by Bruce Hood
I am indebted to those who understand this and have helped me shape the book. I would particularly like to thank my agent Robert Kirby, not only for his professional input, but also for his support during my moments of doubt. Also I would like to thank my US agent Zoë Pagnamenta for taking on a difficult task. My UK editor Andreas Campomar ignited the idea and has been enthusiastically supportive. I hope it does not blow up in our faces. Joan Bossert (OUP US) gave me some great ideas to develop and Jim Gifford (Harper Collins Canada) pointed out the dangers of my boyish tendencies. I would like to thank the friends, colleagues and students who have read earlier drafts and provided invaluable feedback and support. These include (in alphabetical order) Sara Baker, Sue Blackmore, Paul Bloom, Katy Donnelly, Teobesta Tesfa Endrias, Iain Gilchrist, Nathalia Gjersoe, Shoji Itakura, Monica Jensen, Cristine Legare, Kate Longstaffe, George Newman and Arnoud Van Voorst.
I would like to acknowledge the support of the various funding agencies that have supported me and my research over the past three years that have enabled me to write this book. These include the Economic and Social Research Council of the UK, the Leverhulme trust, the Bial foundation and the Perrott-Warwick Fund.
This book is dedicated to Kim who has had to endure this particular chaotic bundle. Without her, I would have come apart years ago.
Index
Page numbers in italic refer to illustrations
Abu Ghraib prison 149–50, 163
abusive relationships 43, 74
adaptation 125, 141
Adcock, Paul 207
addiction 77, 106, 110, 128, 202, 203, 204, 205
adolescence xiii, 52, 68–9, 189, 190, 191
advertising and marketing 113
Aesop’s fables 115, 116, 123
aggression 8, 32, 72–4, 76, 77, 85–6, 209
Aikins, Deane 162
Ainsworth, Mary 36
alcohol 33, 79, 106, 194
alien hand syndrome 95
Allman, John 67
Alzheimer’s disease 33, 75
amblyopia 16
amygdala 33, 37, 85, 86, 162
analysis paralysis 123, 197
Anderson, Terry 31
anencephalic babies 13–14
animals
brains 21, 43
deprivation studies 16, 28, 42, 43
laughter 31–2
learned helplessness 121–2
Pavlovian conditioning 203
self-recognition 53
anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) 66, 104, 139
anthropomorphism 62
antisocial behaviour 36, 42, 50, 74, 75, 137
Arendt, Hannah 150
Ariely, Dan 124, 125, 127, 128
Armstrong, Lance 192
arousal 135, 162
see also sexual arousal
Asch, Solomon 143, 144, 146, 149
attachment behaviour 34, 35–8, 41, 132, 173
attention deficity hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) 79
Audition (film) 105–6, 108
authoritarianism 144, 146, 148, 149
authorship of action 93–5, 97, 98–9
autism 40, 64–6, 67, 194, 195, 202
autobiographical memories 57, 166, 168, 175
axons 5
babies
anencephalic babies 13–14
blank slate thesis xii, 25
blind and deaf babies 30
brain development 10, 14, 17, 28, 29–30, 42, 43
conscious awareness 23–4
eye movements 10, 213
facial recognition 27
imitative behaviour 28–9, 34, 44–5, 152
infant memories 54, 55, 56
language learning 18, 19, 20
laughter 31
Machiavellian baby 29, 35
mirror test 53–4, 54, 60, 61, 215
mother–infant attachment 34, 35–8
premature babies 42, 43
reflexes 13
self-recognition 53–4, 61
smiling 29–30
social development 33–4, 34–7, 39–40
see also children
baby training 19–20
babyness 34
Baggini, Julian 110
Baldwin, James Mark 25
Bale, Mary 88
banality of evil 150
Bargh, John 153
Barnum effect 172–3
Baron-Cohen, Simon 202
Bartlett, Sir Frederick 58, 176
basal ganglia 104
bats 23
Baumeister, Roy 106, 107, 108
Beckham, David 102
behaviourism 203
Belk, Russell 130
Bell, Vaughan 137
Berners-Lee, Tim 195
beta-blockers 162–3
Bianchi, Ken 177–8
Big-Five factors of personality 173–4
Bin Laden, Osama 200
binary code 4–5
Bishop, Dorothy 195
Blackmore, Susan viii
bladder control 108–9
Blakemore, Sarah-Jayne 68–9
blogging 202
Bloom, Paul 82, 208
Bogacz, Gerry 163, 164
bondage, discipline, sadism and masochism (BDSM) 180
Borg 197–8
Botox 46
Bowlby, John 36, 41, 76
boyd, danah 198
brain
anatomy 1, 2, 4–5, 8
coordinated functions x, 10
gender differences 71
hemispheres 95–6, 169–70
mirroring system 99, 151
the modelling brain xi, xii, 2–3, 213
neural connectivity 4, 5–8, 9, 13, 14–15, 15, 18, 27, 57, 67, 77, 90, 92, 194, 216
organization 8–13, 9, 14
parallel processing 6–7, 92, 214
size and weight 14, 20–1, 27
specialization 8, 21, 22
brain damage x, 13–14, 16, 33, 40, 95, 96
brain death 52
brain development 10, 14, 16–17, 28, 29–30, 42, 43, 214
critical (sensitive) periods 17, 19
brain plasticity 17, 18, 19, 20, 28, 158, 194
brain stem 8, 77
brand identities 130
Brinkley, Linda 206, 208
Bruer, John 20
Buddhism ix
bullying 138, 193
bundle theory ix, x
Cartesian Theatre 12
caudeate nucleus (CN) 104–5
celebrity culture 188–9, 192–3
cerebellum 9
Chabris, Chris 59
chameleon effect 151, 153
change blindness 157
children
ADHD 79
childhood memories 175–6
cultural differences 158–9
extended childhood 25, 26
feral 38–40
impulsivity 77–8, 79
object attachment 128
self-control 77–8, 79–80
social development xii–xiii, 22, 190, 194–5, 214
theory of mind 62, 63–4, 65, 68, 168
see also babies
chimpanzees 21, 32, 44, 61, 62
choice
analysis paralysis 123, 197
paradox of 123
perception of 121, 122–3, 124
Christakis, Nicholas 184, 185
chromosomes 69–70, 73, 74
Clinton, Bill 19
clustering 200
cognition 158
cognitive dissonance 116–17, 150, 160, 169, 174, 217
Cohen, June 195–6
collectivism 155, 156, 159, 175, 176
colonoscopy 126
combat troops 53, 153, 162–3
comfort eating 139
communication 16, 22, 26, 186
see also Internet; social networking; the Web
compliance 139, 143–4, 146, 147–9, 193, 197, 217
compulsions see obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
conditioning 203–4
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br /> confabulation 58, 60, 169, 171
conformity see compliance
conscious awareness xi, 94, 126
construction of the self xiii, 34, 82
influences on xii, xiv, 3, 50, 82, 181, 193–4, 215–16, 216
control, illusion of 114, 115, 117, 121, 122, 175, 218
Cool Hand Luke (film) 146
Cooley, Charles Horton 51
coprolalia 49
core self see essential self
corpus callosum 71, 96, 169
cortex 5, 7, 8, 9, 13, 14, 20, 21, 22, 43, 66, 76, 93, 201
cortical suppression 33
cortisol 35
Cotard’s syndrome 52
counterfactuals 64
criminality 77, 86–8
crowds 183–4
see also herd mentality
crows 26
cultural stereotypes 133, 154–9, 175–6
Cyberball 138–9
Darwin, Charles 30, 53
death delusion 52
decision-making 91, 93, 123–4, 197, 217–18
external influences on 113, 117, 127, 133
justification of 114–15
loss aversion 119, 131, 132
relativity in 124–5
see also choice; compliance
degrees-of-freedom problem 91
deindividuation 137, 138, 146
delay of gratification 78, 79–80, 109
dementia 33, 75, 168, 169
Dennett, Dan xi, 12, 91
depersonalization 52–3
depression 122, 124, 140
deprivation, social 16, 20, 28, 41, 42, 43, 76–7, 194–5
Descartes, René 12
determinism 75, 90, 91, 92, 111
Dick, Philip J. 60
Dietrich, Noah vii
Dijksterhuis, Ap 151
disinhibition 37
dissociative identity disorders (DIDs) 52, 176–9
dopamine 74, 203, 204
Dr Strangelove syndrome 95
dread risks 120
dualism 95
Dunbar, Robin 20–1, 22, 201
Eagleman, David 86
ego theory ix, x
ego-depletion 106, 107, 108, 109, 110, 139, 181
Eichmann, Adolf 150
Elliot, Jane 141–2
emotional contagion 47–8, 65, 200
empathy 46–7, 52, 62, 65, 106
endowment effect 131, 132–3
England, Lynndie 150
epilepsy 96, 203
episodic memory 56
Epstein, Robert 190
essential self 80, 82
illusion of a 82, 160, 211
essentialism 80–2
Evans, Dave 198
experiencing self 126
extended self 130, 133
eye movements 10, 213, 217
face-blindness 27
Facebook 188, 199, 201
facial recognition 27–8
Fallon, Jim 74, 75–6
false beliefs 63
false memories 58, 59, 60, 99, 164
fatalism 111, 122
feng shui 155
feral children 38–40
Festinger, Leon 116
Field, Matt 105–6
Field, Tiffany 43
Figes, Orlando 197
Fight Club (film) 177
flashbulb memories 161–2, 163
Flavell, John 23
Forer, Bertram 172
Frankl, Viktor 31
free will 88–90, 91, 93, 97, 98, 101, 103, 111, 122, 217
illusion of 89, 95, 97, 98, 111
Freud, Sigmund 31, 38, 114, 116
friendship formation 185
Frith, Uta 40
fronto-insular cortex (FIC) 66
fugue states 176–7
fundamental attribution error xiv
fusiform gyrus 27
Gagarin, Yuri 102
gallows humour 31
Gallup, Gordon 53
gambling 102, 204
Gazzaniga, Michael 96, 169–70
Gelman, Susan 81
gender identity 69–72
gender stereotypes 70, 71–2, 73–4, 154
genetic determinism 75
Genie 39
Ghahramani, Zoubin 187
‘ghost in the machine’ 89, 90, 91
Gibson, Mel vii
Gigerenzer, Gerd 120
Gladwell, Malcolm 22
glucose 107–8
Goldilocks effect 124
Goodall, Jane 62
Google 187, 198, 199
Gopnik, Alison 64, 65
gorillas 21, 62
gossiping brain 192
Grandin, Temple 66
Grant, Hugh 179
Great Selfini 98, 105, 111
Green, Sir Allan 179
group cohesion 33, 137–8, 143–4, 153, 199
group membership 140–1, 142, 185
groupthink 136
growth hormones 43
Harlow, Harry 42
Head, Alicia Esteve (‘Tania’) 161, 163–4, 171, 174
Hebb, Donald 5, 43
Helmholtz, Hermann von 114
herd mentality 137, 183, 193, 197
heterophily 185
heuristics 120
hippocampus 55
hoarding 130
Holocaust 31, 129, 149
homophily 185, 199, 200
homunculus 12, 89
Howe, Mark 60
Hubel, David 16
Hughes, Howard vii
Hume, David ix
Huntington’s disease 105
Hussein, Saddam 117, 149
Hutterite communities 22
hypnotism 53, 99, 100–1
imitation see mimicry
imprinting 17–18, 36
impulse control 49, 75, 153
impulsivity 11, 74, 77–8, 79, 128
individualism 138, 155–6, 159, 175, 176
information theory 4
inhibitory control 10, 11, 37, 49, 79, 86, 127, 190
see also self-control
inner self, notion of the ix, 11, 12, 13, 215
insanity defence 87
insula 47, 132
intermittent reinforcement 203–4
Internet 181, 218
see also the Web
Internet addiction 204, 205
Internet sex 208–10
interpreter system 169
Iraq War 117
isolation see deprivation, social
Itakura, Shoji 45
Itard, Jean 38–9
James, William 25, 128, 158
Kagan, Jerry 37
Kahneman, Daniel 126, 127, 131
Karmiloff-Smith, Annette 35
Keysers, Christian 64, 67
Knutson, Brian 132
Korsakoff’s syndrome 168–9
Lamarckian inheritance 186
Langer, Ellen 119
language development and learning 18–19, 20
laughter 30–3, 47
law enforcement 148–9
learned helplessness 121–2
Levi-Leleu, Michel 129
Lewinsky, Monica 19
L’Hermitte, François 97
Libet, Benjamin 93, 94
limbic system 8, 77, 104, 135, 162
Lipkins, Susan 209
locating the ‘self’ 11, 12, 12
Locke, John 25, 166
locusts 21
Loftus, Elizabeth 58, 60
looking-glass self xiii, 51–2, 68, 174, 215
Lorenz, Konrad 17, 34
loss aversion 119, 131, 132
Lucifer effect 144–6
McAdams, Dan 171
Machiavellian intelligence 21, 27, 29, 35, 152, 190
McLuhan, Marshall 205
Macrae, Neil 129
Maddux, William 133
MAOA gene abnormality 74
Marx, Groucho 140
Maslach, Christina 146
mass shootings 85, 139–40
materialism 128,
129, 130
The Matrix (film) 2
medial prefrontal cortex 132
memory 54–9, 165
autobiographical 57, 166, 168, 175
copying 165
disintegration 59
effects of meaning and context on 60–1
episodic 56
false memories 58, 59, 60, 99, 164
flashbulb memories 161–2, 163
formation 55, 56, 126, 161
infant and child memories 54, 55, 56, 175–6
loss 55, 168
memory-identity relationship 166, 167
primacy effect 126–7
recency effect 126–7
reconstruction 58
Mencken, H. L. 125
midbrain 8, 104
Miike, Takashi 105
Milgram, Stanley 146–8, 149, 163
Milligan, Billy 177
mimicry 28–9, 34, 44–5, 46, 47, 48–9, 50, 65, 66, 97, 99, 139, 151–2, 154, 183, 200, 215
mindblindness 64–6
Mirren, Helen 191, 192, 194
mirror misidentification 52, 53, 215
mirror neurons 45–7, 66, 151, 215
mirror test 53–4, 54, 60, 61, 215
mirror-touch synaesthesia 47, 215
mirroring behaviour see mimicry
Mischel, Walter 78
M’Naghten Rules 87
mob mentality see herd mentality
monkeys 27–8, 35, 42–3, 46
Monty Hall problem 117–19, 131, 120
Moore’s Law 196
moral compass 68, 76, 128, 137, 145
Morris, Katherine 180
Mr Bungle the Clown 209–10
multiple personalities see dissociative identity disorders (DIDs)
multiple realizability 92
multiple sclerosis 33
multiple selves viii, xiii 179–80
Murray, Liz xiii–xiv, 122
myths see self-narratives
Nagel, Thomas 23
narcissism 188
natural selection 17, 25, 186, 198
nature vs nurture 13, 14, 74, 75
Nelson, Chuck 40
neural networks 4, 5–8, 13, 14–15, 27, 57, 67, 77, 90, 92, 194, 216
neuroethics 86
neurons 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 14, 15, 15, 16, 57, 67, 91–2, 203
excitatory 5, 79, 89, 125
firing 4, 5, 125, 216
inhibitory 5, 89
interneurons 4
mirror neurons 45–7, 66, 151, 215
motor neurons 4, 8
sensory neurons 4
Von Economo neurons (VENs) 67
neurotransmitters 74, 79, 105
9/11 121, 161, 162, 163–4, 174
Nisbett, Richard 155, 158
nucleus accumbens 29, 132
object attachment 128–31, 132–3