14 DAY TRIAL // Recent scientific studies show that the unconscious mind can be a very powerful tool in finding the best answers to a very complicated issue, but that it can also lead to failing to reach the best solution in a certain scenario. That is to say, you could analyze a problem meticulously and find a solution, or you could think of something else and let the solution come on its own – but the rewards of your actions may vary considerably.
To prove this, four researchers at the Duke University, John W. Payne, Adriana Samper, James R. Bettman and Mary Frances Luce, organized a “lottery” of sorts, in which participants were asked to choose an answer to a problem that, in the first stage, offered them similar rewards regardless of the solution they selected.
The test subjects were divided into three sub-groups – one was allowed as much time to think about it as they wanted, the second one was allowed only a limited amount of time for their decisions, while the third group was distracted just before making the choice, which left the whole decision-making process up to the unconscious mind.
There were little-notable differences between the three groups, when all decisions they could have made awarded them with similar payoffs. However, in a second experiment, when each option had a significantly variable reward, researchers learned that analyzing the problem thoroughly led to the test subjects obtaining the best possible outcome under the circumstances. With unconscious decision making, the participants also selected a good choice, but not the best and the most rewarding.
The team also found out that allowing people to think of a problem for a specific amount of time could make their minds wonder off the issue at hand, and could lead to them bringing the lesser issue into focus, thus losing their perspective on the main problem. During both experiments, people in this group performed poorly, worse than any of the other two groups.
As a conclusion, the Duke team says that letting solutions to problems appear on their own might provide people with an easy way out, but that a self-paced, thorough analysis holds the key to really figuring out all the ups and downs of a decision, and ultimately leads to people making the right choice for themselves, under given circumstances.