collective unconscious
noun
(in Jungian psychology) inborn unconscious psychic material common to humankind, accumulated by the experience of all preceding generations.
Compare
archetype(def 2).
Origin of collective unconscious
First recorded in 1915–20
Words nearby collective unconscious
collective memory,
collective noun,
collective ownership,
collective pitch lever,
collective security,
collective unconscious,
collectivism,
collectivity,
collectivize,
collector,
collector electrode
British Dictionary definitions for collective unconscious
collective unconscious
noun
psychol
(in Jungian psychological theory) a part of the unconscious mind incorporating patterns of memories, instincts, and experiences common to all mankind. These patterns are inherited, may be arranged into archetypes, and are observable through their effects on dreams, behaviour, etc
Medical definitions for collective unconscious
collective unconscious
[ kə-lĕk′tĭv ]
n.
In Jungian psychology, a part of the unconscious mind that is shared by a society, a people, or all humankind. The product of ancestral experience, it contains such concepts as science, religion, and morality.
Cultural definitions for collective unconscious
collective unconscious
Memories of mental patterns that are shared by members of a single culture or, more broadly, by all human beings; originally proposed by the psychologist Carl Jung to explain psychological traits shared by all people. He theorized that the collective unconscious appears as archetypes: patterns and symbols (see also symbol) that occur in dreams, mythology, and fairy tales.