Automaticity and Free Will
Looking back, one of the decisions I have made that is thought to be a conscious and deliberate choice is choosing which college to attend. It was back during my senior year in high school, the first semester just started. It was a busy time for all the 12th graders because colleges started their application process for the upcoming school year. At first, I was uncertain of which universities to apply to; therefore I seek help from teachers and counselors at my school. University of Washington was on the list among a number of other colleges. My counselor was from Seattle, who had a personal preference for UW. I also knew at the time that three alumnae from my high school had attended UW. My counselor used to joke …show more content…
At the time it seemed like a good start, however I was more interested in attending a liberal arts college, which later offered spring admission. During February, I heard back from most of the school I applied to. Then the decision lied between three places: University of California Irvine, Franklin and Marshall College, and the University of Washington. I first ruled out Franklin and Marshall because I had to start a semester later during the spring. Next, between UC Irvine and UW, I chose UW. The decision took place over the course of a couple of weeks, which at the time seemed to be a conscious decision. Reflecting back on that experience now, what appears to be a choice that I was in complete control over looks rather automatic. Several cues point to the possibility that, as what John A. Bargh would argue, that my decision was unconscious. First of all, familiarity was one of the factors that drew me to UW; three other female students also attended UW, who were also hard-working students that I associated myself with. Secondly, Bargh would also suggest that because my name shares letters with UW, my first name ending with u and my last name starting with w, I was more likely to choose UW over other schools (Bargh, 2007, p.
Looking back, one of the decisions I have made that is thought to be a conscious and deliberate choice is choosing which college to attend. It was back during my senior year in high school, the first semester just started. It was a busy time for all the 12th graders because colleges started their application process for the upcoming school year. At first, I was uncertain of which universities to apply to; therefore I seek help from teachers and counselors at my school. University of Washington was on the list among a number of other colleges. My counselor was from Seattle, who had a personal preference for UW. I also knew at the time that three alumnae from my high school had attended UW. My counselor used to joke …show more content…
At the time it seemed like a good start, however I was more interested in attending a liberal arts college, which later offered spring admission. During February, I heard back from most of the school I applied to. Then the decision lied between three places: University of California Irvine, Franklin and Marshall College, and the University of Washington. I first ruled out Franklin and Marshall because I had to start a semester later during the spring. Next, between UC Irvine and UW, I chose UW. The decision took place over the course of a couple of weeks, which at the time seemed to be a conscious decision. Reflecting back on that experience now, what appears to be a choice that I was in complete control over looks rather automatic. Several cues point to the possibility that, as what John A. Bargh would argue, that my decision was unconscious. First of all, familiarity was one of the factors that drew me to UW; three other female students also attended UW, who were also hard-working students that I associated myself with. Secondly, Bargh would also suggest that because my name shares letters with UW, my first name ending with u and my last name starting with w, I was more likely to choose UW over other schools (Bargh, 2007, p.