Event-related potential indicators of the dynamic unconscious

Abstract

The present study applies a new method for investigating dynamic unconscious processes. The method consists of (1) selection of words from patient interview and test protocols that in the clinicians' judgments capture the patients' conscious symptom experience (i.e. [phobia) and the hypothetical unconscious conflict related to the symptom, (2) subliminal and supraliminal presentation of these words, (3) signal analysis of event-related potentials (ERPs) obtained to the word presentations. Eight phobics and three patients suffering from pathological grief reactions served as subjects. A time-frequency (Williams & Joeng, 1989) ERP analysis revealed that subjects' ERPs classified the unconscious conflict words better subliminally than supraliminally, while the reverse was true for the conscious symptom words (t(20) = 2.82, P = .011). The relationship between frequency and latency revealed a similar mirror image pattern for the unconscious conflict and conscious symptom words (F(4/36) = 4.14, P = .007). This method demonstrated that objective, brain-based evidence for unconscious conflict can be obtained.