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Lauren Jackson

Mr. Ratliff

ISM-1 2A

05 September 2019

Works Cited

Alcaro, Antonio, and Stefano Carta. “The ‘Instinct’ of Imagination. A Neuro-Ethological

Approach to the Evolution of the Reflective Mind and Its Application to Psychotherapy.”

Frontiers in Human Neuroscience​, vol. 12, 2019, doi:10.3389/fnhum.2018.00522.

Research Assessment #3

The article I read this week was focused on the neuroscience behind what causes

dysfunctional emotional-relational patterns. The authors claim that analyzing a person’s

subconscious mind is more important than focusing on the relationship itself, as by focusing on

the anoetic state of mind “the deep imaginal creative and re-structuring self-referential activity

may be reactivated” (Carta). I found that understanding some of the most recent neuroscience

research (published this year) connects with psychologists’ theories of behavior as well. By

understanding the way our brains process emotionally taxing situations through imagination I

can now apply to towards Cognitive Behavior Therapy as well.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is based upon the concept that our thoughts, emotions, and

behaviors are all connected. What I found that was especially interesting was that humans learn

to have a subjective mental life. I had always assumed that humans were born with the ability to

interpret our own lives. While I knew every we experience we undergo as people shapes who we
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are as people, I wasn’t aware that our subconscious feelings could dictate the quality of our

relationships with other people. The stimuli we encounter on a daily basis is not only recognized

by the “brainmind” but is integrated into our automatic intrinsic functioning. The imaginations

that occur stem primarily from emotions and moods, not just from events that happen externally.

As a result, I learned that psychotherapy isn’t always effective if the treatment focuses only on

trying to fix external relationships. I gained the important understanding that the first step when

approaching ways to fix conflict within relationships is to first evaluate the way our emotions are

impacting how we see the situation. It can be hard to treat a client when the way they are

perceiving the world is distorted by their feelings. The highly effective self-referential

resting-state DMN activity may act in a total unconscious way, influencing the individual

attitude towards its environment and the subjective (affective) meaning given to external

experiences (Carta). Once the connection has been made between the influence of subconscious

emotional processing and our interpretation of a given circumstance, self-reflection can truly

begin and psychotherapy is able to be much more effective. The thing that I learned the most

from in the article was the clinical study that was included towards the conclusion. Each step of

the analysis was gone through in thorough detail not only from the side of the therapist but from

what the client would say as well. The patient was struggling in his relationships with his

colleagues and girlfriend, but wasn’t aware of what the obstacle was that caused such conflicts.

By the end of his session, he was able to realize what he interpreted incorrectly and knew what to

do to fix his biases. Seeing the steps of analyzing imagination and how it would be applied in a

real situation gives me a skillset that I can learn and potentially apply in my own practice

someday.
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In conclusion, this article has provided me with not only complex and crucial information

but practical methodology for treatment options. I will be able to utilize what I learn in actual

clinical settings as almost all people struggle to separate the impacts their emotions have on their

perception versus the literal external events that occur.