Synchronicity (concept)

Synchronicity is the simultaneous occurrence of an external event connected to internal thoughts or feelings, seemingly without any plausible explanation of causality. The concept, which can also be described as a “meaningful coincidence,” was first proposed by noted psychologist Carl Jung in the early twentieth century. Jung theorized that synchronicity was the result of the scientific-based concept that the processes of the universe—including the workings of the human mind—were in some way intertwined. To describe his idea, Jung coined the term synchronicity from the Latin base word synchronous, meaning “simultaneous.” Today, many modern proponents of synchronicity view the concept through the lens of new age beliefs, seeing it as a prophetic “sign” from a higher power or the universe itself. Scientists discount this explanation, attributing the phenomenon to more psychological-based ideas such as confirmation bias or the human mind’s tendency to see patterns in nature.

Background

Most ancient cultures believed that the gods spoke directly to humans through dreams or omens in the natural world. These cultures developed numerous ways to interpret the supposedly divine messages, and by doing so, determined the commands issued by the gods. Ancient Mesopotamian kings built temples and fought wars solely on “instructions” they received through dreams. The Mesopotamians also compiled lists of omens that occurred in the natural world and ascribed each a corresponding meaning, both good and bad.

The Greeks also saw divine influence in dreams and signs but were also among the first cultures to use logic and reason to arrive at a philosophical view of the universe. The philosopher Plato, who lived about 427–347 BCE, saw the physical world as imperfect and changeable. However, behind this world was the permanent world of forms, unchangeable cosmic “ideas” upon which the physical world was based. For example, many types of cats exist in the physical world, but each is based on the abstract idea of a “cat” in Plato’s world of forms. Plato believed that when an event occurred in the physical world, it was caused by an unchangeable form in the universal reality. Each change and event in the world was intricately tied to an immutable cause in this world of forms.

Overview

Carl Jung, who was born in Switzerland in 1875, was one of the pioneering forces in psychology and psychoanalysis in the early twentieth century. Jung developed a method of psychology that focused on the scientific study of the human mind. He theorized that the human psyche could be divided into three parts: the ego, the personal unconscious, and the collective unconscious. To Jung, the ego represented the conscious mind that included all the memories and thoughts that a person could recall. The personal unconscious contains all the thoughts and memories that a person cannot recall or has suppressed. The collective unconscious is a reservoir of shared knowledge and memory that all humans experience and passed down as part of the evolutionary process.

Jung made many of his observations about the same time as other scientists were making revolutionary discoveries in the fields of astronomy, physics, and chemistry. In 1905, German scientist Albert Einstein had published the first of his famous theories of relativity, which stated, in part, that matter and energy were connected and were just two aspects of the same thing. Other scientists were making the first inroads in the field of quantum physics, the study of matter at its most basic level—the infinitesimal small world of subatomic particles. Among the main discoveries of quantum physics was the concept of entanglement, a phenomenon in which the behavior of one subatomic particle can be affected by the behavior of another even if they are separated by great distances.

In his work, Jung sought to connect his ideas of how the human mind worked with the scientific innovations of the era. To Jung, human thought was just another form of energy, so it seemed logical that it would follow the same rules that Einstein proposed. Einstein himself believed that all the processes of the universe were interconnected in a sort of web of causation in which each aspect of the physical world had an effect on another. In his position as a psychoanalyst, Jung also treated noted scientist Wolfgang Pauli, one of the founding fathers of quantum physics. Jung had already developed his concept of synchronicity by the time he met Pauli, but the two formed an informal collaboration, allowing Jung to refine his theories on the subject.

Jung defined synchronicity as the “acausal connection of two or more psychic and physical phenomena.” More simply, it is the unexplained, yet meaningful, occurrence of an event in the physical world that is connected to thoughts or emotions in the mind. The connection between the two seemingly happens by more than pure chance. For example, a person may be listening to a song that reminds him or her about an old friend, and a few minutes later, that friend calls for the first time in years. Jung believed an occurrence such as this would be more than just coincidence and was somehow related to the unconscious mind’s connection to the energy of the physical world.

In his writings, Jung provides a practical example of synchronicity in the story of a young woman he was treating. According to Jung, the woman was so obsessed with logic and rational explanations for her problems that she was very reluctant to express her emotions in the course of therapy. One day, she was recounting a dream that she had about a piece of jewelry in the shape of a golden scarab beetle. During the session, Jung heard a tapping noise outside, and when he opened the window, in flew a gold-green scarab beetle. Jung reported that the incident helped the woman relax her resistance to the treatment, leading to a successful outcome.

Jung believed that the concept of synchronicity was proof of his theory of the collective unconscious, as he felt these “meaningful coincidences” were often drawn from inherited universal archetypes common in all humanity. Jung was also a believer in phenomenon such as psychic powers, telekinesis, and numerology, but like synchronicity, he did not think these had otherworldly or paranormal origins. He believed they could each be explained by scientific study of the human mind.

For many deeply religious people or supporters of new age philosophies, synchronicity is proof in the existence of a higher power, either in the form of a deity or a mystical force present in the universe itself. Some believe that unexplained coincidences are messages from God or a spiritual realm. For example, if someone sees a shooting star after the death of a loved one, they may interpret that as a message from the person who has just died. Other times, people believe synchronicity is a sign from the universe offering a glimpse into the future, hinting at the proper course that a person should follow. Someone contemplating taking a job in a new city may suddenly notice repeated coincidences related to that location. These could include a stranger wearing a cap of that city’s baseball team, a movie set in that city, or a news story referring to an event in that city. People who believe that “everything happens for a reason” would interpret these as signs that the person should accept the job.

However, scientists have a much less romanticized view of synchronicity, referring to the concept as pseudoscience. They attribute synchronicity to the natural tendency of the human mind to compartmentalize experiences and seek order out of chaos. To scientists, synchronicity could be an example of inherent mental bias, such as hindsight bias or confirmation bias. Hindsight bias is the mind’s tendency to believe events are more predictable than they really are. A person who goes outside during the winter and sees gray clouds may speculate that it is going to snow. If it later does snow, the person may believe he or she predicted that outcome. Confirmation bias is the tendency to select only the information that corresponds with already held beliefs. Football fans arguing over who is the better quarterback will focus only on information that supports their choice. They will remember the touchdown passes their favorite quarterback threw to win games, not the interceptions that lost games.

The human mind is also conditioned to seek out familiar patterns in nature, which is why star-gazers see lions, hunters, and bears in the constellations or conspiracy theorists see hidden codes in the words of the Bible. Scientists believe this need to find order in the world can combine with mental biases to convince people that random occurrences are somehow more than just coincidences. For example, the person listening to a song about an old friend may give significant meaning to that friend calling while the song was playing; however, they do not mentally connect all the times in the past that they heard that song and their friend did not call. In the same vein, the person contemplating a job in a new city may not recall how many times he or she encountered references to that city before they were offered that job.

Bibliography

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Jung, C. G. Synchronicity: An Acausal Connecting Principle. 1955. Princeton UP, 2010.

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“Synchronicity.” Psychology Today, 2021, www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/synchronicity. Accessed 12 Jan. 2021.