The neural pattern of intuitive and analytical processes in the subliminal environment: N2 responses on the embedded Chinese character task

Abstract

Dual process theory proposes that there are two different types of human thinking: an intuitive process and an analytical process. However, if these two types of thinking could maintain their characteristics in the subliminal environment, further exploration of their relationship is required. This study used the Embedded Chinese Character Task (ECCT) with event-related potentials to investigate the behavioral and neural patterns of the intuitive and analytical processes in the subliminal environment. In this task, one Chinese character (target character) was extracted from another character (test character) with problem solving that required either an intuitive process (in which the two characters were spatially separated or adjacent) or analytical process (in which the target characters were embedded in the test characters). Participants were asked to judge whether the target character was included or excluded from the test character in the subliminal environment. Results showed that a difference in reaction time occurred between inclusion and exclusion only in the analytical materials, but there was a difference in N2 between the inclusion and exclusion conditions in both intuitive and analytical materials, indicating that participants preferred to choose intuitive processing to solve intuitive and analytical problems in an unconscious environment. These findings support the traditional dual process theory, which states that the intuitive process is unconscious and effortless, while the analytical process may perform like an intuitive process in a subliminal environment.

Keywords: Analytical process; Embedded Chinese Character Task; Intuitive process; N2.