Cognitive Psychology

In You Are the Universe, the contemplative endocrinologist Deepak Chopra and the MIT physicist Menas Kafatos offer a groundbreaking, lucid work on consciousness that is refreshingly accessible without relying upon mathematical language or overspecialized jargon. In summary, their book is a serious attempt to address the fundamental contemporary question, “Is the universe made of matter that learned to think, or is the universe made of mind that created matter?” (Chopra & Kafatos, 2017, p. 154). By the end of the book Chopra and Kafatos have gone so far as to argue that not only is the universe created and sustained by an underlying mind but that we are the universe, we are that mind. In a real sense, they declare, we as an organic species have co-created this universe.

This book condenses and evaluates hundreds of current journal articles in psychology, neuroscience and cognitive science and makes their principles and results available to art historians, cultural theorists and philsophers in ways that are important for the humanities, and in ways that challenge the sciences to do better when they study art. While recent studies in neuroscience and psychology have shed light on our sensory and perceptual responses to art, they have yet to explain our responses to contemporary art which downplays perceptual responses and instead encourages conceptual thought. The Psychology of Contemporary Art brings together the most important developments in recent scientific research on visual perception and cognition and applies the results of empirical experiments to analyses of contemporary artworks not normally addressed by psychological studies. The author explains, in simple terms, how neuroaesthetics, embodiment, metaphor, conceptual blending, situated cognition and extended mind offer fresh perspectives on specific contemporary artworks - including those of Marina Abramović, Francis Alÿs, Tracey Emin, Felix Gonzales-Torres, Marcus Harvey, Mona Hatoum, Thomas Hirschhorn, Gabriel Orozco, Marc Quinn and Cindy Sherman. This book will appeal to psychologists, cognitive scientists, artists and art historians, as well as those interested in a deeper understanding of contemporary art

Fundamental differences in philosophical outlook divide the more conservative and radical branches of the E-family. Yet the emergence of E-approaches to cognition, wherever they sit on the conservative-radical spectrum, represents an undeniably important development for understanding cognition. Educational research and practice should take serious stock of these approaches for the simple reason that questions of how to educate cannot be kept apart from questions about how we think and learn. This chapter reviews empirical findings in the E-cognition domain that lend credence to Shapiro and Stolz’s (2019) claim that, “the emerging research agenda of embodied cognition has much to offer educational practitioners, researchers, and/or policy-makers” (p. 34).
This chapter brackets question about the philosophical barriers that may, for some, block the acceptance of E-approaches and how to deal with them. It focuses instead on possible practical outcomes of such acceptance. Taking an imaginative leap, it asks: Assuming one adopted either a more conservative or more radical E-framework, how would that choice matter to one’s thinking about educational research and practice?

Understanding Consciousness, second edition provides a unique survey and evaluation of consciousness studies, along with an original analysis of consciousness that combines scientific findings, philosophy and common sense.

Building on the widely praised first edition of the book, this new edition adds fresh research, and deepens the original analysis in a way that reflects some of the fundamental changes in the understanding of consciousness that have taken place over the last ten years.

The book is divided into three parts; Part I surveys current theories of consciousness, evaluating their strengths and weaknesses. Part II reconstructs an understanding of consciousness from first principles, starting with its phenomenology, and leading to a closer examination of how conscious experience relates to the world described by physics and information processing in the brain. Finally, Part III deals with fundamental issues such as what consciousness is and does, and how it fits into the evolving universe. As the structure of the book moves from a basic overview of the field to a successively deeper analysis, it can be used both for those new to the subject and for more established researchers.

Understanding Consciousness tells a story with a beginning, middle and end in a way that integrates the philosophy of consciousness with the science. Overall, the book provides a unique perspective on how to address the problems of consciousness and as such will be of great interest to psychologists, philosophers, neuroscientists and other professionals concerned with mind/body relationships, and all who are interested in this subject.

This short paper,  shows how executive coaching draws on psychotherapy, and offers insights into using psychodynamic and systems theory in coaching practice. 
To cite this paper:  Western, S. (2006) Look Who’s Talking, Coaching at Work. London: People Management, Vol. 1:2 pp. 31-34.

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is a very debilitating and painstaking problem that plagues our nation’s Veteran population. Currently anywhere from 11-30% of Veterans who served in the three most recent U.S. wars experienced or currently suffers from PTSD (U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, 2015). The effects of PTSD on the Veteran population are discussed, as well as the various treatment modalities available.  Further research is dedicated to understanding more about which treatment modalities have been shown to be the most effective, including both Empirically Supported Treatments and Complimentary and Alternative Treatment approaches.

This essay was published in The Bible and Early Trinitarian Theology, edited by Christopher A. Beeley and Mark E. Weedman, for the CUAP Studies in Early Christianity (Washington DC: Catholic University of America Press, 2018); this is the uncorrected proofs. Exploring the humanity and divinity of Jesus, the Son's relation to the Father, and the agency of the Holy Spirit, it is one of five essays suggesting Johannine contributions to trinitarian discussions in the early church.

In order to better cope with the pressures and stresses of the current day, modern psychology is anxiously seeking to find new therapies to address the increasing disorders within the human psyche. In the process new fields of research, such as humanistic and transpersonal psychology, curiously appear to borrow more and more from the wisdom of the ages. This volume, containing eighteen articles by noteworthy expositors of the perennial philosophy such as Huston Smith, Seyyed Hossein Nasr, and Frithjof Schuon, presents the spiritual psychology of the wisdom traditions as a much-needed antidote to the current impasse in modern psychology.

Some Endorsements for Psychology and the Perennial Philosophy:

“[Psychology and the Perennial Philosophy] is more than an anthology. It is a wisely crafted collection of classic and contemporary scholarship noting that what many are seeking is what has always been, a perennial philosophy, that remains foundational. As one of the authors, Tage Lindbom, properly notes, ‘Secularization is a fish in troubled waters.’ This book claims the waters and is essential reading for all those who may have forgotten or are simply ignorant of the rich foundation provided by the perennial philosophy.”
—Ralph W. Hood, Professor of Psychology at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, past president of the Psychology of Religion division of the American Psychological Association, co-founder of The International Journal for the Psychology of Religion and co-author of The Psychology of Religion

“A necessary and bracing critique of the assumptions and limitations of contemporary Western psychology, this generous volume is also a passionate call and learned guide towards a truer perspective that embraces man's spiritual nature.”
—Gabor Maté, M.D., and author of In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters with Addiction

“Knowing the nature of the mind is perhaps the most difficult undertaking, especially in today’s world. To comprehend the nature of mind one needs to turn to the domain of religion and spirituality. Yet the truth of the mind and its complexity cannot explicitly be defined in words. Inner or transcendent wisdom sees the mind’s own nature without the duality of the seer. Suchness (tathatā) of mind is only experiential and not expressible. The words used to describe thought are themselves a product of thought, which is conditioned and limited. Thus, differences and contradictions are unavoidable. Therefore, a comparative study of different viewpoints and commentaries is immensely important to awaken the inner intelligence to see the mind as it is. Psychology and the Perennial Philosophy: Studies in Comparative Religion edited by Samuel Bendeck Sotillos is an outstanding effort in this direction.”
—Samdhong Rinpoche, former Prime Minister (Kalon Tripa) of the Tibetan Government-in-exile, author of Uncompromising Truth for a Compromised World: Tibetan Buddhism and Today’s World

“The rise of psychology has impacted the study and practice of spirituality, the experiences and attitudes relevant to ultimate human values that transcend ordinary behavior. Each chapter of this remarkable book demonstrates this interaction in a unique and provocative way. But rather than using psychology to reduce and ‘psychologize’ spiritual topics, its authors demonstrate how directives from the spiritual traditions can enhance and even illuminate the enduring importance of psychology in the 21st century.”
—Stanley Krippner, Saybrook University, co-author of Spiritual Dimensions of Healing

“The work at hand is a thinking and debating man’s delight. If you have any interest at all in attempting to include an educated and enlightened view of man’s higher functions in your purview of the world, you will learn from and enjoy this collection of essays. If you already have some knowledge in this area, brace yourself: you may see some of your favorites sharply criticized. A thought-provoking work.”
—Bruce W. Scotton, University of California, San Francisco, co-editor of Textbook of Transpersonal Psychiatry and Psychology

“This book, superbly edited by Samuel Bendeck Sotillos, is a masterful critique of the field of psychology and its loss of the sacred ground in which it once was rooted. It offers depth psychologists an opportunity to contemplate timeless truths echoed through the centuries by perennial philosophers who have always claimed psyche is subordinate to Spirit. Although ignored in depth psychology’s early years due to prejudice and lack of understanding, this is a message today’s psychotherapists must take seriously. Human beings need a deeper and wider transpersonal vision of who and what we are, which the saints and sages of the world’s spiritual traditions have always pointed to. In psychotherapy with a therapist committed to such a vision, patients penetrate into their unconscious depths and not infrequently awaken to the Ground of all Being. Their suffering itself occurred because they had turned away from Spirit. Above all, this volume passionately calls upon depth psychology to remember its origin in the perennial wisdom at the core of the great religions. There is something of a polemic in these pages. It deserves to be considered by depth psychologists of all persuasions.”
—Bryan Wittine, Transpersonal psychologist and Jungian psychoanalyst

“This anthology from Samuel Bendeck Sotillos is a must reference for anyone who is interested in psychology and its relationship to spirituality, and in developing an inclusive dialogue between disciplines that favor an integral outlook on the person and his or her potential. Selections in this anthology will inspire us to reexamine the metaphysical underpinnings of psychology, and remind us how important it is to rise above science’s attempt to reduce the human being to an epistemic object.”
—Sangeetha Menon, National Institute of Advanced Studies (Bangalore, India), Board Member of the International Transpersonal Association (ITA), author of The Beyond Experience: Consciousness in Bhagavad Gita

“This anthology has some of the most discerning essays and reviews on spirituality and psychology, which provide much-needed care and caution to all those engaged in bringing them together or who wish to do so in future. Therefore, it is a must-read for all those who teach, research, consult, or study in such frontier areas as transpersonal psychology, states of consciousness, mind-body relation, holistic health, Indian psychology, and so on. It will be an invaluable textbook for courses in these and other related areas. I congratulate the editor of the book.”
—Kiran Kumar K. Salagame, University of Mysore (India), Board Member of the International Transpersonal Association (ITA), author of The Psychology of Meditation: A Contextual Approach

“One of the finest collections of essays on the Perennial Philosophy—a must-read for all psychologists who are engaged with spirituality and transpersonal psychology. The essays which critique modern psychology (including transpersonal psychology, and the framework of Carl Jung), in the light of the Perennial Philosophy are a revelation and make compelling reading. The book serves as a corrective to the excesses of modern psychology, and to this end Sotillos has done a commendable job. I for one will include the book in some of the graduate courses that I teach.”
—Suneet Varma, University of Delhi, co-editor of Foundations of Indian Psychology

“To its credit modern science by-and-large is becoming more cognizant of the essential connection between spirituality and psychological health and well-being and most of all its positive implications within the field of psychology. While there is ample data to document this in a plethora of academic journals and books, this new book Psychology and the Perennial Philosophy adds a novel contribution to the dialogue between psychology and spirituality, which captures many nuances that for the most part go unnoticed within these discussions, and last but not least, it provides a keen eye of discernment to understand this intricate relationship on a deeper level that is crucially needed. This work will be a valuable asset to students and long term mental health practitioners and professors alike who seek to better understand the relationship between psychology and spirituality.”
—Harold G. Koenig, Duke University, Director of the Center for Spirituality, Theology and Health, co-author of The Handbook of Religion and Health

Wykresy, schematy i diagramy nie są wyłącznie ilustracjami. Jak dowodzi Model i metafora, można je dziś uznać za niezbędne narzędzia ułatwiające tworzenie współczesnej humanistyki. Wykorzystując jednocześnie teksty i obrazy, książka w zwięzły sposób przedstawia szereg zagadnień istotnych dla każdego historyka, socjologa czy badacza literatury. Na Model i metaforę składają się teoretyczne podstawy myślenia obrazem, zarys historycznych relacji słowa i obrazu w humanistyce, a także praktyczne wskazówki dla tych, którzy chcieliby korzystać z obrazów w trakcie planowania i pisania tekstów. Inni czytelnicy mogą traktować tę książkę jak przewodnik, ułatwiający poruszanie się w epoce obrazów.
Jak przystało na książkę o komunikacji wizualnej, Model i metafora jest połączeniem obrazu i tekstu na równych prawach – zawiera ponad 150 rysunków wyjaśniających kwestie, które byłyby trudne do omówienia przy pomocy tekstu.

A growing number of publications have been exploring the possible effects of mindfulness-based interventions on teachers' well-being and their professional lives. Notwithstanding promising results in this domain, this paper identifies some difficulties involved in introducing teachers to mindfulness and proposes that there may be a need to develop alternative routes by which to expose more teachers to experiences of mindfulness. We report on a mixed methods study of a 5-week teacher learning program implemented in an Israeli middle school with 30 teachers, 28 of which were females, with an age range of 29-55. The program was designed to invite teachers into initial experiences with mindfulness without formally engaging in mindfulness practice but rather based on studying education-relevant brain theory through a contemplative pedagogical approach. Outcomes were analyzed quantitatively by comparing collaborative concept maps created by the participants before and after undergoing in the program, and qualitatively by analyzing themes extracted from the participants’ discourse. Findings show that the program: (a) mobilized teachers from fixed to growth mindsets in regards to their role as educators as reflected in a significant increase in teachers’ beliefs that basic brain abilities are malleable (as extracted from the concept maps, p=0.004), (b) offered them initial experiences of mindfulness, and (c) possibly opened them to consider more direct approaches to mindfulness practice that are offered in mindfulness-based interventions.

Virtual reality (VR) head-mounted displays (HMD) appear to be effective research tools,
which may address the problem of ecological validity in neuropsychological testing.
However, their widespread implementation is hindered by VR induced symptoms
and effects (VRISE) and the lack of skills in VR software development. This study
offers guidelines for the development of VR software in cognitive neuroscience and
neuropsychology, by describing and discussing the stages of the development of Virtual
Reality Everyday Assessment Lab (VR-EAL), the first neuropsychological battery in
immersive VR. Techniques for evaluating cognitive functions within a realistic storyline
are discussed. The utility of various assets in Unity, software development kits, and other
software are described so that cognitive scientists can overcome challenges pertinent
to VRISE and the quality of the VR software. In addition, this pilot study attempts to
evaluate VR-EAL in accordance with the necessary criteria for VR software for research
purposes. The VR neuroscience questionnaire (VRNQ; Kourtesis et al., 2019b) was
implemented to appraise the quality of the three versions of VR-EAL in terms of user
experience, game mechanics, in-game assistance, and VRISE. Twenty-five participants
aged between 20 and 45 years with 12–16 years of full-time education evaluated various
versions of VR-EAL. The final version of VR-EAL achieved high scores in every sub-score
of the VRNQ and exceeded its parsimonious cut-offs. It also appeared to have better
in-game assistance and game mechanics, while its improved graphics substantially increased the quality of the user experience and almost eradicated VRISE. The results
substantially support the feasibility of the development of effective VR research and
clinical software without the presence of VRISE during a 60-min VR session.

A tout instant, quoi que nous fassions, nous sommes environnés par des corps qui réduisent l’espace et opposent de la résistance. Que sont ces corps qui saturent notre quotidien et avec lesquels il nous faut constamment négocier l’espace ? Plus radicalement, pourquoi y a-t-il des corps ? Je soutiens dans cet ouvrage que la psychologie et la physique ne disposent plus des moyens de répondre à cette question. La désubstantialisation du réel amorcée par la révolution quantique sape les fondements de l’explication objectiviste de la perception privilégiée par la première, et elle évide de sa portée ontologique le discours de la seconde.
Expliquer pourquoi la réalité se présente sous la forme d’un agencement de corps exige en premier lieu de comprendre le rôle que remplit l’anticipation du possible dans la perception. Dans le toucher comme dans la vision, poser l’existence d’un corps implique d’anticiper les contraintes que ce corps exerce sur notre champ de possibilités pratiques, accréditer de manière présomptive la disponibilité ou l’indisponibilité de certaines possibilités d’action. C’est donc uniquement parce que notre subjectivité donne sens à ce qui est en le référant à ce qui peut être que la réalité macroscopique à laquelle nous introduit la perception consiste en un monde solide.
Pour développer cette idée, l’ouvrage dresse une critique de la conception actualiste du phénomène de corps, qui subordonne celui-ci à l’expérience en acte d’une résistance, et il déconstruit l’approche physicaliste et objectiviste, qui prétend dériver les propriétés des corps que nous percevons des propriétés de structures physiques qui leur seraient antécédentes ontologiquement. Si la sémantique des corps présuppose l’épaisseur du temps humain et une perspective foncièrement pragmatique sur l’environnement, il n’est plus question d’assimiler sans autre forme de procès le corps à une « structure physique », quelle qu’en soit la teneur. Les corps sont un produit de l’activité constructrice de notre subjectivité, et seule une incursion profonde dans les mécanismes et principes qui régissent cette activité pourra permettre d’accéder à leur vérité.

As hundreds of so-called "psychotherapies" have been foisted onto the public, all claiming to treat "mental illness," newer understandings of how the human brain actually works and the processes which drive the formations of mentation that we refer to as "the mind," demand a reassessment of what exactly we are referring to by the term "mental illness" and what kinds of intervention would be feasible in both the prevention of and recovery from cognitive and behavioral disorder. A fundamental process in the formation of an individual's mentation is the associations of experience. These associations not only account for constructive behavior, but can also lead to deleterious or negative behavior, suggesting that some associations are negative and therefore the negative behavior can be remolded through contrasting positive associations; however, to understand what this really means and how it works, we must start at the beginning and define what exactly is this negative behavior that we refer to by the term "mental illness." One of the most important axioms of life so simply but profoundly phrased by Oscar Wilde, is that "the truth is rarely pure and NEVER simple" (emphasis mine). Nothing can ever be explained by simple sound bites – oversimplification is just another word for misrepresentation – so to understand, we must truly engage the subject, and to engage the subject, we must first and foremost clearly define what it is that we are seeking to understand. In this case, it demands that we understand what exactly is mental illness.

Friday, R., & Luke, D. (2017, September). Now see hear! Detecting being watched or listened to via extrasensory means. Paper presented to the 41st Society for Psychical Research International Annual Conference, East Horsley, 1st-3rd September.

Many people have turned to see someone behind them due to a ‘sense’ they were being watched. Others have 'inexplicably’ become aware of a conversation involving them, despite it being inaudible. There are many theoretical explanations for these events, one of which is that
extrasensory awareness is evolutionarily advantageous, and therefore may have developed during an era in which danger was ever-present with survival depending on such capabilities.

Evidence supporting the existence of extrasensory surveillance detection would have implications beyond purely scientific interest, yet the phenomena remains under-researched and may benefit from a fresh approach. New research being conducted at the University of
Greenwich is examining not only the possible existence of ‘psychic’ detection – but also which measures best predict this ability should it exist.

The ability to detect attention has previously been restricted to the psychic staring effect, also known as scopaesthesia - a phenomenon in which people respond via non-conventional means to being the subject of another persons’ gaze (Sheldrake 2003). However, a new investigation has been furthering the research by  incorporating the sense of being heard as well as seen, which we call acoustasthesia. The existence of these abilities was gauged in an initial experiment by the accuracy of participant’s self-reports of being watched or listened to, physiological reactions determined by electrodermal activity (EDA) which measures the
electrical conductance of the participant’s skin to indicate arousal, and differences in their behaviour under varying conditions a) not under any surveillance (control group), b) whilst being watched, c) whilst being listened to, and d) whilst being watched and listened to).

Results of the self-reporting aspect of the experiment suggested that whilst the data appeared to initially show participants were able to detect being watched and listened to, when reporting bias was accounted for the results were not significantly different from control conditions. Similarly, the participants’ EDA during the physiological reaction section of the experiment produced results that were not significant, however there were very interesting and highly significant differences between conditions when analysing changes in behaviour. These
differences were measured by participants’ increase or decreases in response time when undertaking a cognitive task.

To test whether this outcome could be replicated, the experiment was repeated. This time however improvements and amendments were made to the methodology as the first experiment hinted at aspects which may have accounted for both significant and not significant results.

Statistical power was improved by running more self-report trials to counteract the apparent reporting bias, and the EDA test was run in combination with the cognitive task that had previously yielded positive results to investigate the experimenters’ developing theory that the ability to psychically detect being watched or listened to may be determined by the necessity to access such phenomena.

Israel's strategic environment has witnessed dramatic changes in the array of threats. The nuclear agreement between the world powers and Iran took the immediate Iranian nuclear threat off the table and postponed it for several treaties were signed with Egypt (1979) and Jordan (1994), and following has since been reduced further now that the Syrian army no longer poses a risk, due to its involvement in the civil war and the tremendous losses it has sustained there. The sub-conventional threat, especially from Hezbollah, has because of the resources that Iran has invested to beef up the organization. Nonetheless, Hezbollah's involvement in the Syrian civil war should at least delay its decision to embark on another major operation against Israel. The current security threats to Israel are rooted in three sources: 1 a) states, al-Qaeda organizations, and organizations with expansionist visions, such many other states. In addition, efforts persist in establishing terrorist cells typical of the terrorism Israel has tackled since October 2015. In other

Mark Haddon’s Polar Bears (2010) and Nick Payne’s Constellations (2012) are two recent plays of the British stage exploring the minds of women suffering from a psychological or neurological disorder: in Haddon’s play, Kay, an artist, is bipolar; in Payne’s play, Marianne, a scientist, has a brain tumour. Both pieces question the protagonists’ freedom of self-determination and highlight our sense of reality as a construct, using poetic structures which break with the traditional dramatic linearity of the conventional play. Indeed, instead of providing a chronological succession of scenes, they allow the drama to emerge from a random alternation of parallel scenarios to be read as probabilities. The contradictory, disordered fragments that make up the plays thus invite the reader-spectator, in a suggestive way, to imagine the dramatic possibilities of a story which is never set or decided, instead of merely registering a given narrative. As a result, in providing structural metaphors for the female characters’ pathological states, these plays not only reflect on the tentative process of their own writing, they also encourage us to question our perception of reality as a unique object – a view contradicted by the paradigm shift of quantum physics. While Marianne explains the scientific theory that "In the quantum universe, every choice, every decision you’ve ever and never made exists in an unimaginable vast ensemble of parallel universes", Kay seems to experience Everett’s many-worlds interpretation from a first-person perspective, exclaiming, "We think there’s only one world. […] But there are so many worlds, aren’t there, one laid over the other. […] It’s so beautiful it makes me want to cry." This study aims to look at how these two plays, as instances of a “Theatre of Possibilities”, to use Jean-Pierre Sarrazac’s expression, explore mind and brain disorders to open a dramatic space which allows for a subversive form of realism to develop, based on the quantum principle of uncertainty. They resort to tropes – quantum principles and phenomena used as thematic and structural metaphors – as a means to portray our cognitive processes and, more specifically, to conjure up the hidden reality of pathological subjective experience, paralleled by the most mind-blowing theories of modern science. I argue that in Payne’s and Haddon’s plays, the dramatic space becomes a place where quantum descriptions of reality and psychopathological distortions of reality tend to converge to form a consistent landscape/mindscape, making room for theatrical realism to be reinvented from the very matter of what should intuitively appear as the most delusional imaginings.

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Polar Bears de Mark Haddon (2010) et Constellations de Nick Payne (2012) sont deux pièces britanniques récentes qui explorent la psyché de personnages féminins souffrant soit d’un trouble psychiatrique soit d’une maladie neurologique : dans la pièce de Haddon, Kay, une artiste, est bipolaire ; dans la pièce de Payne, Marianne, une scientifique, déclare une tumeur cérébrale. En faisant dialoguer santé mentale, fonctionnement cognitif et mécanique quantique, les deux pièces interrogent la liberté et la capacité des protagonistes à s’autodéterminer malgré la maladie et, à travers la mise à mal des fonctions cognitives, mettent en lumière notre perception de la réalité comme construction subjective en utilisant des structures poétiques qui rompent avec la linéarité traditionnelle du drame conventionnel. En effet, au lieu de proposer un enchaînement chronologique de scènes déterminantes dont le déroulé crée progressivement l’univers de la fiction sur le mode indicatif, Polar Bears et Constellations se tissent toutes deux autour d’une alternance aléatoire de scénarios parallèles qui s’appréhendent sur un mode conditionnel comme autant de probabilités décrochées de la flèche du temps. Les fragments contradictoires et désordonnés qui les constituent invitent ainsi le lecteur-spectateur, par touches suggestives et non successives, à imaginer les possibilités d’une histoire sans résolution, qui n’est jamais fixée ou déterminée, au lieu d’enregistrer simplement les avancées d’un récit donné. Cet article vise à montrer que les hésitations et oscillations qui s’élaborent autour des états pathologiques des personnages féminins (et dont elles sont le résultat et le symptôme) mettent non seulement en abyme le processus même d’écriture (dimension métadramatique), elles nous encouragent également à interroger notre rapport au réel (dimension philosophique) non pas tant comme objet unique et extérieur au sujet qui l’observe, mais comme onde de probabilités ou écosystème d’états superposés dans lequel l’observateur lui-même joue un rôle déterminant. Ce changement de paradigme introduit par la physique quantique rencontre ainsi l’instabilité ou l’indécidabilité psychologique. Tandis que, dans Constellations, Marianne explique la théorie scientifique selon laquelle « dans l’univers quantique, chaque choix que l’on fait, chaque décision que l’on prend existe dans un ensemble infiniment vaste d’univers parallèles », dans Polar Bears Kay semble faire l’expérience directe, à la première personne, de la théorie des mondes multiples d’Everett (many-worlds interpretation) lorsqu’elle s’exclame, en proie à une phase maniaque : « On croit qu’il n’existe qu’un seul monde. […] Mais il existe tellement de mondes (so many worlds), n’est-ce pas, empilés les uns sur les autres. […] C’est si beau que ça me donne envie de pleurer. » Ce travail s’intéresse à la manière dont ces deux pièces illustrent ce que l’on pourrait appeler, avec Jean-Pierre Sarrazac, un « Théâtre des Possibilités » et explorent les maladies de l’esprit et du cerveau pour ouvrir un espace dramatique dans lequel se développe une forme subversive de réalisme postdramatique fondé sur le principe quantique d’incertitude (Heisenberg). Les tropes qui s’y déploient – principes et phénomènes quantiques utilisés comme métaphores thématiques et structurelles – permettent de rendre compte de nos processus cognitifs et, plus précisément, de la réalité cachée de l’expérience intime de la maladie, tout en mettant ces expériences en relation avec les théories les plus révolutionnaires de la science moderne. Chez Payne comme chez Haddon, l’espace dramatique devient le lieu où les descriptions quantiques et les distorsions psychopathologiques de la réalité tendent à converger pour former un paysage étonnamment cohérent dans sa relativité et permettre au réalisme théâtral de se refonder à partir de cela-même qui s’apparente intuitivement aux délires d’une imagination malade et à des dysfonctionnements cognitifs, pour finalement poser la question essentielle de notre libre-arbitre.

This book argues that thinking is bounded by neither the brain nor the skin of an organism. Cognitive systems function through integration of neural and bodily functions with the functions of representational vehicles. The integrationist position offers a fresh contribution to the emerging embodied and embedded approach to the study of mind.

See more info and table of contents here:

http://catalinbrylla.com/cognitive-theory-and-documentary/

This edited collection explores the intersection between cognitive and documentary film studies in light of the latest discoveries in the affective and cognitive sciences. Given that most Western societies are mass-mediated cultures in which “reality” is understood through factual media, documentary film has significantly informed the consolidation of the audience’s emotional and cognitive understanding of the world. This understanding is informed by the interplay between two dimensions inherent in the reception of documentary film texts: Firstly, the extra-textual dimension, where truth assertions establish a strong indexical link between representations and their real-life counterparts, and secondly, the intra-textual dimension, where narrative and aesthetic strategies are employed to achieve emotional and cognitive engagement. This interplay has arguably resulted in documentaries exhibiting a far greater potential than fiction films to impact on our attitudes towards, and interaction with, the world, but also on the construction of our own social, cultural, and individual identities.

There has been little convergence between cognitive film theory and documentary film studies. Cognitive film scholars have largely focused on the analysis of fiction film, whilst documentary scholars have deemed cognitive models too limited in that they address only the hardwired attributes of audience reception, thus hypothesizing a universal body of spectators and dismissing individual, social, cultural and historical contexts of authorship and spectatorship. However, a new wave of cognitive film theory has moved from neo-formalist and purely cognitive concerns towards the study of emotional and embodied film engagement, taking into account practical, social, cultural and individual aspects; these in turn can explore fundamental questions within documentary film theory and practice. Thus, cognitive and emotional models have the potential to examine not only narrative-driven and expository documentaries, but also more contemporary and experimental formats, such as essay films, participatory documentaries, docu-dramas, and docu-musicals. In our opinion, this enables an alternative and more scientifically rigorous pursuit of issues central to documentary film studies in areas as varied as ethics, performance, character engagement, mediation and realism.

The book explores a cognitive framework for understanding documentary film texts, production practices, institutions and spectatorship. It seeks an empirically grounded understanding of the reception of documentary films, as well as their production and exhibition, establishing the practitioner or institution as a socio-cultural entity driven by similar emotional and cognitive mechanisms that inform the audience before, during and after the viewing process.

Suspendus aux lèvres d’un conteur, incapables d’interrompre la lecture d’un roman, captivés par un film haletant, nous faisons tous l’expérience quotidienne de ce plaisir apparemment paradoxal que nous tirons de notre insatisfaction provisoire face à un récit inachevé. Bien qu’une mode esthétique et théorique ait tenté de nous convaincre que ce plaisir était honteux, on peut néanmoins avoir l’intuition que le cœur vivant de la narrativité réside précisément dans ce nœud coulant, toujours plus serré à mesure que nous progressons dans l’histoire, qui nous attache à l’intrigue et creuse la temporalité par l’attente impatiente d’un dénouement. Si le récit a quelque chose à voir avec la manière dont nous éprouvons le temps, cette expérience n’apparaît jamais avec autant d’éclat que dans le suspense, la curiosité ou la surprise qui font la force des intrigues fictionnelles. La compréhension des fonctions narratives engage donc non seulement l’analyse littéraire, linguistique et sémiotique, mais aussi l’analyse cognitive et la psychologie des émotions.

L'hypnose ericksonienne est une pratique thérapeutique induisant ce que l'on appelle classiquement une transe (i.e. forme de veille paradoxale ou « rêve éveillé », par opposition au sommeil paradoxal) à partir de laquelle, le patient guidé du thérapeute, peut orienter son attention vers un but spécifique ; l'objectif étant défini selon les besoins du patient, les visées de cette thérapeutique sont potentiellement infinies -- en tant qu'elles respectent, bien-entendu, sa nature profonde (i.e. ses convictions et sa sensibilité).
Élaborée dans les années vingt et développée sur plus d'un demi-siècle par le psychiatre américain Milton H. Erickson, elle porte la filiation d'un usage remontant à l'Égypte ancienne et qui, pourtant, millénaires après millénaires, siècles après siècles, ne bénéficie toujours pas de l'éclairage scientifique nécessaire à sa normalisation ; c'est un fait, l'hypnose résiste au principe de sa naturalisation (i.e. de son appropriation par les sciences de la Nature).
Face à ce constat, on peut continuer d'alimenter les oppositions, s'enfermant dans les digressions infinies du débat : hypnose, état psychique quelconque (i.e. minimise le rôle de la relation et donc du thérapeute, voire de la démarche) vs dramatisation spectaculaire de la suggestion (i.e. la relation est centrale mais elle fait du patient, un faible d'esprit, et du thérapeute, un manipulateur) ; ou, sur un mode plus palo-altien, lui opposer une troisième perspective consistant à « sortir du cadre » trop étroit auquel on aura tenté de la soumettre jusque-là, tout en la fondant sur des principes moins déterministes mais non-moins rigoureux. L'objet de cet article est de soumettre une articulation possible de la pratique de l'hypnose thérapeutique avec une appréhension complexe des critères de scientificité.

Given the prominence of Muslim veils—in particular the hijab and full-face veil—in public discourse concerning the place of Muslims in Western society, we examined their impact on non-Muslims’ responses at both explicit and implicit levels. Results revealed that responses were more negative toward any veil compared with no veil, and more negative toward the full-face veil relative to the hijab: for emotions felt toward veiled women (Study 1), for non-affective attitudinal responses (Study 2), and for implicit negative attitudes revealed through response latency measures (Studies 3a and 3b). Finally, we manipulated the perceived reasons for wearing a veil, finding that exposure to positive reasons for wearing a veil led to better predicted and imagined contact (Study 4). Practical and theoretical implications are discussed.

« Mets-toi à ma place! » Si souvent, nous croyons y parvenir; si souvent nous devons reconnaître qu’on n’y arrive pas. « Empathie » est le terme qui décrit cet effort, ce désir, cette victoire et cet échec.
Ce livre raconte l’histoire complexe et fascinance de cette idée, parcourant le temps depuis les philosophes grecs jusqu’aux androïdes, et croisant les disciplines comme la philosophie et la psychologie, l’anthropologie et l’hsitoire, l’esthétique et l’éthique, les études culturelles et les neurosciences.