Abstract There has recently been a resurgence of philosophical and scientific interest in the foundations of self-consciousness, with particular focus on its altered, anomalous forms. This paper looks at the altered forms of self-awareness in Depersonalization Disorder (DPD), a condition in which people feel detached from their self, their body and the world (Derealisation). Building upon the...
The main issue addressed in this paper is to provide a reassessment of the role and relevance of the body in social cognition from a radical embodied cognitive science perspective. Initially, I provide a historical introduction of the traditional account of the body in cognitive science, which I here call the cognitivist view. I then present several lines of criticism raised against the...
Numerous studies have linked sexual risk taking to recreational use of MDMA. Questions remain, however, regarding the extent and type of sexual risk behaviors that occur among MDMA users, especially African Americans who use the drug. Because the MDMA literature has historically relied on samples with little minority representation, little is known about Black MDMA users and their sexual risk...
This article examines the phenomenon of spontaneity of consciousness from the perspective of Dzogchen philosophy – one of the doctrines of Tibetan Buddhism. It views spontaneity as the initial and intrinsic, but at the same time latent quality of human consciousness. Liberation in Dzogchen, first and foremost, is related to person’s achievement of spontaneous state. It becomes possible through...
A marker of engaging in compassion meditation and related processes is an increase in heart-rate variability (HRV), typically interpreted as a marker of parasympathetic nervous system response. While insightful, open questions remain. For example, which timescale is best to examine the effects of meditation and related practices on HRV? Furthermore, how might advanced time-series analyses--such...
This article explores the use of stream of consciousness writing in the early work of the British psychoanalyst, life writer, and artist, Marion Milner. Focusing on Milner's 1934 book, A Life of One's Own (first published under the pen name Joanna Field), the first part of the article situates Milner's use of stream of consciousness writing alongside the work of her contemporaries Virginia...
Abstract The problem of free will is associated with a specific and significant kind of control over our actions, which is understood primarily in the sense that we have the freedom to do otherwise or the capacity for self‐determination. Is Buddhism compatible with such a conception of free will? The aim of this article is to address three critical issues concerning the free will problem: (1)...
Some dynamics associated with consciousness are shared by other complex macroscopic living systems. For example, autocatalysis, an active agency in ecosystems, imparts to them a centripetality, the ability to attract resources that identifies the system as an agency apart from its surroundings. It is likely that autocatalysis in the central nervous system likewise gives rise to the phenomenon...
Abstract: This chapter explores strategies to maintain student focus in a world of ever-shrinking attention spans. The author examines the use of mindfulness as a rehearsal tool both to encourage sharpened attention, and to reenergize a lagging rehearsal. The chapter looks at research that supports mindfulness as a significant strategy to improve focus and skillfully deal with distractions,...
Objective: Tai chi (TC), a contemplative practice combining slow movements and deep breathing, has been shown to be clinically effective in alleviating depressive symptoms. Feelings of fatigue or low vitality often accompany major depressive disorder (MDD) though they are commonly overlooked and not well understood neurologically. By using resting state functional connectivity (rs-FC) using the...