MEDICAL BIOLOGY, HUMAN ANATOMY, PHYSIOLOGY AND PATHOLOGY - Y.I. Fedonyuk 2010

ANATOMY, PHYSIOLOGY, PATHOLOGY

SECTION 10. ANATOMICAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL ASPECTS OF HIGHER NERVOUS (MENTAL) ACTIVITY

FORMS OF MENTAL ACTIVITY

4. CONSCIOUSNESS AND SUBCONSCIOUSNESS

Higher Nervous Activity in humans operates at two levels: consciousness and subconsciousness. Consciousness is a reflection of objective reality. It regulates the individual's interactions with the environment and evolved in humans through collective labor activity.

Consciousness is a conditioned-reflex process. Intuition, "premonitions", "creative inspiration", and guesswork are subconscious reactions. Conditioned-reflex activity of Internal Organs takes place at the subconscious level. Subconscious reactions occur automatically and are faster and more "energy-efficient" than conscious ones.

Subconsciousness does not conflict with consciousness. It serves as the primary stage for all bodily reactions and remains subordinate to consciousness. Only consciousness acts as the supreme regulator of human behavior.



Last update: 08/08/2026

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