What is the Unconscious and How Does it Affect Us?

Do you know how your unconscious affects you? 97% of our behavior comes from our unconscious. Discover what the unconscious really is and the impact it has on your life.

The unconscious mind is a fundamental concept in psychology that refers to the part of our mind that operates outside of our conscious awareness. It encompasses thoughts, memories, desires, and feelings that are not readily accessible to our conscious mind but can still influence our behavior, emotions, and decisions. The unconscious mind plays a pivotal role in shaping how we perceive the world and interact with it, even if we’re unaware of its influence.

The Origin of the Concept of the Unconscious

The idea of the unconscious was first explored by Sigmund Freud, the father of psychoanalysis, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Freud proposed that much of our behavior is driven by unconscious forces—specifically, repressed memories and desires that we push out of conscious awareness because they are too disturbing or socially unacceptable to confront.

Freud’s model of the mind divided it into three parts:

• The Conscious: Thoughts we are actively aware of.
• The Preconscious: Thoughts that are not currently in our awareness but can easily be brought to consciousness.
• The Unconscious: A reservoir of feelings, thoughts, urges, and memories that are outside of our conscious awareness, often due to repressed trauma or emotional conflict.

What is the unconscious?

According to psychoanalytic theory the personality of Sigmund Freud, our unconscious is defined as a repository of feelings, thoughts, impulses and memories that are outside our consciousness.

Therefore, the unconscious and its meaning refers to a place in our mind where most of the content that we consider unpleasant or unacceptable for our life is stored. In this way, according to Freudian theory, the unconscious is a part that influences us even though we do not know what is in it.

How the Unconscious Mind Affects Us

1. Influence on Behavior

Although we are not consciously aware of many thoughts and feelings, they can still manifest in our behavior. The unconscious mind can guide our actions, often without us realizing it. For example, a person might act anxious in social situations, not realizing that it is linked to an unresolved childhood memory of rejection or trauma.

Example: A person might have a tendency to avoid certain situations, like public speaking, because they unconsciously associate it with a past embarrassing experience, even though they do not consciously remember it.

2. Dreams and the Unconscious

One of the key ways the unconscious communicates with the conscious mind is through dreams. Freud believed that dreams are a window into the unconscious, as they often reflect repressed desires and unresolved conflicts. While dreaming, the unconscious mind uses symbols to convey hidden feelings or emotions that the conscious mind might find difficult to face.

Example: A dream about being chased may represent feelings of fear, guilt, or anxiety that the individual is avoiding or repressing in waking life.

3. Defense Mechanisms

Defense mechanisms are unconscious strategies used by the mind to protect itself from anxiety or emotional conflict. These mechanisms are automatic, meaning we often don’t recognize them as they occur, but they shape how we deal with stress or uncomfortable emotions.

• Repression: Pushing unpleasant memories or thoughts out of conscious awareness.
• Denial: Refusing to accept reality or facts because they are too painful to acknowledge.
• Projection: Attributing one’s own unacceptable feelings to someone else.
• Rationalization: Justifying actions or feelings with logical reasons, even if the true reasons are unconscious.

Example: Someone who is upset about losing a job might unconsciously blame external factors like a bad economy rather than confront personal shortcomings or mistakes that contributed to the situation.

4. Implicit Bias

The unconscious mind also influences our implicit biases, which are automatic, unconscious judgments we make about people based on factors such as race, gender, or age. These biases can influence decisions in ways that we are unaware of, leading to prejudice and stereotyping even in individuals who consciously reject such views.

Example: A hiring manager might unconsciously favor candidates of a particular gender or ethnicity, even though they consciously support diversity and inclusion.

5. Unconscious Motivations

Often, we do not fully understand why we act the way we do. Unconscious motivations are the underlying drivers of behavior that remain hidden from our conscious awareness. These motivations can be related to past experiences, unresolved emotional issues, or deeply ingrained beliefs.

Example: Someone might find themselves in an unhealthy relationship repeatedly without understanding why, even though their unconscious desire to be loved and validated may be influencing their choices.

6. Influence on Memory

Our memories are not always accurate, and the unconscious mind plays a role in how we recall events. We may forget certain traumatic events or reframe memories in a way that makes them seem less threatening. In some cases, repressed memories can be “recovered” during therapy, though the accuracy of such memories remains debated.

Example: A person may have no memory of a traumatic event but later recall it during therapy, often with intense emotions and physical responses, which suggests that the unconscious mind had stored that memory, even though the conscious mind was unaware of it.

How to Access the Unconscious Mind

While the unconscious mind is, by definition, inaccessible to conscious awareness, there are methods to uncover its contents. Psychotherapy, especially psychoanalysis, aims to make unconscious thoughts and feelings conscious. Here are some techniques often used to access the unconscious:

• Free Association: Encouraging the individual to say whatever comes to mind without censorship to uncover hidden thoughts and feelings.
• Dream Analysis: Interpreting dreams to identify repressed desires and unresolved conflicts.
• Hypnosis: A state of focused attention that can allow access to unconscious memories or emotions.
• Projective Tests: Tests like the Rorschach inkblot test or Thematic Apperception Test (TAT), which aim to reveal unconscious processes through responses to ambiguous stimuli.

How the Unconscious Can Be Beneficial

Though much of the unconscious mind is seen as the source of hidden fears, desires, and conflicts, it can also serve a positive role. For example, it allows us to process information automatically without conscious effort. This can be beneficial in situations like driving, where we don’t need to consciously think about every action (such as shifting gears or applying the brake).

Moreover, the unconscious mind can contribute to creativity and problem-solving. Many creative ideas or insights arise when the conscious mind is not actively focused on a problem, allowing the unconscious to find connections and solutions.

How to Work with the Unconscious Mind

There are several ways to engage with the unconscious mind constructively:

1. Mindfulness and Meditation: These practices help individuals observe their thoughts and emotions without judgment, allowing them to become more aware of unconscious patterns.
2. Therapy: Engaging in therapeutic techniques like psychoanalysis, cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), or psychodynamic therapy can help bring unconscious material into consciousness.
3. Self-Reflection: Regular self-reflection through journaling or introspection can help identify unconscious beliefs, desires, and patterns that may be influencing behavior.

Freud’s theory of the unconscious

The one known as Freud’s psychoanalytic theory is what gave the origin of the concept of the unconscious. In it, this psychologist explained that in the mind there are different levels which have their own function and role within our brain.

To be able to explain it in a more visual way, these Freud’s theories can be visualized through the image of an iceberg. In this way, it was Freud himself who compared the three levels that he determined for the mind with an iceberg. The upper part, that is, what is seen and what we can visualize in ourselves, is the representation of our conscious mind. Instead, the part of the iceberg that is submerged underwater but is still visible is the subconscious. Finally, the part of the iceberg that is hidden under the water and is not visible would be the unconscious.

Looking at it from this perspective, the human mind in psychology consists of these three parts with their functions. The conscious mind contains our thoughts, memories, feelings and desires which we can access at any time. Instead, the unconscious and the subconscious where its excess is limited.

Difference between unconscious, subconscious and conscious

To be able to understand how our unconscious works is vital to also keep in mind the functions of the other two parts of our mind.

Subconscious

When referring to the subconscious, we are pointing out the part of our mind that is between the conscious and the unconscious. That is, it is information that is stored in our unconscious, but that we can access through the efforts of our conscious. In these cases we control the entry of this information, but by not using it it remains stored in this place in our mind according to Freud’s theory.

Furthermore, in the subconscious we also find data that has been automated. For example, how to use a fork and knife. This automatic memory is in our subconscious, since it is something that we do not need to remember because we use it routinely in our daily lives.

Unconscious

The unconscious is made up of those data that you do not know and that you are never aware of knowing. A good example of this is that right now, as you read this, you are receiving more than 40,000 neural impulses per second. Our conscious has the capacity to store about 5,000 of these neural impulses, while all the others pass into the unconscious without us realizing it.

According to research the unconscious can measure such amazing things as barometric pressure, gravity, temperature, and even our blood pressure or the heart rate of the person sitting next to us.

Apart from all these fascinating facts, the unconscious has an emotional nature. Therefore, within it we find traumas, beliefs and dark aspects of ourselves that we have repressed. Within the unconscious brain we have registered much of the information that our neuronal impulses have captured, but we are not aware of it.

Conscious

The conscious and its meaning refers to everything we are capable of experiencing in the here and now. But although we believe most of this information in the present comes from the conscious, the reality is that our consciousness is mainly made up of 5% presence and 95% memories coming from both the unconscious and the subconscious. This is because there is data that we have learned in the past, but that we use in the present moment.

Many times our unconscious is capable of making us act or see ourselves developing certain actions that we do not recognize as ours. In this way, the unconscious part can determine our way of viewing life and therefore it is essential to treat psychological problems that may arise from our traumas or bad experiences. Sometimes we are not aware of the importance of everything around us.

The unconscious mind remains a powerful, often mysterious force that shapes our thoughts, feelings, and actions. While much of it operates beyond our awareness, gaining insight into our unconscious can help us make healthier choices, develop better self-awareness, and overcome limiting patterns or behaviors. Understanding the unconscious is an ongoing process that can lead to profound self-discovery and growth.

FAQs about the Unconscious Mind

What is the difference between the conscious and unconscious mind?

The conscious mind is the part of the mind that contains thoughts and feelings we are actively aware of, while the unconscious mind contains thoughts, memories, and desires that are outside of our awareness but can still influence behavior.

Can the unconscious mind be trained?

Yes, practices such as mindfulness, meditation, and certain forms of therapy can help increase awareness of unconscious processes, allowing individuals to understand and regulate them better.

How does the unconscious affect our decisions?

The unconscious can influence our decisions in subtle ways, often guiding our behavior based on repressed emotions, past experiences, or implicit biases. For instance, unconscious memories or desires may lead us to make choices without understanding the reasons behind them.

Can I access my unconscious mind on my own?

While the unconscious mind is not always accessible consciously, techniques like journaling, free association, and mindfulness can help bring unconscious thoughts to the surface. Working with a therapist trained in psychoanalysis or other modalities can also help.

How does the unconscious mind influence relationships?

The unconscious mind can influence relationships through repressed emotions, unresolved conflicts, and implicit biases. For example, unconscious desires for love or approval may affect the types of people we are attracted to or the way we behave in intimate relationships.