If I say to you, ‘Don’t think of a white bear’, you will find it difficult not to think of a white bear. In this way, ‘thought suppression can actually increase the thoughts one wishes to suppress instead of calming them’. One common example of this is that people on a diet who try not to think about food often begin to think much ① more about food. This process is therefore also known as the rebound effect. The ② ironic effect seems to be caused by the interplay of two related cognitive processes. This dual-process system involves, first, an intentional operating process, which consciously attempts to locate thoughts ③ unrelated to the suppressed ones. Second, and simultaneously, an unconscious monitoring process tests whether the operating system is functioning effectively. If the monitoring system encounters thoughts inconsistent with the intended ones, it prompts the intentional operating process to ensure that these are replaced by ④ inappropriate thoughts. However, it is argued, the intentional operating system can fail due to increased cognitive load caused by fatigue, stress and emotional factors, and so the monitoring process filters the inappropriate thoughts into consciousness, making them highly ⑤ accessible