The Enduring Unconscious

The concept of the unconscious goes as far back as Plato. He suggested that the mind is like a chariot drawn by two very different horses; one noble and refined, the other base and impulsive. This essential idea has been explored in philosophy and art over the centuries, but the credit for the popularisation of the unconscious goes to Sigmund Freud.

Despite becoming deeply unpopular as a theory in the latter half of the twentieth century, some Freudian ideas, such as projection and defence mechanisms, have remained influential, including within qualitative research practice. Other ideas, such as the structure of the psyche, have metamorphosed into other theories.

For example, psychodynamic theory arose as a way of seeking integration between variants of psychoanalytic theory. Elements of it occur in many current theories, from Transactional Analysis, to Family Systems, to NLP.

Psychodynamic theory has three common themes:

• As a result of our upbringing, trauma, social expectations, etc., the psyche is split into different parts (which can be named and defined in many ways, from 'unconscious' to 'sub-personalities')

• These different parts have different agendas and so conflict arises

• The conscious part of the mind is not fully aware of these deeper dynamics but they influence attitudes and behaviour

Similarly, many theories in humanistic psychology, (important to qualitative market research, in ways we do not always recognise ¹), refer to an unconscious part of the psyche. This is often renamed as a real or true self, hidden under the layers of the false self created as a form of self-defence.

Most recently, discoveries in neuroscience require scientists to embrace the concept of the unconscious, albeit in a more contemporary model. The brain does an immense amount of pre-conscious filtering; processing, sorting and categorising of stimuli of which we have no awareness. Because conscious awareness is a limited channel, the brain likes to automate behaviour wherever possible, resulting in phenomena like the ‘time gap experience’ - driving a familiar route without even being aware of it until you reach your destination. Neuroscientists have shown conclusively that unconscious stimuli influence feelings and conscious decision-making, in fact providing justification for the claims and methods of qualitative research.

So, the idea of the unconscious is alive and well. What part does it play in the current practice of qualitative market research?