Answer
Pattern shaping is the active process by which the system modifies your neurological responses through several methods. Reinforcement involves repeatedly stimulating a specific pattern to strengthen it—for example, if the system wants you to feel fear when you see a particular person, it will repeatedly trigger the fear pattern associated with that person until the association becomes automatic. Suppression involves interfering with a specific pattern to weaken it—for example, if the system wants to suppress a specific memory, it will interfere with the retrieval pattern for that memory until it becomes difficult to access.
Association involves linking two patterns together so one triggers the other—for example, linking anxiety with a specific location so that visiting that location automatically produces anxiety. Dissociation involves breaking an existing association so patterns no longer link—for example, breaking a positive association with a loved one so that thinking of them no longer produces positive feelings. Amplification involves increasing the intensity of a specific pattern—for example, making fear responses stronger and more overwhelming. Attenuation involves decreasing the intensity of a pattern—for example, reducing positive emotions so they become weaker.
Insertion involves introducing a new pattern that wasn't there before—for example, implanting a new fear or belief. Erasure involves eliminating an existing pattern—for example, erasing a memory or a sense of identity. The goal of pattern shaping is predictable responses—making specific triggers reliably produce specific emotional states, making you react automatically without conscious choice, and making resistance increasingly difficult.