Altered states of consciousness: Creative alternatives in decision making
Raymond Van Over
Planning Review April 1, 1975 DOI: 10.1108/eb053727 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Commentary Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Altered states of consciousness |
| Key points | Argues that although business decision-making has traditionally been rational and analytical, intuition and subliminal material are increasingly treated as helpful and creative, citing sympathetic articles in Dun's Review (1964, 1966) and IBM's Think (1969), which concluded that hunches may be almost as important as data. The author asks whether this signals a shift toward anti-rationalism in American business and whether unconscious creative abilities offer alternative decision methods. |
Abstract
Are hunches, intuition, and extrasensory perception valid methods for making business decisions? The reasonable answer is no. Our intellectual and cultural history dictates a rational, thoroughly examined, and logically analyzed approach to problem solving. But there are hints that the traditional approaches to decision‐making are being modified, and that subliminally generated material is not only helpful, but can be a creative and successful way of approaching the multi‐faceted complexity of contemporary planning. In 1964 and 1966, for example, Dun's Review printed articles that dealt sympathetically, even admiringly, with business planners who relied upon intuition or other mysterious forms of foreknowledge to make decisions. In November/December 1969 IBM's journal Think published an article on how executives use intuition in decision‐making. They concluded that “hunches may be almost as important as data. Have subjectivism and the counter‐culture philosophy of anti‐rationalism caught up with American business institutions? Does this presage a revolution in executive decision‐making? Most importantly: are there alternative ways of making decisions utilizing obscure but powerful creative abilities within the unconscious mind?