Unbiased individual unconsciousness: Rationale, replication and developing applications

Abstract

Unbiased individual unconsciousness is a methodology that involves non-parametric receiver operating characteristics and Bayesian analyses and can enable a researcher to define subjective thresholds for visual suppression. It can enable a researcher to define among brief durations (e.g., 8.33 or 16.67 or 25 ms), per participant and elicitor type, the threshold of presentation for which each participant is individually unconscious during masking. The outcomes of this method are then used in a subsequent experimental session that involves psychophysiological assessments and participant ratings to explore evidence for unconscious processing and emotional responsivity. Following collegial requests for a dedicated manuscript on the rationale and replication of this method, in this manuscript, we provide a thorough, comprehensive and reader-friendly manual for this methodology. We include empirical illustrations, open-source and ready-to-use methodological, mathematical and statistical coding scripts and step-by-step instructions for replicating key parts or the entire method. We discuss the potential contributions and the developing applications of individual metrics for unconsciousness.