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Subliminal Messages: The Lazy Man's Path to Self-Improvement?
| Article
# : |
13706 |
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Section : |
LIFE
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| Issue
Date : |
8 / 1988 |
2,782 Words |
| Author
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Perry Garfinkel and Melissa Ignacio
Perry Garfinkel, a writer in Oakland, California, is the
author of In a Man's World: Father, Son, Brother, Friend and
Other Roles Men Play (NAL/Mentor) and Travel Writing for
Profit and Pleasure (to be published in January by
NAL/Plume). Melissa Ignacio is a free-lance writer based in
San Jose, California. |
You're having trouble breaking an old habit. You've tried every book, therapy, and self-help technique available. Your self-confidence is dwindling, as is your faith in anyone who tries to convince you that "you are the captain of your own ship."
Then someone gives you an audiotape. On the surface all you hear is soothing music. But underneath the music, inaudible to the human ear, a voice whispers positive suggestions to stop your habit or your negative thinking.
Formally called "subliminal" (below the threshold of consciousness and inaudible to the human ear), this form of communication has spawned a billion-dollar industry. Its proponents produce audiotapes that they claim can help break drug addiction, stop bed-wetting, or induce simple relaxation, among many other behavioral changes.
Though rigorous scientific research has never substantiated the claims, millions of people report positive results. The question remains open as to whether the subliminal messages on the tapes produce the desired behavioral change--or whether the tapes work because people want them to work.
Nonetheless, subliminal tapes are more popular than ever--so much so that Bantam, the mega-publishing conglomerate, entered the field two years ago with its own line of subliminal audiocassettes, rivaling the sales of its popular celebrity books-on-tapes.
"We live in a society that wants to do things easily and effortlessly--that's why subliminal tapes are so popular." So says Eldon Taylor, of Provo, Utah, a researcher in this field for fifteen years and the author of Subliminal Communication: Emperor's Clothes or Panacea?, which he self-published.
What could be easier? You play a tape of soft, melodious music while you are doing almost anything else. What you cannot hear are the verbal messages woven into the music at subaudible levels. The message might be "You are successful," or "You are filled with optimism and enthusiasm," or "You are a positive role model to others."
The tapes are said to operate on the premise of right-brain and left-brain consciousness. The right side of the brain is thought to be more creative and emotional, and the left side more logical and analytical. According to the theory, the left brain prevents the mind from accepting
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