<P> Goal - dependent automaticity concerns skill and thought processes that require a goal to engage in them . This process is much similar to postconscious in that it requires conscious awareness to be initiated, but after that it can be guided outside of awareness by the unconscious mind . A good example would be driving a car: in order to drive a car, one needs to consciously have a goal to drive somewhere . When engaged in driving (only with enough practice) one can almost operate the car almost entirely without conscious awareness . However, more attentional control and decision making are needed when introduced to novel (reference) situations like driving through an unfamiliar town . The process needs to be learned enough that it can be automatic, requiring little conscious thought as to how to do it . </P> <P> One definition of a controlled process is an intentionally - initiated sequence of cognitive activities . In other words, when attention is required for a task, we are consciously aware and in control . Controlled processes require us to think about situations, evaluate and make decisions . An example would be reading this article . We are required to read and understand the concepts of these processes and it takes effort to think conceptually . Controlled processes are thought to be slower, since by definition they require effortful control; therefore, they generally cannot be conducted simultaneously with other controlled processes without task - switching or impaired performance . So the drawback of controlled processes is that humans are thought to have a limited capacity for overtly controlling behavior . Being tightly capacity - limited, controlled processing imposes considerable limitations on speed and the ability to multitask . In a study, participants were randomly assigned into two conditions, one requiring one task (small cognitive load) and one requiring two tasks (heavy cognitive load). In the one - task condition, participants were told that they would hear an anti - or pro-abortion speech and would have to diagnose the speaker's attitude toward abortion . The two - task condition had the same first assignment, but they were required to switch spots with the speaker and take their place after that . Even after being specifically told that they would be given further instructions at the next step, their cognitive load was affected in this study . Participants in the two - task condition performed more poorly than the one - task condition simply because they had the next task on their mind (they had extra cognitive load). Basically, the more tasks someone tries to manage at the same time, the more their performance will suffer . </P> <P> Some cognitive processes are difficult to categorize as distinctly automatic or controlled, either because they contain components of both types of process or because the phenomena are difficult to define or observe . An example of the former is driving a car . An example of the latter is flow . </P> <P> Flow has been described as involving highly focused attention on the task at hand, loss of self - consciousness, and distorted time perception, among other cognitive characteristics . Some people report that during flow states they are less aware of autonomic responses such as hunger, fatigue, and discomfort . Some researchers hypothesize that because of this, some challenging tasks can counterintuitively require less effort to perform . </P>

Which of the following is not a characteristic of automatic thinking