56 pages • 1 hour read
David R. HawkinsPower vs. Force: The Hidden Determinants of Human Behavior
David R. HawkinsNonfiction | Book | Adult | Published in 1985A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
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BetaBackground
Critical Context: Hawkins’s Methods and Scientific Criticism
Hawkins’s ideas align with those of other spiritual seekers, and the book has been embraced by readers interested in self-help and spirituality. However, his work has faced criticism from academics for its reliance on unverified methods, especially applied kinesiology or muscle testing. The method assumes that muscle weakness can indicate various physical and emotional issues. Dr. John Diamond pioneered the process of using applied kinesiology to treat psychiatric patients.
In Hawkins’s research, the testing technique involved two persons. One held out an arm parallel to the ground. The other attempted to push the arm down at the wrist while saying “Resist.” The subject then held a statement in mind while the other tested the arm’s strength. A statement that was negative or false made the subject’s arm “go weak,” while a positive statement makes the arm “go strong.” Hawkins assigned numbers to statements by having the speaker say that an item calibrated “over 100,” then “over 200,” and so on until a negative response was obtained. The calibration was then refined by saying the item was over 220, 225, 230, and so on.
Organizations including the American College of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology and the American Cancer Society have found no evidence that the practice can diagnose with accuracy. A randomized controlled trial conducted in 2013 concluded that research published by the applied kinesiology field is unreliable, and that the technique is neither a useful nor a reliable diagnostic tool.
Hawkins also believes that energy levels, called “attractor patterns,” can be assigned to human behavior based on kinesiological testing, and that these levels exist within a global human consciousness. As he points out in Chapter 2, skeptics criticize his theory because he uses clinical methods to try to validate what he regards as a spiritual reality. Readers should therefore keep in mind throughout the work that Hawkins’s claims regarding spiritual reality and collective consciousness cannot be scientifically verified, and thus operate in the realm of ideas, not scientific consensus.
Cultural Context: Science, Spirituality, and Consciousness
Power vs. Force reflects late 20th-century interest in integrating spirituality and science, a cultural movement that sought to reconcile rationalism with metaphysical ideas.
The concept of the duality of mind and body has long been explored by philosophers, particularly 17th-century philosopher René Descartes, who considered mind and body to be separate entities. By the mid-20th century, influential authors such as Norman Vincent Peale (The Power of Positive Thinking, 1952) and Joseph Murphy (The Power of Your Subconscious Mind, 1963) had developed theories of how to tap into thought processes to achieve certain goals.
However, it wasn’t until later in the century that scientists launched explorations into the biological basis of consciousness in the brain. As a result, researchers such as David R. Hawkins began to incorporate scientific concepts into their theories of consciousness. One of Hawkins’s contemporaries was Roger Penrose, whose 1994 Shadows of the Mind drew on quantum mechanics and microbiology to explore the nature of reality. Another was David J. Chalmers, whose 1996 book The Conscious Mind elevated consciousness to an entity with properties as fundamental as time and space.
Hawkins also draws on concepts from theoretical physics, including chaos theory, in formulating his theory. He departs from his contemporaries, however, by relying on applied kinesiology as his main scientific backing.
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