Mind manipulating

We all know that people can and do influence each other. But the disturbing question is how far people’s minds can be influenced against their own wills. There are three techniques that have been used in attempts to control other people’s behaviour.

One technique, sublimal perception, is referred to as subception. This technique is based on the observation that people notice a great more than they consciously realize. This is not a new observation, but it has been given special attention since the results of an experiment in a New York movie theater were reported. In the experiment, an advertisement for ice cream was flashed onto the screen during the feature film. The ad was shown for such a brief period that no one consciously saw the instruction, yet ice-cream sales soared for the period of time the experiment continued.

Hypnosis is another technique that can be used for controlling people’s minds. While in a deep trance, people can be told something at a specific time or at a certain signal. They can be told that they won’t remember what has been said once out of trance. This is called a post-hypnotic suggestion. It is still uncertain whether a subject can be made to carry out an action that otherwise would be unacceptable in that person’s mind.

Yet another technique is called brainwashing. Brainwashing entails forcing people to believe something, usually something false, by continually telling them evidence that is supposedly true and preventing them from thinking about it properly or considering other evidence. Brainwashing can take extreme forms. For example, brainwashing can be done by first causing a complete breakdown of individuals through acts such as starving them, preventing them from sleeping, intimidating them and keeping them in a state of constant fear. When the individuals lose their sense of reality, new ideas can be planted in their minds.

Sub liminal per ception = subception – подпороговое восприятие

Subliminal – below the threshold of consciousness; ~ advertising, as when an advertisement is projected to a cinema or TV screen for a fraction of a second and is noted only by the subconscious mind.