Theses and Dissertations at Montana State University (MSU)
Permanent URI for this communityhttps://scholarworks.montana.edu/handle/1/732
Browse
3 results
Search Results
Item Shifting goals for unconscious thinkers : using reevaluation to test between fuzzy intuition and an active unconscious(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science, 2013) Rivers, Andrew Michael; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Ian M. HandleyAccumulating evidence suggests that slow deliberative processes may actively integrate information even while conscious attention is distracted away from task-relevant activities (Dijksterhuis, 2004). In typical experiments supporting this idea, participants receive complex information about target objects and then report judgments on those targets immediately, after 3min in which to think, or after a 3min distraction task that arguably disrupts conscious thinking but not unconscious thinking. Typical results demonstrate that individuals form better judgments in the latter condition relative to participants in other conditions, a finding dubbed the Deliberation-Without-Attention effect. This effect is predicted and well explained by Unconscious Thought Theory. However, an alternative explanation derived from the Fuzzy-Trace Theory of memory may account for observed patterns of results without assuming an active, sophisticated unconscious thought process. To date, no published research directly tests these two potential alternatives. The current experiment intends to conclusively test between Unconscious Thought Theory and Fuzzy-Trace Theory as alternative explanations for the effect by shifting the goal for successful judgments after the information is presented. According to Unconscious Thought Theory, an active unconscious thought process should be able to reevaluate information according to an updated goal. A passive memory process, on the other hand, is by definition unable to engage in this type of active reevaluation. Data show both memory and unconscious thought processes are at work. As predicted by Fuzzy-Trace Theory, decisions tend to generally reflect overall evaluations rather than updated goals. However, participants who are comfortable with ambiguity do reevaluate information during a distraction period when they have the goal to do so. This finding cannot be rectified with Fuzzy-Trace Theory, strongly suggesting that Fuzzy-Trace Theory is not a viable comprehensive explanation for the Deliberation- Without-Attention effect.Item Spatial incubation of intuitive mitigation(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Arts & Architecture, 2007) Robertson, Christopher Cole; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Michael Everts; Steven Juroszek (co-chair)THESIS: Current engagement in public parks are “Open vague”, or “Specific” questioning how we are to use the space. In contract, “Open Specific” public spaces provide a more explicit opportunity providing users a choice of multiple intuitive responses. GOAL: Achieve Spatial Incubation by engaging in the intuitions for defined users. CONTEXT: Our culture is operating under the influence of a progressively growing technological developments such as ipods, cell phones, pda’s, and laptop computers. Within this pace superficial overlays of context form like a blanket causing a vagueness in our articulation of the external environment. Futhermore, when we rely on others to perform in favor of our best interest vagueness can persuade us individuals to believe responsible actions are taking place on issues that concern us, and in actuality these steps are not taking place. STRATEGY: ARCHITECTUALLY THREADING AN “OPEN SPECIFIC” PUBLIC SPACE. PROJECT SITE: Why the United Nations? Politically charged with a history of agenda, diversity, failing collaboration, status, and iconography: the site is currently exclusive in relationship to the public. This exclusivity includes a history of problems with diplomatic immunity, closed physical access to the archives library denying information context, security tight entrances, and inaccessible members. This backdrop intensifies a relationship between an archaic closed source operating model with the public and current open source model found in successful collaborative entities such as wikipedia, linux, and youtube. ARCHITECTURAL CONCLUSIONS: Incubating Intuition. Creating engagement of our intuitive interactions among the environment requires an intense study and sensitivity of both general, and specific user groups. The weaving that takes place among such groups of people in a political charged park atmosphere requires a sense of anticipatory response. In this case, the goal of architecture is not always to provide space, but to suggest interaction with calculated moves. This takes a humbled approach that may require the absolute understanding that our constructed architectural space may not be fullfilled until it is inhabited.Item Towards the poetics of the immediate experince(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Arts & Architecture, 2010) Pope, Jaric Ross; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Zuzanna KarczewskaThe title of this thesis is 'Towards the Poetics of the Immediate Experience' because that should be the quest in attempting to embrace a process-relational worldview. In an attempting to create things we should embrace poetry because it begins to tap into our basic transcendental and mysterious way of experiencing the world. Our immediate and poetic experiences of the world are not only the beginnings of knowledge and reason, but by embracing poetry, we are also embracing a metaphysical and spiritual quality to the work. This pure way, which allows us to both create, experience, and know the world poetically is crucial to understanding a reality that is determined in each moment of 'becoming' and 'perishing' by what is in essence 'feelings'. By 'feeling' nature in its constant and flowing state of 'becoming' and 'perishing' we can begin to understand the 'true' nature of reality. The worldview that supports the universe as constantly in a state of 'becoming' and 'perishing', and interconnected is from process-relational thought. Acknowledging everything as determined by 'feelings', or what we as humans perceive as emotions, which are the true components of our poetic knowledge and found in our basic intuition, leads us to desire an architecture that is truly poetic and spiritual by evoking emotions from the dynamic changes found in nature.