The palette of sights and sounds that reach the conscious mind are not neutral perceptions that people then evaluate: they come with a value already tacked onto them by the brain's processing mechanisms. Tests show that these evaluations are immediate and unconscious and applied even to things people have never encountered before, like nonsense words: "juvalamu " is intensely pleasing and "bargulum " moderately so, but "chakaka " is loathed by English—speakers. These conclusion come from psychologists who have developed a test for measuring the likes and dislikes created in the moment of perceiving a word, sound or picture. The findings, if confirmed, have possibly unsettling implications for people's ability to think and behave objectively. This is all part of preconscious processing, the mind's perception and organization of information that goes on before it reaches awareness—these judgments are lightning fast in the first moment of contact between the world and the mind.
Some scientists disagree with the claim that virtually every perception carries with it an automatic judgment, though they, too, find that such evaluations are made in many circumstances. These scientists believe that people don't have automatic attitudes for everything, but rather, for areas of interest.
In responding to a stimulus, a signal most likely travels first to the verbal cortex, then to the amygdala, where the effect is added, and then back. The circuitry involved can do all this in a matter of a hundred milliseconds or so, long before there is conscious awareness of the word. This creates an initial predisposition that gets things off on a positive or negative footing. These reactions have the power to largely determine the course of a social interaction by defining the psychological reality of the situation from the start.
The "quick—and—dirty " judgment tends to be more predictive of how people actually behave than is their conscious reflection on the topic. This may represent a new, more subtle tool for research on people's attitudes, allowing scientists to assess what people feel without their having any idea of what exactly is being tested. You could detect socially sensitive attitudes people are reluctant to admit, like ethnic biases because these automatic judgments occur outside a person's awareness, as part of an initial perception. They are trusted in the same way senses are trusted, not realizing that seemingly neutral first perceptions are already biased.
Conclusions from both camps are based on a method that allows them to detect subtle evaluations made within the first 250 milliseconds—a quarter of a second—of perception of words. The measurement of liking can be made outside the person's awareness because if the first word is presented in less than a quarter of a second the reaction to it never registers in consciousness, though it can still be read.
Question:
According to the passage and with regards to words like bargulum, juvalamu, and chakaka, "preconscious processing " (paragraph 1, last part) would most influence which of the following?
[A] Subconscious memories concerning traumatic childhood events[B] Perception of a stranger on first sighting
[C] Formulation of arguments after intense research
[D] Thought processes involved in creating an intricate novel
Question:
Which of the following, if true, would serve to most strengthen the argument of an opponent to the author?
[A] Many of our actions are influenced by perceptions unknown to our consciousness.[B] In Swahili, "juvalamu " and "chakaka " mean enjoyable and severe pain, respectively.
[C] Peoples' actions are most regulated by conscious thought patterns rather than unknown feelings.
[D] Humans perceive their surroundings subjectively.
Question:
According to the author, information retrieved from these types of perception experiments could best be used by psychologists to:
[A] help patients with language barriers.[B] map out the pathological thought patterns in a murderer's mind.
[C] identify attitudes that cause a Hispanic and an Anglo to repeatedly clash on various issues.
[D] determine why one sibling has math skills while the other excels in literature classes.
Question:
Scientists that disagree with the idea that humans place a value on all perceptions would most likely agree with which of the following statements?
[A] Most perceptions receive a value due to a familiarity with the stimulus.[B] The mind cannot possibly interpret information in an interval as short as a quarter of a second.
[C] Preconscious processing would have no effect on behavior patterns.
[D] The senses are not used when placing a value on stimuli presented during an experiment.
Question:
Based on information in the passage, in the author's view, which of the following statements is NOT true?
[A] Information regarding external stimuli is processed so quickly that it does not become part of our conscious awareness.[B] Automatic judgments occur on stimuli with which there is great familiarity.
[C] Nonsense words have little or no effect on a person's mood.
[D] Ethnic biases may be influenced by attitudes of which we are unaware.
Question:
If given the chance to expand on his arguments put forth in the passage, the author of this passage would most likely propose:
[A] to use this type of experimentation to map the pathway through which brain signals travel.[B] that the evidence presented in the passage is inconclusive and directs psychologists in no specific direction.
[C] that automatic judgments have little or no effect on important behavior patterns.
[D] to continue with further experimentation, so that in the future a more reliable type of testing can be used to identify the roots of problems found in human relationships.
