The Mind And Body Together Lean Toward 'Truthiness'
At least that is what psychologists Rick Dale of the University of Memphis, Michael Spivey of Cornell University and the late Chris McKinstry found when they asked college students questions that ranged in levels of vagueness and tracked their corresponding arm movements to clicking 'yes' or 'no' on a computer screen.
Specifically, questions such as "is murder sometimes justifiable?" are considered ambiguous and could cause the sensation of being 'pulled' in both directions at once; however, questions like "can a kangaroo walk backwards?" have a high probability of 'no' responding.
The results of participants' cursor movements suggested that the human brain thinks and acts at the same time, in contrast to what many researchers previously assumed: That the decision-making process was completed by the cognitive subsystem, or the brain's thought center, before it was shared with other parts of the brain.
"These dynamic data showed that participant arm movements had lower velocity and curved more toward the alternative response box during 'no' responses than during 'yes' responses - suggesting that we experience a general bias toward assuming statements are true," the authors explained.
The findings, which appear in the January 2008 issue of Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, suggest that the mind and body do in fact work together and the resulting collaboration may prompt us to lean toward 'truthiness.'
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Article adapted by Start Sanatate from original press release.
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Author Contact: Rick Dale
Psychological Science is ranked among the top 10 general psychology journals for impact by the Institute for Scientific Information.
The article is entitled: "Action Dynamics Reveal Parallel Competition in Decision Making."
Source: Katie Kline
Association for Psychological Science
Mintea ºi corpul împreunã slabã faþã de "Truthiness" - The Mind And Body Together Lean Toward 'Truthiness' - articole medicale engleza - startsanatate