Editing Unconscious communication (section)

{{Short description|Unconscious verbal and nonverbal cues}}
{{redirect|Honest signals|honest signals in evolutionary biology|Signalling theory}}

'''Unconscious''' (or '''[[intuition (knowledge)|intuitive]]''') '''communication''' is the subtle, unintentional, unconscious cues that provide information to another individual. It can be verbal (speech patterns, physical activity while speaking, or the tone of voice of an individual)<ref name="MIT News">{{cite web |last=Chandler |first=David |title=Tuning in to unconscious communication |url=http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2008/signals-1021.html |access-date=27 February 2012 |work=MIT News|date=21 October 2008 }}</ref><ref name="Wise Geek">{{cite web |last=Ejim |first=Esther |title=What is unconscious communication? |url=http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-unconscious-communication.htm |access-date=27 February 2012 |work=wiseGEEK |publisher=Conjecture Corporation}}</ref> or it can be [[nonverbal communication|non-verbal]] (facial expressions and [[body language]]<ref name="Wise Geek" />). [[Signaling theory|Some psychologists]] instead use the term ''honest signals'' because such cues are involuntary behaviors that often convey emotion whereas body language can be controlled.<ref name="Honest Signals">{{cite web|last=Pentland|first=Alex|author-link=Alex Pentland|title=The Impact of Unconscious Communication|url=http://gmj.gallup.com/content/122711/impact-unconscious-communication.aspx|work=Gallup Management Journal|access-date=2012-03-03}}</ref> Many decisions are based on unconscious communication, which is interpreted and created in the right hemisphere of the brain.<ref name="Projective Identification">{{cite web|last=Schore|first=Allen|title=Projective Identification, Unconscious Communication, and the Right Brain|url=http://www.continuingedcourses.net/active/courses/course064.php|work=Courses for Mental Health Professionals|publisher=ContinuingEdCourses|access-date=2012-03-03}}</ref> The right hemisphere is dominant in perceiving and expressing body language, facial expressions, verbal cues, and other indications that have to do with emotion but it does not exclusively deal with the unconscious.<ref name="Projective Identification" />

Little is known about the [[unconscious mind]] or about how decisions are made based on unconscious communications except that they are always unintentional. There are two types of unconscious communications: intrapersonal and interpersonal.

Research has shown that human [[working memory|conscious attention]] can attend to [[The Magical Number Seven, Plus or Minus Two|5–9 items]] simultaneously.{{Citation needed|date=October 2021}} All other information is processed by the unconscious mind. For example, the unconscious mind sometimes picks up on and relates non-verbal cues about an individual based on how they have arranged their settings such as their home or place of work.