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Astrocyte
Empathy with the self, leads to empathy for others, which leads to knowing what others need, which will lead to moral behavior, which will create a better and more moral society.
...there are bound to be individuals who are unresponsive to somatic mindfulness. People like this might have an underlying psychiatric problem, whether it be autism or antisocial personality disorder (aka psychopathy), where certain parts of the brain which mediate emotional experience aren't connected properly.
You lost me here. As the brain is plastic (neuroplasticity), do you not think that 'mindfulness education' would alter the physical structures/connections/dynamics that create such disorders?
...so long as higher cognitive organs - in the cortex - are biologically healthy, than consciousness can assert itself on the body. Consciousness stirs, nucleic acids prepare genes that make certain proteins that become certain cells in specific brain areas. And in the end, we have the peace we couldn't find. Were happy after a decade of trauma.
That the mind has this ability, with all the implications that it implies, makes future study of the mind and body a very interesting field of study.
Your response focused on autism/Asbergers, but I was thinking more of sociopathy / psychopathy - diseases that arguably result from trauma.
"Epigenetics" is the study of how environmental influences over-ride genetic programming
but just pairing epigenetics with neurology/neuroplasticity is phenomenally promising
...Most sociopaths were born that way. So I think the "trauma" happens in the womb. Check out "The Anatomy of Violence" by Adrian Raine for an interesting analysis of recent research into psychopathy.
I don't think this is proved at all, and I don't agree.
Numerous sociopaths are created through extreme abuse, living in war zones, etc. ...I DO know there is a movement to prove sociopathy and other ills are "genetic," towards pushing a questionable agenda. ...Looking forward to your next post(s).
...Most of the time, psychopathy is prenatal.
Astrocyte
Some place in your brain, in the hippocampus, lies a set of neurons that associate with a set of neurons in the amygdala, which link up with neurons in the brain stem. The autonomic system keeps the brain aware - a process called neuroception - to "threats" in the environment. For whatever reason, probably related to a previous experience, your brain learned to associate "fear" with this particular context. Your hippocampus and amygdala sees a girl, and reads "threat, be vigilant". The explicit "cognitive" memory for why you should feel a sense of threat is gone. But nevertheless, a few brain regions are automatically activated by the regulatory functions of the brain stem, particularly a region called the vagus nerve.
Politics aside, your rhetoric is peppered with sweeping "scientific" generalizations like the above
Oh sure, Scientific generalizations.
Is this an academic forum? No? Who here would look up, or even have the capacity or wherewithal to look up, the numerous citations I could list. Would you? Would check up on the published studies in academic journals?
The DSM conceptualization of Antisocial Personality Disorder is ...essentially synonymous with criminality.
...…Unfortunately, there remains a pervasive perception in the clinical community that adult psychopaths are impervious to treatment (D’Silva et. al., 2004). A meta-analysis of research on treatment outcomes in psychopathy concluded that the vast majority of the studies conducted lacked proper experimental design and scientific validity (Caldwell, 2013).
…The causes and specific pathophysiology of psychopathy are an active area of research. ...the general consensus is that a genetic predisposition is necessary for psychopathy while environmental conditions determine its specific expression (Porter, 1996).
[However]...there is no gene for antisocial behavior or psychopathy...
The 4th and 5th editions of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) have a diagnosis of Antisocial (Dissocial) Personality Disorder (ASPD), ...Although no psychiatric or psychological organization has sanctioned a diagnosis titled "psychopathy", assessments of psychopathy characteristics are widely used in criminal justice settings in some nations, and may have important consequences for individuals.
Antisocial personality disorder is a mental health condition in which a person has a long-term pattern of manipulating, exploiting, or violating the rights of others.
...there is a tendency to blame others, or to offer plausible rationalizations for the behaviour bringing the patient into conflict with society
Treatment was also associated with a significant decrease in general and violent offending for each facet. ...Treatment appeared to disrupt the link between institutional and community violence and psychopathy features in this population.
Treatment-Related Changes in Psychopathy Features and Behavior in Adolescent Offenders
The impact of changes in psychopathy characteristics on institutional behavior was assessed in 127 incarcerated delinquent males who were treated in a specialized intensive treatment program. Participants were administered the self-report version of the Antisocial Processes Screening Device (APSD) on admission to the program and every 90 days through treatment. Changes in all APSD scales predicted improvement in institutional behavior and treatment involvement. For the 77 youth who had at least three administrations, repeated-measures analysis of variance showed significant changes in APSD total, Callous/Unemotional, Narcissism, and Impulsivity scores. For 127 youth who had at least two administrations and daily behavioral ratings, changes in each scale predicted improved institutional behavior and treatment compliance.
Offenders in the JCI (juvenile correctional institution) group are more than twice as likely to violently recidivate in the community during a 2-year follow-up than those who participate in MJTC treatment (Mendota Juvenile Treatment Center). Treatment is associated with relatively slower and lower rates of serious recidivism, even after controlling for the effects of nonrandom assignment to treatment groups and release status.
The results found significant improvement in behavioral and security measures with treatment. ...Furthermore, violent recidivism during a 4-year follow-up was predicted by final behavioral scores but not initial PCL:YV scores.
Aftermath: Surviving Psychopathy Foundation
We envision a future in which psychopathy has less of a negative impact on the families, friends, co-workers, and victims of psychopathic individuals as well as individuals with psychopathic traits themselves because of the establishment of:
• more effective methods to help victims/survivors recover from traumatic relationships with such individuals;
• more effective methods to prevent or ameliorate the development of psychopathic traits;
• more effective methods to treat psychopathic features.