How does it work?

[Kirkland]

Okay I'm guessing most people don't have an answer to this other than 'I don't know' but I'm curious about peoples opinion. My question is How are souls assigned bodies? Many people say we pick who we are but that seems a bit illogical. Firstly many people suffer greatly during their existence in this world, how many people would pick to live for instance in a life where they get abused by their parents for instance. Secondly if I am not mistaken every body should have a soul so how about if no one wants that 'life' which is being offered does that mean that person is created without a consciousness?

Just something I've always wondered. 

[Volgerle]

Many people say we pick who we are but that seems a bit illogical. Firstly many people suffer greatly during their existence in this world, how many people would pick to live for instance in a life where they get abused by their parents for instance.

Why illogical? It's the most logical thing to me. Go in, live, go out again, analyze, plan, go in again. As regards negative experiences, yeah, that is sometimes hard to understand and swallow. It is said by many (e.g. hypnotically regressed people) that the Higher Self has a 'different overview' (to quote Monroe) about these things. It is also interested in negative experiences and problematic constellations as it would otherwise not be a challenge and learning experience.

Secondly if I am not mistaken every body should have a soul so how about if no one wants that 'life' which is being offered does that mean that person is created without a consciousness?

If there weren't a body to be occupied 'in time' then I assume it would be a deadbirth. I don't believe in zombies.  
'Soulless' persons, if they exist, down here might be holographic projections. It's all just manipulation of energy. Probably, our 'bodies' here are all holographic anyway, as might be all you perceive here with your consciousness. So the difference is probably not as heavy as one should think it to be. Just speculating, of course.
However, I think there is always a waiting line and no body not to be occupied. Souls actually queue to be incarnated. At least that is what all of the hypnotically regressed people or some APers, such as R. Monroe, tell us. Here's one of his talks and what he said about these 'waiting queues'.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pCFWoBS1sKk#t=4m30s

It also shows another reason why souls might 'accept' rather negative lifes with lots of hardships. It's for the simple reason that the 'good lives' with abundance, freedom and joy might be more scarce than we think. Plus, some younger souls or 'first timers' might be naive and not have a concept of what suffering is.

[desert-rat]

I see it as karma , beliefs , and repressed stuff you need to work through . You will chose a life that will let you do what you need/want to do . I am told that people that have sever needs kids need to learn unconditional love , the kids may need to learn something also .  To quote D. Sutphen , and maby others "knowledge erases karma "     desert rat  

[Stookie_]

Another way to look at it:

A being getting ready to incarnate is looking for a certain outcome from physical existence, and from that perspective looks at it as a conglomeration of energies. They naturally gravitate towards a physical experience that's going to be closest to that conglomeration... basically, they will move down the path of least resistance. This can lead to what we would view from here as being negative, but those energies may translate into something else after physical existence that's hard for us to understand while here.

[Thread Killer]

Stookie is on to something. Perspective. Yours, currently, has walls and borders, limits. Think of how big...or small your world was when you you were five. Yet fifteen to twenty years later, surely, your world, your perspective has become far wider that that of the five year old you. Maybe the non physical entity from its' perspective, knowing what it knows at that level, sees value in those experiences that you, from your perspective, sees as negative.

[Rudolph]

They naturally gravitate towards a physical experience that's going to be closest to that conglomeration... basically, they will move down the path of least resistance.

This is about as well said as words can put it, imho.

A good way to read more about it;
Journey of Souls: Case Studies of Life Between Lives by Michael Newton

[Volgerle]

This is about as well said as words can put it, imho.

A good way to read more about it;
Journey of Souls: Case Studies of Life Between Lives by Michael Newton

Yeah, still one of my favs! 

[mon9999]

I think evrybody's theory here somehow has a point, at least it resonates with me..