---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Contractile movements arise, sometimes at…"
description: "\"Contractile movements arise, sometimes at the instigation of external stimuli but sometimes also in the absence of any apparent external influence.\" — ..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb5/wilhelm-wundt-16890_absence_contractile-movements-arise-sometimes-at_1607312.jpg"
---

#  Contractile movements arise, sometimes at the instigation…

![“Contractile movements arise, sometimes at the instigation of external stimuli but sometimes also in the absence of any apparent external influence.” quote by Wilhelm Wundt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb5/wilhelm-wundt-16890_absence_contractile-movements-arise-sometimes-at_1607312.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb5/wilhelm-wundt-16890_absence_contractile-movements-arise-sometimes-at_1607312.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb5/wilhelm-wundt-16890_absence_contractile-movements-arise-sometimes-at_1607312.jpg)

> “Contractile movements arise, sometimes at the instigation of external stimuli but sometimes also in the absence of any apparent external influence.”

[Wilhelm Wundt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-wundt/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Movement can be driven by external cues or arise spontaneously without clear triggers.

**In simple terms:** Movements may be triggered or self‑generated.

Key Takeaway

Observe both external and internal drivers.

Themes

physiology psychology behavior

Mood

curious analytical

Type

explanatory scientific

When to use this quote

- exercise routines
- creative brainstorming
- habit formation
- stress response

Key Concepts

neuroscience autonomy stimulus response

Questions to Reflect On

- What internal cues guide your actions?
- How do you differentiate spontaneous vs. prompted behavior?

A Different Perspective

External stimuli are not always the sole cause of action.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Absence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absence/) [Apparent External](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/apparent-external-6123125/) [Arise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/arise/) [Contractile Movements](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contractile-movements-6123124/) [External influences](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/external-influences/) [External Stimuli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/external-stimuli-2370949/) [Influence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/influence/) [Movement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/movement/) [Movements](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/movements/) [Movements Arise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/movements-arise-6123123/) [Sometimes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sometimes/) [Stimulus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stimulus/)

## Related quotes

> [Sensorial perception, for example, certainly occurs with greater or less accuracy according to the degree of interest; it is constantly given other directions by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-ebbinghaus/sensorial-perception-for-example-certainly-occurs-with-greater-or/)

[Hermann Ebbinghaus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-ebbinghaus/)

> [Television, radio, and all the sources of amusement and information that surround us in our daily lives are also artificial props. They can give…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/television-radio-and-all-the-sources-of-amusement-and-information/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Perception is less of a recording system and more of a protection system against external stimuli.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/perception-is-less-of-a-recording-system-and-more-of-a-protection/)

[Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/)

> [In pursuing my fervent goal of relating external stimuli to reports about internal-neural change, we were, paradoxically enough, following the most orthodox tradition in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-leary/in-pursuing-my-fervent-goal-of-relating-external-stimuli-to-reports/)

[Timothy Leary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-leary/)

> [“Programming is the act of installing internal, pre-established reactions to external stimuli so that a person will automatically react in a predetermined manner to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arauna-morgan/programming-is-the-act-of-installing-internal-pre-established/)

[Arauna Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arauna-morgan/)

> [Interestingly enough, not all feelings result from the body's reaction to external stimuli. Sometimes changes are purely simulated in the brain maps.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-damasio/interestingly-enough-not-all-feelings-result-from-the-body-s-reaction/)

[Antonio Damasio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-damasio/)

> [“Of one thing we may be sure, we can never escape the external stimuli that cause vexation. The world is full of them, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-w-tozer/of-one-thing-we-may-be-sure-we-can-never-escape-the-external-stimuli/)

[A.W. Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-w-tozer/)

> [“Many external influences are driving change.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-redhead/many-external-influences-are-driving-change/)

[Steven Redhead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-redhead/)

> [First, in the history of words there is much that indicates the history of men, and in comparing the speech of to-day with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-joyce/first-in-the-history-of-words-there-is-much-that-indicates-the/)

[James Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-joyce/)

> [It was not really the external influences that made me a singer. Music was within me. I was full of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lata-mangeshkar/it-was-not-really-the-external-influences-that-made-me-a-singer-music/)

[Lata Mangeshkar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lata-mangeshkar/)

> [“Every person's true identity is beautiful, and much of the ugliness we observe in others was put inside of them by external influences.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryant-mcgill/every-person-s-true-identity-is-beautiful-and-much-of-the-ugliness-we/)

[Bryant McGill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryant-mcgill/)

> [Chicken masala is now Britain's true national dish, not only because it is the most popular, but because it is a perfect illustration of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-cook/chicken-masala-is-now-britain-s-true-national-dish-not-only-because/)

[Robin Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-cook/)

> [If such external influences are intrinsic to religion, then logic and scientific thought dictate that there must be a mechanism by which this influence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-randall/if-such-external-influences-are-intrinsic-to-religion-then-logic-and/)

[Lisa Randall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-randall/)

> [Psychosynthesis is a method of psychological development and self realization for those who refuse to remain the slave of their own inner phantasms or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roberto-assagioli/psychosynthesis-is-a-method-of-psychological-development-and-self/)

[Roberto Assagioli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roberto-assagioli/)

> [“The vision teller tells the vision to unguarded minds' of prey. The programmed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-f-hodge/the-vision-teller-tells-the-vision-to-unguarded-minds-of-prey-the/)

[T.F. Hodge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-f-hodge/)

## More by Wilhelm Wundt

> [Physiology, in its analysis of the physiological functions of the sense organs, must use the results of subjective observation of sensations; and psychology, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-wundt/physiology-in-its-analysis-of-the-physiological-functions-of-the/)

[Wilhelm Wundt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-wundt/)

> [Physiological psychology is, therefore, first of all psychology.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-wundt/physiological-psychology-is-therefore-first-of-all-psychology/)

[Wilhelm Wundt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-wundt/)

> [The general statement that the mental faculties are class concepts, belonging to descriptive psychology, relieves us of the necessity of discussing them and their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-wundt/the-general-statement-that-the-mental-faculties-are-class-concepts/)

[Wilhelm Wundt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-wundt/)

> [Physiology is concerned with all those phenomena of life that present them selves to us in sense perception as bodily processes, and accordingly form…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-wundt/physiology-is-concerned-with-all-those-phenomena-of-life-that-present/)

[Wilhelm Wundt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-wundt/)

> [Hence, wherever we meet with vital phenomena that present the two aspects, physical and psychical there naturally arises a question as to the relations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-wundt/hence-wherever-we-meet-with-vital-phenomena-that-present-the-two/)

[Wilhelm Wundt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-wundt/)

> [The distinguishing characteristics of mind are of a subjective sort; we know them only from the contents of our own consciousness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-wundt/the-distinguishing-characteristics-of-mind-are-of-a-subjective-sort/)

[Wilhelm Wundt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-wundt/)

> [Now, there are a very large number of bodily movements, having their source in our nervous system, that do not possess the character of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-wundt/now-there-are-a-very-large-number-of-bodily-movements-having-their/)

[Wilhelm Wundt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-wundt/)

> [We speak of virtue, honour, reason; but our thought does not translate any one of these concepts into a substance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-wundt/we-speak-of-virtue-honour-reason-but-our-thought-does-not-translate/)

[Wilhelm Wundt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-wundt/)

> [The animal kingdom exhibits a series of mental developments which may be regarded as antecedents to the mental development of man, for the mental…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-wundt/the-animal-kingdom-exhibits-a-series-of-mental-developments-which-may/)

[Wilhelm Wundt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-wundt/)

> [Hence, even in the domain of natural science the aid of the experimental method becomes indispensable whenever the problem set is the analysis of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-wundt/hence-even-in-the-domain-of-natural-science-the-aid-of-the/)

[Wilhelm Wundt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-wundt/)

> [Experimental psychology itself has, it is true, now and again suffered relapse into a metaphysical treatment of its problems.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-wundt/experimental-psychology-itself-has-it-is-true-now-and-again-suffered/)

[Wilhelm Wundt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-wundt/)

> [In the animal world, on the other hand, the process of evolution is characterised by the progressive discrimination of the animal and vegetative functions,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-wundt/in-the-animal-world-on-the-other-hand-the-process-of-evolution-is/)

[Wilhelm Wundt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-wundt/)

> [We know, from ordinary life, that we are not able to direct our attention perfectly steadily and uniformly to one and the same object...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-wundt/we-know-from-ordinary-life-that-we-are-not-able-to-direct-our/)

[Wilhelm Wundt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-wundt/)

> [Child psychology and animal psychology are of relatively slight importance, as compared with the sciences which deal with the corresponding physiological problems of ontogeny…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-wundt/child-psychology-and-animal-psychology-are-of-relatively-slight/)

[Wilhelm Wundt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-wundt/)

> [Physiological psychology, on the other hand, is competent to investigate the relations that hold between the processes of the physical and those of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-wundt/physiological-psychology-on-the-other-hand-is-competent-to/)

[Wilhelm Wundt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-wundt/)

[Explore all 38 Wilhelm Wundt quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-wundt/)

## More Absence quotes

> [Distance sometimes endears friendship, and absence sweeteneth it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-howell/distance-sometimes-endears-friendship-and-absence-sweeteneth-it/)

[James Howell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-howell/)

> [The work, the work, the work. This is what the business is all about. This is the fun, the glory, the pleasure. It's the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-dusenberry/the-work-the-work-the-work-this-is-what-the-business-is-all-about/)

[Phil Dusenberry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-dusenberry/)

> [Total depravity means the entire absence of holiness, not the highest intensity of sin. A totally depraved man is not as bad as he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-greenough-thayer-shedd/total-depravity-means-the-entire-absence-of-holiness-not-the-highest/)

[William Greenough Thayer Shedd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-greenough-thayer-shedd/)

> [Local and state governments have outrun the federal government. The EPA has served notice that it will enact a rule requiring CO2 reductions by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-gore/local-and-state-governments-have-outrun-the-federal-government-the/)

[Al Gore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-gore/)

> [There, in the center of that silence was not eternity but the death of time and a loneliness so profound the word itself had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/there-in-the-center-of-that-silence-was-not-eternity-but-the-death-of/)

[Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/)

> [Of all the bewildering things about a new country, the absence of human landmarks is one of the most depressing and disheartening.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/of-all-the-bewildering-things-about-a-new-country-the-absence-of/)

[Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/)

> [Young men have strong passions and tend to gratify them indiscriminately. Of the bodily desires, it is the sexual by which they are most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/young-men-have-strong-passions-and-tend-to-gratify-them/)

[Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/)

> [It is suggested that in domestic violence at least the presence or absence of a firearm, or of any other type of weapon, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-greenwood/it-is-suggested-that-in-domestic-violence-at-least-the-presence-or/)

[Colin Greenwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-greenwood/)

> [The absence of God in most spheres of life is perceived to be normal, and even Christians feel it as normal - which is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-piper/the-absence-of-god-in-most-spheres-of-life-is-perceived-to-be-normal/)

[John Piper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-piper/)

> [Every person needs to take one day away. A day in which one consciously separates the past from the future. Jobs, family, employers, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/every-person-needs-to-take-one-day-away-a-day-in-which-one/)

[Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/)

> [“I was thinking how most people don't make you feel much of anything at all. Don't make you feel like time spent with them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-lotter/i-was-thinking-how-most-people-don-t-make-you-feel-much-of-anything/)

[Jane Lotter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-lotter/)

> [Cooperation isn't the absence of conflict but a means of managing conflict.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-tannen/cooperation-isn-t-the-absence-of-conflict-but-a-means-of-managing/)

[Deborah Tannen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deborah-tannen/)

> [Many are observing Ferguson and witnessing the anger, demonstrations, looting and vandalism and calling for quiet. But quiet isn't enough. The absence of noise…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-jackson/many-are-observing-ferguson-and-witnessing-the-anger-demonstrations/)

[Jesse Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-jackson/)

> [Will capitalist economies operate at full employment in the absence of routine intervention? Certainly not. Are deviations from full employment a social problem? Obviously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-yellen/will-capitalist-economies-operate-at-full-employment-in-the-absence/)

[Janet Yellen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-yellen/)

> [We must begin by acknowledging that there is a complete absence of two things in Indian Society. One of these is equality. On the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-r-ambedkar/we-must-begin-by-acknowledging-that-there-is-a-complete-absence-of/)

[B. R. Ambedkar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-r-ambedkar/)

[Browse all 2,057 Absence quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absence/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Contractile movements arise, sometimes at the instigation of external stimuli but sometimes also in the absence of any apparent external influence.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Wilhelm Wundt"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-wundt/contractile-movements-arise-sometimes-at-the-instigation-of-external/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Absence"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-wundt/contractile-movements-arise-sometimes-at-the-instigation-of-external/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb5/wilhelm-wundt-16890_absence_contractile-movements-arise-sometimes-at_1607312.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb5/wilhelm-wundt-16890_absence_contractile-movements-arise-sometimes-at_1607312.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb5/wilhelm-wundt-16890_absence_contractile-movements-arise-sometimes-at_1607312.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Contractile movements arise, sometimes at the instigation of external stimuli but sometimes also in the…” — Wilhelm Wundt",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Wilhelm Wundt",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-wundt/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Contractile movements arise, sometimes at the...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-wundt/contractile-movements-arise-sometimes-at-the-instigation-of-external/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-wundt/contractile-movements-arise-sometimes-at-the-instigation-of-external/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
