INTUITION 



Psychology of intuition 



The most characteristic circumstances of an intuition are a 

 period of intense work on the problem accompanied by a desire 

 for its solution, abandonment of the work perhaps with attention 

 to something else, then the appearance of the idea with dramatic 

 suddenness and often a sense of certainty. Often there is a feeUng 

 of exhilaration and perhaps surprise that the idea had not been 

 thought of previously. 



The psychology of the phenomenon is not thoroughly under- 

 stood. There is a fairly general, though not universal, agreement 

 that intuitions arise from the subconscious activities of the mind 

 which has continued to turn over the problem even though 

 perhaps consciously the mind is no longer giving it attention. 



In the previous chapter it was pointed out that ideas spring 

 straight into the conscious mind without our having deliberately 

 formed them. Evidently they originate from the subconscious 

 activities of the mind which, when directed at a problem, 

 immediately brings together various ideas which have been 

 associated with that particular subject before. When a possibly 

 significant combination is found it is presented to the cons<cious 

 mind for appraisal. Intuitions coming w^hen we are consciously 

 thinking about a problem are merely ideas that are more startling 

 than usual. But some further explanation is needed to account for 

 intuitions coming when our conscious mind is no longer dwelhng 

 on that subject. The subconscious mind has probably continued 

 to be occupied with the problem and has suddenly found a 

 significant combination. Now, a new idea arriving during con- 

 scious thinking often produces a certain emotional reaction — we 

 feel pleased about it and perhaps somewhat excited. Perhaps the 

 subconscious mind is also capable of reacting in this way and 

 this has the eflfect of bringing the idea into the conscious mind. 

 This is only a conjecture, but there can be Httle doubt that a 

 problem may continue to occupy the subconscious mind, for 

 common experience shows that sometimes you " can't get a 

 problem off your mind " because it keeps cropping up involun- 

 tarily in your thoughts. Secondly, there is no doubt about the 

 emotion often associated with an intuition. 



Some ideas come into consciousness and are grasped, but might 

 not some fail to appear in the conscious mind or only appear 



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