also have reliable evidence to confirm the strength and complexity of unconscious information in influencing human behaviours in modern society. For example, modern researchers have presented enough empirical evidence from various social and cultural background to confirm that unconscious activities influences the outcome of conflict resolutions intervention measures, response inhibition, and task switching mechanisms. The amounts of information that can be stored on individual memory as well as the process of retrieving the stored information are also largely influenced by individual unconscious makeup. Moreover, the manner in which an individual integrates multiple pieces of information across time and space is also shaped by unconscious information. Unconscious information also affects various perceptual functions. The manner in which an individual perceive daily activities and unfolding can been influenced by unknown factors such as individual makeup, general physical and emotional health as well as one instinct on an activity or an object. Although social factor have role in influencing one perception on events, studies from various modern scholars have reliable empirical evidence to confirm that unconscious events are vital in shaping individual behaviours. In addition, high-level of cognitive functions as well as the associated brains areas such as prefrontal cortex is influenced by individual’s unconscious activities. For relatively long time, scholars have linked unconscious information to brain activities and affect behaviours. Brain activities that are largely influenced by unconscious behaviours involve thinking capacity memory capacity as well as individual ability of retrieving information in ones memory. The process in which an individual perceive new information as well as the manner in which the already stored information is integrated with new information on an individual mind is largely influenced by unconscious information. However, in reference to the presented studies, potential functions of consciousness are to some extent not related to the introduction of cognitive control functions by particular stimuli that signals the importance for increased control (Van den Bussche, Van den Noortgate & Reynvoet, 2009). This operation are largely influenced and triggered by unconscious information and feed forward information that cannot be influenced by individual activities and willingness. Initial sweep of information that is processed in various parts of the brains including prefrontal are also very useful in influencing individual behaviours as well as the reaction of emerging challenges and complications. In terms of duration, the accessible empirical evidence has produced conflicting result and dissociation between unconscious information and conscious information. There is also interesting dissociation between unconscious information and conscious information in regards to individual mental flexibility as well as the strategies that are applied in dealing with stressful situation and disturbing information. Contrary to conventional research findings, unconscious information is of critical importance on individual decision-making process. Although social and cultural factors as well individual skills and competence has role in influencing one decision making process, unconscious information is of critical important in shaping the manner in which an individual make decision on new social and economic issues. Even though recent empirical evidence has be useful in pushing the boundary on the duration of unconscious effects, general observation has confirmed that unconscious events are ineffective in eliciting future behaviours in the society. In most instances, the unconscious behaviours are useful in shaping immediate actions and activities with limited influence on future activities. Instead, experience and awareness can be of critical importance in ensuring that the duration and flexibility of information processing is sustainable and reliable. The strategy that are adopted in dealing with emerging social problems in the society does not only help in reducing the implications of the identified challenge but also helps in the identification of an intervention measure that can counter future undesirable incidences. In the light of the above analysis, it is clear that although other factors have a critical role in shaping individual activities and behaviours, unconscious information is of critical importance in influencing individual actions especially in modern intricate society. Without underrating the contribution of the pioneers of psychology discipline, modern scholars have played a reliable role in understanding the contribution of unconscious activities and information in determining the manner in which an individual reacts to emerging challenges (Crump, Gong & Milliken, 2006). In addition to influencing individual activities, unconscious information is also of essence in determining individual thinking and reasoning capacity. Brain capacity are largely influenced by emerging unconscious information as well as stored conscious information and facts. Recent studies have also succeeded in confirming that one decision making process are largely triggered by various unconscious information and other unfolding activities. Although the current information and researches have succeeded in demonstrating the importance and role of unconscious information on individual activities many researches ought to be undertaken to unfold addition information on unconscious information. So far, it is clear that the two aspect of subliminal information processing requires additional information in order to understand the role of task-relevance on unconscious information as well as the potential sources of subliminally triggering effects. For optimal task performances, the existing subliminal stimuli should be ignored in future researches in order to produce facts on the issues under study. Although the current information has been useful in describing the role of unconscious information on individual behaviours and brain activities, further information is required to unearth the process used by unknown information in influencing individual behaviours. Although so far the available information can be used to understand the significant of unconscious events, further studies need to be undertaken to test the prediction. Furthermore, although the available information has suggested trial-by-trial effects of unconscious events, there is limited information to confirm the allegation. Therefore, the goal for future research will be to examine the extent in which unconscious information and activities can affects individual activities and behaviours. The side effects of relying on unconscious information and events on one daily activity can also be understood through undertaking intensive researches on unconscious information. Therefore, by considering that the research on the role of unconscious activities and events are at its infant stage a lot of researches is required to effectively understand the interrelation between conscious information and unconscious information in shaping individual daily activities. References Ansorge, U., Heumann, M., & Scharlau, I. (2002). Influences of vi-sibility, intentions, and probability in a peripheral cuing task. Consciousness and Cognition, 1, (1), 528-545. Crump, M. J. C., Gong, Z., & Milliken, B. (2006). The context-specific proportion congruent Stroop effect: Location as a contextual cue. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 1, (3), 316-321. Van den Bussche, E., Van den Noortgate, W., & Reynvoet, B. (2009). Mechanisms of masked priming: A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin, 135, 452-477. Vietze, I., & Wendt, M. (2009). Context specificity of conflict frequency-dependent control. The Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 62, 1391-1400. Wilfried K,, Heiko R., and Andrea K., (2010). Consciousness and cognitive control, Advances in Cognitive Psychology, 2, (1), 23-37 Read More