This statement is absolutely thorough-going, as we have already noticed that every integrative process, no matter what its nature, must, to some extent at least, be spontaneous and automatic.

Effort and attention may have to be applied indirectly to procure its appearance, as when we adjust our sense-organs, our body, our actions, our memories, our thoughts, in order to maintain a certain stream of experiences.

But that stream of experience must, to some extent at least, flow spontaneously.

The attention may then be applied to any point of it, usually its highest, in order to aid the spontaneous integration which is taking place at that point.

The aid given may consist in rendering the integrative basis stabler, or in reducing the differences which present themselves to within the limits of spontaneous integration by means of special manipulation of the corresponding stimuli, or in repeating the series of integrating experiences so that the binding power of associations derived from simpler forms of integration may extend the integration in question over a longer stretch of time than that natural to the integration.