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The Neurophysiology of Conflict:A Mediator’s Perspective
Some of this will be blindingly obvious (e.g., Mr. Jourdainreciting prose).
“Your brain is divided into twohemispheres. The left hemisphere issequential, textual, and analytical. Theright hemisphere is simultaneous,contextual, and synthetic. Of course,we enlist both halves of our brains foreven the simplest tasks. And therespective traits of the twohemispheres have often been
Metaphores only, using “brain regionalization” concepts
Concept: Michael Leathes and http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/sci_tech/newsid_2191000/2191138.stm
hemispheres have often beencaricatured well beyond what thescience actually reveals. But thelegitimate scientific differences betweenthe two hemispheres of the brain doyield a powerful metaphor forinterpreting our present andguiding our future.”
“The process by which the participants, with theassistance of a neutral person or persons,systematically isolate disputed issues in order todevelop options, consider alternatives and reach aconsensual agreement that will accommodate their
consensual agreement that will accommodate theirneeds.”
Folberg & TaylorCommercial Mediation, 1984
This can be about issues of substance and issues of process.Mediators are NOT providing therapy or dealing with abnormal behaviour, but only seeking to use short intervention techniques, to facilitate cortical thinking in the brain.
Statistics for mediation (Source: ACB, NL 2006)
Average duration of a mediation 4 x ½ day sessions
No. of disputes resolved in a single mediation 15%
Although the parties can often negotiate directly there is a systemic benefit to having athird party present. The presence of and focus on a neutral tranquilizes the amygdala,and allows the other party to listen without having to react. The neutral can also helpcreate “frequency-shifting” activities.
gThe amygdala act as a rapid relevance detector:They act as a switch between “reptilian” and “cortical” thinking.
Cognitive Dissonances (Leon Festinger, 1957)
If two cognitions are relevant to one another, they are eitherconsonant or dissonant. Two cognitions are consonant if one followsfrom the other, and they are dissonant if the obverse (opposite) of onecognition follows from the other. The existence of dissonance, beingpsychologically uncomfortable, motivates the person to reduce thedissonance and leads to avoidance of information likely to increase thedissonance. The greater the magnitude of the dissonance, the greateris the pressure to reduce dissonance.
Festinger’s Smoking Example: A habitual smoker who learns thatsmoking is bad for health will experience dissonance, because theknowledge that smoking is bad for health is dissonant with thecognition that he continues to smoke. He can reduce the dissonance
cognition that he continues to smoke. He can reduce the dissonanceby changing his behavior, that is, he could stop smoking, which wouldbe consonant with the cognition that smoking is bad for health.Alternatively, the smoker could reduce dissonance by changing hiscognition about the effect of smoking on health and believe thatsmoking does not have a harmful effect on health (eliminating thedissonant cognition). He might look for positive effects of smoking andbelieve that smoking reduces tension and keeps him from gainingweight (adding consonant cognitions). Or he might believe that therisk to health from smoking is negligible compared with the danger ofautomobile accidents (reducing the importance of the dissonantcognition). In addition, he might consider the enjoyment he gets fromsmoking to be a very important part of his life (increasing theimportance of consonantcognitions).
Source: Cognitive Dissonance: Progress on a Pivotal Theory in Social PsychologyEdited by Eddie Harmon-Jones and Judson Mills
The Amgydala: A (metaphorical) target for mediators?The amygdala:• A gateway for emotions: they createstress/fearful stimuli before the cortex has hadtime to assess them.
• A storage place for autobiographicalmemory (in ICMs?)
• Can dominate and prevent reasonedcortical thinking once activated
• A relevance detector & switch: processwhether stimuli should be treated as a threatand whether they should be reacted-to sub-cortically (without time for thought) or in
cortically (without time for thought) or inconjunction with the cortex (especially, theorbitofrontal cortex (“OFC”))
• A perception modulator: they can affecthow rapidly we absorb certain information(e.g., if a possible threat is perceived) andeven filter and distort perceptions, based onemotions and previous memories stored in theOFC.
• Basis of the OFC-Amygdala feedback circuit:the amygdala and OFC affect one-another(directly & indirectly via the hypothalamus).
• This combination determines how stimuli canbe received, processed and transmitted forfurther action by a human being.
impact of oxytocin on amygdala reactivity andbrainstem interactions in humans, extending alarge body of work on neuropeptide regulationof complex behavior to this species byestablishing an effect of oxytocin on a keycomponent of affective and social processing.We hope that this work will contribute to thedevelopment of therapeutic interventions withoxytocin or synthetic agonists in diseases inwhich amygdala dysfunction has beenimplicated, including anxiety disorders,depression, and autism.
Bringing Oxytocin Into the Room
• Using Emotions in Mediation (R. Fisher & D. Shapiro BEYOND REASON) 2006
• Clearly identify and list on a flipchart the needs or interests of each party
• Establish a mutual recognition of the other party’s needs
• Demonstrate willingness to work towards “win-win” outcomes
• Must be genuine / authentic for it to resonate positively with mirror neurons and dampen the amygdala.
K. Cloke: Conflict Revolution “Changing the way we change”“On a purely chemical level, scientists are now aware of dozens of enzymes, hormones, neurotransmitters, and
chemical compounds that have a critical impact on the attitudes and behaviors of people undergoing change or
conflict. There is, for instance, adrenalin that triggers the “fight or flight” response; testosterone that stimulates
aggression; oxytocin that instills trust, increases loyalty, and promotes the “tend and befriend” response; estrogen that
triggers the release of oxytocin; endorphins that reinforce collaborative experiences with pleasure; dopamine that
generates a reward response and fortifies addiction; phenylethylaline that induces excitement and anticipation; and
vasopressin that encourages monogamy among males in a variety of species.
On a somewhat larger scale, there are genes and proteins that direct the manufacture of these chemicals and shape --
not only our physical appearance, personality traits, and predisposition to risk-taking -- but immune responses that
can be detected by means of smell, influencing perceptions of attractiveness and repulsion.
In addition, there are a host of other chemical compounds and prescription drugs that are capable of accentuating or
minimizing, instigating or discouraging collaborative and adversarial behaviors, both in change and conflict. For
example, scientists have traced the development of empathy in primates, including human beings, to “mirror
neurons” that fire in the brain of an observer, replicating the experience the one who is observed. Thus, when we
watch someone suffer or become frightened, similar neurons fire in our brains, reproducing those experiences.
On a more macroscopic scale, the brain is divided into two hemispheres, each of which processes conflict and change
experiences somewhat differently, emphasizing logical reasoning, linear thinking, pattern perception, and emotional
responses. The brain is subdivided into regions that directly influence conflict behaviors. There is, for example, the
ventral tegmental area that reinforces the reward circuit; the nucleus accumbens directly beneath the frontal cortex
that releases oxytocin; the hypothalamus that produces testosterone; and most importantly, the amygdala, an almond
shaped region near the brain stem that regulates our conflict and change responses, especially anger and fear.”
Conflict Revolution: Mediating Evil, War, Injustice and Terrorism, Janis Publications (2008) pp. 337-38
1. Translating between the Cortical and Reptilian Pathways
What happens if we believe our needs are threatened? Can we “shift frequencies” by “translating” reptilian expression/perception into cortical thought/perception?
Frames, Biases, and Rational Decision-Making in the Human BrainBenedetto De Martino,* Dharshan Kumaran, Ben Seymour, Raymond J. Dolan; Wellcome Department of Imaging Neuroscience (UK)
Human choices are remarkably susceptible to themanner in which options are presented. This so-called "framing effect" represents a strikingviolation of standard economic accounts ofhuman rationality, although its underlyingneurobiology is not understood. We found that
neurobiology is not understood. We found thatthe framing effect was specifically associated withamygdala activity, suggesting a key role for anemotional system in mediating decision biases.Moreover, across individuals, orbital and medialprefrontal cortex activity predicted a reducedsusceptibility to the framing effect. This findinghighlights the importance of incorporatingemotional processes within models of humanchoice and suggests how the brain may modulatethe effect of these biasing influences toapproximate rationality.
Science 4 August 2006: Vol. 313. no. 5787, pp. 684 – 687
Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) shows
amygdala activity that represents an emotional signal,
which pushes subjects to keep sure money and gamble
instead of taking a loss in gaming simulations. Activity in
OMPFC best predicted individuals' susceptibility to the
framing effect. De Martino speculates that the OMPFC
integrates emotional signals from the amygdala with
cognitive information, such as the knowledge that both
options are equally good. "People who are more rational
don't perceive emotion less, they just regulate it better."Source http://economistsview.typepad.com/economistsview/2006/08/the_framing_eff.html
3. Looping -- a “frequency-shifting” technique
1. You inquire 2. The other person responds3. You demonstrate your understanding and test it with the other person
4.Did they confirm your understanding?(a) If no, go back to step 1
• Practical exercises, use of games, and recreational breaks
• Appreciative-based enquiry and possible art work
• Role playing & role reversal
• Brainstorming on options for mutual gain (without evaluating)
• Limiting discussion to personal needs only (strict definition) and how to satisfy them
• Confidence-building measures
• Extreme “out-door” exercises or team events
• Team games and joint construction projects
• NLP & mirroring back non-verbal communication
• Setting procedural steps that will guarantee outcomes (e.g., MEDALOA)
Some reactions to previous speakers‘ presentations
Per Eddie Harmon-Jones
• Focus on values and needs: The use of empathy to create sympathy early on in mediation (e.g., mutual assessment / understanding of needs) may “dampen” subsequent anger reactions. (But literature shows it is ability to showe appreciation of perspectives that matters more than ability to empathize).
• Importance of seating: being upright v. reclined chairs affects management of anger. Reclined decreases LH PFC activation.