DOI: 10.1017/s0140525x25102847 ISSN: 0140-525X
Nothing to see here: The weak evidence base for unconscious control of human behavior
David R. ShanksAbstract
Fleming and Michel propose that as our evolutionary ancestors made the water-to-land transition, model-based, conscious planning and thought developed alongside the model-free, unconscious, reflexive behaviors that were sufficient in aquatic environments. But a century of research has failed to build a compelling body of replicable evidence that behavior can be controlled unconsciously in humans, severely undermining this theory.