The purpose of this book is to create a neurophysiology-based framework for assessing and improving mental health. It introduces measurable and neurobiologically-informed concepts and language to help professionals and organizations decrease stigma related to mental health and increase awareness of a new paradigm. This new, emerging paradigm moves away from previous language related to mental and psychological health, and moves towards language that focuses on promoting systems resilience and neurological adaptability through measurable neurophysiological mechanisms. It explores human communication patterns through the lens of neurophysiology, systems thinking, the Neurovisceral Integration Model, and attachment frameworks. This book will give people who are in helping professions - coaches, therapists, teachers, first responders - and leaders of all sorts - a new map and vocabulary for understanding mental health in terms of nervous system mechanisms for detecting and creating safety.
FEATURES:
Provides examples of brain maps (quantitative EEGs) related to issues with Signal Flow
Features illustrations of biomechanical principles of nervous system mechanisms for signal transmission and detection
A map for using neurophysiology-based language to describe current concepts in psychology, therapy, and mental health.
Author(s): S. Faye Molicki
Publisher: Mercury Learning and Information
Year: 2024
Language: English
Pages: xiv; 245
City: Boston
Tags: Neuroscience; Neurophysiology; Biomechanics; Bioengineering; Psychology
Cover
Half Title
Title
Copyright
Contents
Preface
Acknowledgments
CHAPTER 1: SYSTEMS, FEEDBACK, AND EXPERIENCE-DEPENDENCE: A LOOK AT COMPLEXITY AND HUMAN BRAIN DEVELOPMENT
Systems Thinking
Experience Dependence
Attachment Experiences and Brain Development
Off-Loading and Outsourcing
Serve and Return Feedback
Feedback as a Tool for Regulating Nervous Systems
Contingent Responsivity
Locomotion Changes the Communication Patterns of the Caregiver-Child Relationship
Social Referencing
Summary
References
CHAPTER 2: SIGNAL DISTORTION: UNCONSCIOUS FILTERS THAT BIAS COMMUNICATION AND PERCEPTION
Regulatory Flexibility
Context Sensitivity
Context Insensitivity
Repertoire
Feedback
Internal Feedback
Social Feedback
Feedback Responsiveness
Challenges to Regulatory Flexibility
Implicit and Procedural Memory
The Orbital Prefrontal Cortex and Procedural Memory
Anticipation and Preparation
Feedback, Stress Regulation, and Autonomic Responses
Inescapability
Repetitive Exposure
Predictive Biases
Limited Data Means Less Accurate Algorithms
Chapter Summary
References
CHAPTER 3: COMMUNICATION AS A FORM OF FEEDBACK RESPONSIVENESS, BIOBEHAVIORAL ATTUNEMENT, AND ATTACHMENT
Attachment Theory Is in Fact “Regulation Theory”
So What Is Attachment Theory?
Secure and Insecure Attachment
Effective Communication Is an Ongoing Process of Feedback Responsiveness
Biobehavioral Synchrony: An Emphasis on Bottom-Up, Clearly Observable Patterns
Affiliative Hormones and Brain Activation
Autonomic Reactivity and Vagal Tone
Oxytocin and Gender
Lack of Biobehavioral Synchrony
High-Risk Parenting
Other Factors That Can Influence Biobehavioral Patterns
Chapter Summary
References
CHAPTER 4: COMMUNICATION AS A BEHAVIORAL TRANSMITTER AND ENERGY OPTIMIZER
Communication for Survival
Communication is a Warning Signal to Attempt to Prevent the Physical Proximity of a Threat or Predator
Communication is an Airborne Signal to Request Help or Support in the Case of Illness, Distress, or Injury
Communication to Organize Behavior Against a Threat
Communication for Energy Optimization
Human Optimization Through Sociality
Communication as a Sociobehavioral Transmitter
Modern Attachment Theory
Dynamic-Maturational Model of Attachment and Adaptation
Danger, Adaptation, and Maladaptation: An Information Processing Model of Attachment
SHORTCUTS
Protective Strategies: Overview of DMM Categories
Chapter Summary
References
CHAPTER 5: THE MECHANICS OF COMMUNICATION SIGNALS
Direct Contact Communication Versus Telereception
Voluntary Versus Involuntary Systems
Eyes, Voice, and Face
The Role of Eyes in Communication
Pupil Dilation
Eye Gaze
The Role of Facial Expressions in Communication
The Component Process Model of Emotion (CPM)
Embodied Cognition and Emotion Expression
The Effects of Trauma on Emotional Facial Expression
Summary
References
CHAPTER 6: COMMUNICATION AND THE VOICE-HEART CONNECTION
Voice and Communication
The Voice-Face-Heart Connection
Human Voice Mechanisms and Features
The Physiological Basis of Vocalizing
Source-Filter Theory
Speech Production
Voice Features and Affective State
Voice Features and Mental Health
How Stress Affects Voice
Depression and Voice
Suicidality and Voice
Post-traumatic Stress and Voice
Anger and Voice
Sleep Deprivation and Voice
Information Contained in the Voice
The Brunswikian Functional Lens Model
Perceiving Voice
Sound Frequencies and Nervous System Responses
Physiology of the Middle Ear
Perception of Voices and Mental Health
Vocal Expressions of Positive Emotions
Summary
References
CHAPTER 7: SOCIAL COMMUNICATION: HOW NONVERBAL AND VERBAL ELEMENTS CONVERGE AND ENHANCE OUR COMMUNICATION ABILITIES
Social Communication
Social Communication and Executive Functioning
Social Communication and Social Synchrony
Social Communication and Joint Attention
Social Communication and Theory of Mind
Nonverbal and Verbal Components of Social Communication
Language as a Bridge
Using Words to Describe Emotion: Emotional Granularity
Alexithymia and Challenges in Describing Emotions
Cognitive, Emotional, and Linguistic Aspects of Alexithymia
Prioritization of Emotional Cues in Verbal and Nonverbal Communication
Lateralization
Faster Processing of Nonverbal Emotional Vocalizations
Perception of Emotional Written Words
Perception of Emotional Spoken Words
Summary
References
CHAPTER 8: THE ROLE OF MATURITY, EXECUTIVE FUNCTIONING, AND SOCIAL UNDERSTANDING IN COMMUNICATION
The Complexity of Social Understanding
Social Understanding and Language
Language as a Cognitive Niche and Psychological Tool
Private and Inner Speech
Cognitive Flexibility and Communication
Cognitive Processes and Distortions
Relational Frame Theory
Relational Frame Theory and the Lang Fear Network
Cognitive Therapies
Generic Versus Nongeneric Language
Self-Disclosure and Attributions
Summary
References
CHAPTER 9: SYSTEMS RESILIENCE
Resilience and Survivability
What Makes a System Resilient?
Passive and Active Resilience
Protection
Rupture, Repair, and Flexible Responsiveness
Assets
Quality Attributes of Resilience
Guiding Principles for Resilient Systems
Chapter Summary
Book Summary
References
INDEX
