Intuition

Intuition is the ability to gain knowledge without relying on conscious reasoning. It can take many forms, such as a direct connection to unconscious knowledge, unconscious cognition, gut feelings, inner sensing, and the ability to understand something instinctively without conscious reasoning. Intuitive knowledge tends to be approximate.

The word "intuition" comes from the Latin verb "intueri," meaning "to consider," or from the Middle English word "intuit," meaning "to contemplate." People often describe relying on intuition as "trusting your gut" or "responding to a gut feeling."

According to Sigmund Freud, knowledge can only be obtained through the intellectual manipulation of carefully made observations, and he rejected other methods of acquiring knowledge, such as intuition. In his theory of the ego, Carl Jung described intuition as an "irrational function" that is opposed most directly by sensation and less strongly by the "rational functions" of thinking and feeling. Jung defined intuition as "perception through the unconscious," where sense-perception is only used as a starting point to bring forth ideas, images, possibilities, and solutions to blocked situations through a mostly unconscious process.

Jung believed that people who are dominated by intuition, or "intuitive types," make decisions not based on rational judgment but on the intensity of their perception. An extraverted intuitive type, who is oriented towards new and unproven but promising possibilities, may act impulsively and chase after new opportunities without considering the consequences or the well-being of themselves or others. This type of person may also be drawn to cultural revolutions and may struggle with a desire to escape every situation before it becomes settled and constraining. On the other hand, an introverted intuitive type, who is oriented by images from the unconscious and seeks to understand the meaning of events, may be more interested in exploring the psychic world of archetypes and may not see a connection between the contents of the psychic world and themselves. This type of person may be more likely to be a mystic, prophet, or eccentric and may struggle with making their ideas understandable and persuasive to others in order to see real results from their visions.

In more recent psychology, intuition can include the ability to know valid solutions to problems and to make decisions. The recognition-primed decision (RPD) model explains how people can make relatively fast decisions without comparing options. According to this model, experts use their base of experience to identify similar situations and intuitively choose feasible solutions when faced with time pressure, high stakes, and changing parameters. The intuition in this model is the pattern-matching process that quickly suggests courses of action, while the analysis is the conscious and deliberate review of those courses of action.

Instinct is sometimes mistaken for intuition, and its reliability is believed to depend on past knowledge and experiences in a particular area. For example, someone with more experience with children is likely to have a better instinct about what to do in certain situations involving them. However, it is not always the case that a person with a lot of experience will have an accurate intuition.

Intuitive abilities were tested at Yale University in the 1970s. Researchers studying nonverbal communication noticed that some subjects were able to read nonverbal facial cues before reinforcement occurred. In a similar study, they found that highly intuitive subjects made decisions quickly but could not explain their rationale. However, their accuracy was not different from that of non-intuitive subjects.

According to Daniel Kahneman, intuition is the ability to automatically generate solutions without long logical arguments or evidence. He believes that people have two different systems for approaching decision-making and judgment, with the first being in charge of automatic or unconscious thoughts and the second being in charge of more intentional thoughts. The first system is an example of intuition and is connected with the two versions of ourselves known as the "remembering" and "experiencing" self, which are related to the creation of memories in "System 1." However, the automatic nature of this system can also lead people to experience cognitive illusions, or assumptions that our intuition gives us and that we usually trust without questioning.

Gerd Gigerenzer described intuition as a process and thoughts that are void of typical logic. He believes that there are two primary characteristics of intuition: basic rules of thumb (that are heuristic in nature) and "evolved capacities of the brain." These two work together to give people thoughts and abilities that they do not actively think about as they are performed and cannot explain the formation or effectiveness of. Gigerenzer does not believe that intuitions necessarily correlate to knowledge, stating that having too much information can make people overthink and that some intuitions may actively defy known information.

Intuition has also been seen as a figurative launch pad for logical thinking, as the automatic nature of intuition tends to always precede more thoughtful logic. Even when based on moral or subjective standpoints, intuition provides a base that people usually start to back up with logical thinking as a defense or justification, rather than using a more unbiased viewpoint. The confidence in whether something is an intuition or not comes from how quickly it happens, as intuitions are instantaneous feelings or judgments that we have surprising confidence in.

In philosophy, intuition is often described as a non-verbal form of knowing or understanding something immediately, without the need for conscious reasoning. Eastern philosophers, particularly those in Hinduism, have linked intuition with spirituality and religion. Advaita Vedanta sees intuition as a way to experience Brahman, the ultimate reality in Hinduism. In Western philosophy, intuition is often seen as closely connected to the unconscious mind and can be a source of knowledge or insight. Psychologists have studied intuition, with some seeing it as a quick, automatic decision-making process, while others view it as a source of cognitive illusions and biased thinking. Some philosophers and psychologists believe that developing one's intuition can be a goal of spiritual or personal growth.

Intuition is a type of knowledge that is acquired without conscious reasoning. It is often described as a gut feeling or inner sensing. In philosophy, intuition is seen as a way to access unconscious knowledge, or as a way to understand something instinctively without the need for conscious reasoning. In psychology, intuition is described as the ability to automatically generate solutions or make decisions without the need for logical arguments or evidence. It is often seen as the process that precedes more thoughtful logical reasoning, and is often based on past experiences or knowledge. In Eastern philosophy, intuition is often intertwined with religion and spirituality, and is seen as a way to access higher forms of consciousness or knowledge. In the West, intuition is often discussed by philosophers and is seen as a fundamental capacity of human reason to understand the true nature of reality.

Intuition is the ability to acquire knowledge or understanding without the use of reason or evidence. It is often described as a gut feeling or inner sensing. In philosophy, intuition is often seen as a fundamental capacity of human reason to comprehend the true nature of reality. In Eastern philosophy, intuition is often intertwined with religion and spirituality and is seen as a way to access knowledge or understanding beyond the realm of conscious thought. In the West, philosophers such as Plato and Descartes have described intuition as a form of pre-existing knowledge or a way to access truth through contemplation. Hume, on the other hand, saw intuition as a recognition of relationships, while Kant believed it to be the basic sensory information provided by the cognitive faculty of sensibility.

Intuition is the ability to acquire knowledge or understanding without the need for conscious reasoning. In philosophy, it has been studied by both Eastern and Western philosophers, with varied interpretations. In the East, it is often connected to religion and spirituality, while in the West it has been mentioned and defined by philosophers such as Plato and Descartes. Hume and Kant also had differing views on intuition, with Hume recognizing it as a recognition of relationships and Kant considering it to be the basic sensory information provided by the cognitive faculty of sensibility. In recent years, the use of intuitions as evidence in philosophy has been challenged by experimental philosophers, who argue that intuitions differ from one culture to another and therefore should not be used as evidence for philosophical claims. In response, other philosophers have argued that intuition plays no special role in philosophy and that skepticism about intuition cannot be meaningfully separated from skepticism about judgment in general. Intuitionism is a position in the philosophy of mathematics which holds that all mathematical knowledge is derived from pure forms of intuition.

Intuition is a process of acquiring knowledge without conscious reasoning. It is sometimes referred to as "gut feelings" or "inner insight." It is seen as a form of unconscious cognition, which can be approximate and is often used in decision making and problem solving. In Eastern philosophy, intuition is often intertwined with religion and spirituality, while in the West, it is a concept studied by philosophers. Immanuel Kant viewed intuition as the basic sensory information provided by the cognitive faculty of sensibility, while Plato saw it as a pre-existing knowledge residing in the soul. In recent years, artificial intelligence researchers have attempted to add intuition to algorithms, and some business leaders consider it useful for making judgments about people, culture, and strategy. However, the validity of intuition has been challenged by experimental philosophers, who argue that it must be informed by the methods of social science, and by the Harvard Business Review, which advises caution in relying on it as a substitute for reason.