Neural Correlates of Religious Experience

Neural Correlates of Religious Experience An Exploration of the Reason, Methods and Research of the Neural Correlates of Religious Experience Jennifer Romano Abstract Spiritual and Religious experiences often remain and power and mysterious aspect of humanity. The aim of this paper is to address the reasons, methods and literature around the neural correlates of these events. Studying the underlying mechanisms behind these phenomenons can be controversial as it raises philosophical dilemmas. However, this research is important to further the understanding of the human condition. Recent imaging studies indicate several brain regions (frontal lobes and limbic system) associated with religious experience. Through a streamlining of these methodologies, it is anticipated that these studies will provide implications for integrating spirituality into psychotherapy. An Exploration of the Reason, Methods and Research of the Neural Correlates of Religious Experience There is a voyager condition known as â€Å"Jerusalem Syndrome,† whereby tourists to Jerusalem begin to develop a psychosomatic illness in which they experience deeply religious delusions, such as believing they are God or other characters from the Bible (Kalian Witztum, 2002). Some psychiatrists hypothesize that this disorder may develop as a result of an incongruence between their expectations of the holy city and the reality that it is, in fact, a modern city. Others speculate that many of these travelers are pilgrims, and upon arriving in Jerusalem, they feel closer to God, and it is this intense feeling of propinquity that leads to this strange psychological reaction. Other voyager syndromes exist as well. Stendhal syndrome and Paris Syndrome have also been reported, but are believed to be an intense psychological reaction to the quantity and quality of art in both Florence and Paris, respectively (Smith, 2010). All experiences, whether religious or not, are brain based and therefore provide both a psychological and physiological response. That is why standing before the Temple Mount or standing before a sculpture by Michelangelo can both send shivers down your spine or move you to tears. Spiritual or religious experiences like the ones mentioned above continue to be a mysterious phenomenon that warrants further study. Why Study Neural Correlates of Religious Experiences? Spirituality is an aspect of humanity that the field of psychology is just beginning to tap into. Surveys indicate that over 90% of United States believes in a god and 58% categorized religion as important to them (Shafranske, 1996). For this reason and several others, Pargament (2007) argues, spirituality cannot be separated from psychotherapy and in many cases can be both part of the problem and the solution for those that the field serves. Through understanding the neural mechanisms behind religious belief and behaviors, psychologists could potentially unlock new resources in practicing spiritually integrated psychotherapy. A study of the neurological correlates of religious or spiritual experiences inevitably runs into the discourse of mind and body dualism. During the 17th century, Descartes proposed his revolutionary idea that the mind and body were separate entities. He hypothesized that the mind was the ethereal component to our thoughts while the brain was the material, but neither entity can function alone. Much the same, Aristotle theorized centuries earlier that thoughts and feelings actually came from the heart rather than the brain. Eastern philosophy has held the notion for centuries suggesting that the mind/body connection is integrated and holistic. This notion was threatened with the advent of modern western medicine. Science provided a mechanistic model of health. Alan Turing, one of the forerunners of the cognitive revolution, suggested that humans operated on the same production rules as computers in his computational-representational paradigm (Boden, 2006). This has lead to the exclusion of the spiritual and religion in the study of modern psychology. In fact, the field of psychology has not always embraced religion. Freud used psychological theory to discount religion as a whole, suggesting that people invented god as a form of wish fulfillment that had its roots in unresolved childhood conflict (Freud, 1950). Much the same, B.F. Skinner rejected the notion of God, dissolving religion down to a form of behavioral control (Skinner, 1971). These two forefathers ushered in the advent of modern science in studying the human psyche. With this societal change came the prediction of religion dissolution, and yet, it still remains. Recently, psychologists have begun to advocate for a pragmatic approa ch to studying humanity’s spiritual and religious correlates. The modern approach appears to be that the mind is in fact the less tangible functions of the brain; however both the material and phenomenological are relevant to study in religious and spiritual experiences. William James in his book The Varieties of Religious Experience highlighted the danger of a reductionist explanation of religious experiences. He writes â€Å"ideals appear as inert by-products of physiology; what is higher is explained by what is lower and treated forever as a case of ‘nothing but’- nothing but something else of an inferior sort.† (James, 1981, p.8) It is important to consider neuropsychological research through this lens. However, understanding the underlying mechanisms does not necessarily take away the meaning that people find in their experiences. Does knowing that the neurotransmitters involved in the feelings of love make the experience of a mother’s love personally less meaningful? Who is to say that God did not construct us w ith the capacity to engage in these experiences? Jones (2010) argued that further study into the neuroscience of religious experience can only extend the understanding of the human condition. It is with this frame of reference that practitioners should interpret the knowledge gained through this research. Methods of Neural Correlate Studies As with all scientific research, an operational definition of religious experience is needed before any effective examination can be done. This is a current issue within this line of study as religious behaviors, beliefs and experiences are complex phenomenon. Studying any experiential component relies on subjective measures as having experience is not easily observable to an outside investigator. Religious and spiritual experiences are defined on an individual level. McNarama (2002) suggested that religious experiences involve intense cognitive and emotional reactions to humanity’s â€Å"ultimate concerns.† These may include behaviors such as prayer, meditation, and chanting. Most subjective measures that are used often include cognitive, emotional, and psychological parameters (Newberg, 2014). It is not enough to just acknowledge the existence of the experience, rather in order to understand the construct more thoroughly, objective measures are required. Physiological parameters such as blood pressure, heart rate, and hormonal changes have been used to look at the basic biological reactions to these experiences. Nevertheless, these only provide a foundational understanding of the effects of spiritual experience in the human brain. Studies show that changes in the autonomic nervous system are multifarious, in that a relaxation response may also have arousal components (Hugdhal, 1996). In order to understand these complexities, researchers must look in the brain. The current instruments to do this include imaging devices. Electroencephalography (EEG) measures electrical activity in the brain, but only allows for broad implications in the areas of activation. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) allows for more localized assessment through measuring cerebral blood flow, however the machinery is limiting in measuring practices that can not be completed laying down. Positron emission tomography (PET) and single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) allow for more specificity in measuring neurotransmitter systems in brain activation. It is important to note that all of these measures, while helpful can only provide correlations and should not be implied to measure causal effects. Literature Review From what has been observed, religious experiences are common across age, time and culture (Wach, 1951). Many understand religious experience to be like any other experience. Just as someone may feel joy, love, fear, or awe in regards to any ordinary object, in a religious experience all these same feelings are there, they are just superimposed towards a religious object. Previously it was proposed that the same limbic and subcortical networks that supported non-religious feelings were activated in experiencing religious feelings as well (Saver Ravin, 1997). This led to a substantial inference that religious experiences are generated as a difference in perception, rather than a difference in sensation. Essentially, Saver and Ravin supposed that individuals interpret a religious stimulus in unique ways according to the cognitive expectations that they carry. In 2001, researchers conducted a study to see if religious experience was in fact due to attribution as Saver and Rabin suggested or if these experiences were pre-conceptual. To test this, they observed brain activation via positron emission tomography (PET) scan in religious/non-religious subjects as they recited a psalm. They hypothesized that if the religious experience was an attributional phenomenon, there would be activation in the frontal parietal lobe, an area known for reasoning. However if pre-conceptual, they expected to see activation in the limbic system, which is in charge of emotions. Interestingly enough, they found that a religious state involved areas of cognitive processes, supporting the attribution phenomenon (Azari et. al, 2001). They also concluded that religious experience did not elicit the same emotional experience or arousal as compared to non-religious subjects in a happy state, furthering the evidence for the theory of attribution. While the results from this study have led to the understanding of the difference between mental states in religious and non-religious subjects, it does not isolate the variable of belief itself. This becomes especially important when religious experience is understood as logical cognitive process. It begs the question, where do these cognitions originate? In a study completed in 2009, researchers found that religious thinking is more associated with the ventromedial prefrontal cortex, a region that governs emotion, self-representation, and cognitive conflict, whereas ordinary facts were more reliant on memory retrieval networks (Harris et. al, 2009). So while this still supports the theory that religious experience and thought come from a logical part of our brains, it adds another layer, claiming that we still deal with religion in an emotional way. Beauregaurd and Paquette (2008) used fMRI scans to observe brain activation in Carmelite nuns when asked to re-experience their most intense spiritual connection. Results indicated that there was significant overlap in activation of those nuns asked to re-experience an intense spiritual interaction and those asked to relive an intense human interaction. However, there was greater activation in the prefrontal cortex, medial temporal cortex, and insular cortex for those participants in the spiritual group. The most interesting of these activations was in the insular cortex as this part of the brain is implied in interpreting visceral stimuli. This infers that those with a spiritual experience â€Å"felt† their connection deep down within in their bodies. McNarma hypothesized that the activation in the frontal lobes may have implications for the intrinsically rewarding properties of spiritual experiences (McNamara, 2002). This supposition may explain why spiritual or religious ex periences may feel so good. Conclusion Overall, imaging studies seem to indicate the frontal lobes and limbic system are involved in various religious and spiritual experiences (Newberg, 2014). It is important to note that with the methodological discrepancies in the field there is still a great amount of within group variance that should continue to be explored. Spiritual experiences such as prayer, mediation, or even pilgrimage such as in Jerusalem Syndrome are naturalistically powerful events. Through studying the mechanisms that lie beneath these events, psychologists may be able to identify the healing components and in turn inspire the development of the human psyche. References Azari N., Nickel J, Wunderlich G, Niedeggen M, Hefter H, et al. (2001). Neural correlates of religious experience. European Journal of Neuroscience, 13, 1649–1652. Beauregard, M., Paquette, V. (2008). EEG activity in Carmelite nuns during a mystical experience. Neuroscience Letters, 4441-4. doi:10.1016/j.neulet.2008.08.028. Boden, M.A. (2006). Mind as Machine: A history of cognitive science. (Vol . 1). Oxford, England: Clarendon. Freud, S. (1950). Totem and taboo (J. Stratchey, Trans.). New York: Norton Company. (Original work published in 1913). Harris, S., Kaplan, J. T., Curiel, A., Bookheimer, S. Y., Iacoboni, M., Cohen, M. S. (2009). The neural correlates of religious and nonreligious belief. Plos ONE, 4(10), 1-9. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0007272. Hugdahl, K. (1996). Cognitive inà ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å¡uences on human autonomic nervous systemfunction. Current Opinion: Neurobiology. 6, 252–258. doi: 10.1016/S0959-4388(96) 80080-8. James, W. (1981). The varieties of religious experience. New York: Penguin. Jones, D. (2010). Peering into peoples brains: Neurosciences intrusion into our inner sanctum. Perspectives On Science Christian Faith, 62(2), 122-132. Kalain, M., and Witztum, E. (2002). Jerusalem syndrome as reflected in the pilgrimage and biographies of four extraordinary women from the 14th century to the end of the second millennium. Mental health, religion culture, 5(1). doi: 10.108/13670110068505 McNamara, P. H. (2002). The motivational origins of religious practices. Zygon, 37(1), 143-160. Newberg, A.B. (2014). The neuroscientific study of spiritual practice. Frontiers in psychology (5:215), doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2014.00215. Pargament, K. I. (2007). Spiritually integrated psychotherapy: Understanding and addressing the sacred. New York: Guilford Press. Saver, J., Rabin, J. (1997). The neural substrates of religious experience. Journal of neuropsychiatry, 9(3), 498-510. Shafranske, E.P. Malony, H.M. (1996) Religion and the clinical practice of clinical psychology: a case for inclusion. In E.P. Shafranske (Ed.), Religion and the clinical practice of psychotherapy , 561-586. Washington DC: American Psychological Association. Skinner, B.F. (1971). Beyond freedom and dignity. New York: Knopf. Smith, T. (2010, August 15). When art makes a strong impression. Baltimore Sun, pp. 1, 7. Wach, J. (1951). Types of religious experience. (pp. 30-47). Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Wildman, W. J., McNamara, P. (2008). Challenges facing the neurological study of religious behavior, belief, and experience. Method Theory In The Study Of Religion, 20(3), 212- 242. doi:10.1163/157006808X317455

Mahtab’s Story Essay

INTRODUCTION I1. Overcoming Obstacles shows a journey of where an individual is facing serious difficulties in life, and then finds ways to overcome their personal trials. (Thesis/Main idea) I2. Mahtab’s Story, a novel by one of Australia’s best-loved children’s authors – Libby Gleeson, is inspired by true events through the main character Mahtab and her family’s experiences of Overcoming Obstacles. (Introducing your texts) I3. Mahtab’s Story explores Overcoming Obstacles through the character’s events, such as (1) Mahtab being responsible in taking care and protecting her younger siblings, (2) accepting their loss of belongings in order for Mahtab’s family to travel to Australia and (3) being open to Australia’s culture in their life. (Arguments) BODY (FIRST) Point= Example= Technique: Explanation= Overcoming Obstacles: Overcoming Obstacles shows a journey of where an individual is facing serious difficulties in life, and then finds ways to overcome their personal trials. (Thesis) Mahtab being responsible in taking care and protecting her younger siblings 1. Topic Sentence: In Mahtab’s Story, the main character has the expectation of taking care and protecting her younger sibling which she Mahtab is a young girl who has two younger siblings, named Farhad and Soroya. It is her task to make sure that they are safe and entertain them. This is a large responsibility and expectation for a 12 years old girl. ‘Mahtab cuddled her and said, ‘dad would never let anything bad happened to you’. This is an example of direct speech where Mahtab lives up to her expectation as an older sibling by providing care and protection for her sister. 2. Link back to Introduction / essay question. 3. of leaving their loved ones and friends behind 4. Mahtab’s family were afraid of the Taliban and had fear in their country. They left in secret marking the beginning of their journey from Afghanistan and to Australia. (SECOND) Overcoming Obstacles shows a journey of where an individual is facing serious difficulties in life, and then finds ways to overcome their personal trials. (Thesis) accepting their loss of belongings in order for Mahtab’s family to travel to Australia P Mahtab and her family were forced to give away almost everything they had with them in order to safely travel to Australia. ‘Mahtab slid the bracelet into her hand. ‘Give them this, Mum.’ She pressed the bracelet into her mother’s hand. T: Kinesthetic Imagery E : This is an example of Overcoming Obstacles as Mahtab had volunteered to give up her beloved Grandmother’s bracelet in order to help her family travel overseas. (THIRD) Topic Sentence: P Mahtab and her family went to Australia knowing that they have to learn a new language, learn about their culture and to leave behind Afghanistan. Repetition is shown in ‘Stranger in a strange land. This is not my place. These are not my people.’ E – At first, Mahtab’s family thought that they will get the opportunity to have a better life and freedom. Overcoming Obstacles is seen as this quote accurately shows how Mahtab’s family escaped Afghanistan though they feel very sad, uncomfortable and unwelcome in Australia; instead of freedom, they are sent to a detention centre. Link back to question. CONCLUSION I1. Overcoming Obstacles shows a journey of where an individual is facing serious difficulties in life, and then finds ways to overcome their personal trials. Mahtab’s Story written by Libby Gleeson is based on by true events as the main character experiences of Overcoming Obstacles. Mahtab’s Story shows Overcoming Obstacles through events in the novel, such as Mahtab being responsible in taking care and protecting her younger siblings, accepting  their loss of belongings in order for Mahtab’s family to travel to Australia and being open to Australia’s culture in their life. Mahtab and her family members had seriously faced a lot of difficult challenges throughout them travelling from Afghanistan to Australia without being seen by anyone. This Overcoming Obstacle of what Mahtab and her family faced like Losing everything they got, more expectation from Mahtab and moving to another country are very strong and amazingly accomplished.

Medical Nursing Essay

1. George Brown, 72 years of age, is a male patient who is admitted with the diagnosis of acute pulmonary edema secondary to acute left ventricular heart failure. The patient has a history of coronary artery disease that has been treated medically. The patient is anxious, pale, cold, clammy, and dyspneic. The vital signs are: blood pressure 88/50 mm Hg, heart rate 110 bpm, respiratory rate 32 breaths/min, and temperature 97 °F. There are bubbling crackles and wheezing throughout the lung fields and the patient is raising frothy blood-tinged clear sputum. The patient’s admission weight is 100 kg. a.What first actions should the nurse take and what are the rationales for these actions? The physician ordered furosemide (Lasix) 40 mg IVP STAT. b.What are the actions of furosemide that will help the patient? c.What nursing actions should be implemented when administering a diuretic? 2. Carl Edwards is a 75-year-old man with congestive heart failure. Having sustained three myocardial infarctions in the last 10 years, he has decreased left ventricular function. Mr. Edwards takes Digoxin, Capoten, Coreg, and Lasix for management of this disease. Today he presents to the emergency department with fatigue, generalized weakness, and feelings of â€Å"skipping† heartbeats. Upon arrival, he is placed on the cardiac monitor, his vital signs are assessed, and an IV is inserted. He currently denies chest pain, but is experiencing some shortness of breath, and is placed on 2 L of oxygen via nasal cannula. a.Which of his medications might be contributing to his symptoms of generalized weakness and heart irregularities? b.For what clinical manifestations should you assess to correlate to his left-sided heart failure? c.How do his medications treat his congestive heart failure? d.How does the hypokalemia affect the effects of Digitalis?

The book Jurassic Park - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 3 Words: 760 Downloads: 10 Date added: 2019/08/15 Category Cinematographic Art Essay Level High school Tags: Jurassic Park Essay Did you like this example? When people think of movies that came from books, they usually think it is quite the same. Although, some movies can have different plots or even different characters than the book. Jurassic Park has a few differences in the plot, comparing the movie and the book. There are also many personality changes in characters between the two. The book, Jurassic Park, was written by Michael Crichton. It was first published on November 20th, 1990. The book is five hundred pages of a doctor, John Hammond, trying to bring dinosaurs back from extinction. Most of the book takes place on an island called Isla Nublar, eight miles long and one hundred miles off of Costa Rica. The story also takes place at Jurassic Park, a theme park still under construction. The theme park includes labs, a control room, and Dr. Hammonds home. The construction for a hotel and other buildings was still going on. The island was intended to provide a zoo, nature preserve, and hotels soon enough. It all took place about two hundred years before the book was written. This book is considered a classic because it is about a doctor trying to bring dinosaurs back to life. Dinosaurs once lived and none of us really got to experience that. This book offers such realistic characterization that could actually show us how the world was with dinosaurs in it. Jura ssic Park shows us characteristics and even the lifestyles of dinosaurs and people who were once around them. Something this book says that could last a lifetime is that everything will once evolve and there is not much you could do about it or bring it back. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "The book Jurassic Park" essay for you Create order The movie, Jurassic Park, was directed by Steven Spielberg. It first came out on June 11, 1993. The director showed Jeff Goldblum as Dr. Malcolm, Laura Dern as Ellie, Sam Neill as Dr. Grant, Lex as Ariana Richards, and Joseph Mazzello as Tim. Tim and Lex are sisters, as they are in the book as well. Although, in the book, Lex is Tims younger sister. In the movie, Lex is older than Tim. In the book Tim was good with computers, but in the movie, it was Lex that was good with computers. Tim was a huge fan of dinosaurs in the book and the movie. Lex was more of a tomboy in the book. Personality is the key point to a character. In result, the personality changes between the book and the movie was brought to my attention. In the book, Dr. Grant has lots of love for kids. In spite of the fact that, in the movie, he doesnt really like kids and says they are messy, noisy, expensive, and they smell. Another difference in characters is that in the book, Lex is younger and loves dinosaurs. The older character is Tim which deals with all the technology to save the day. In the movie, the character Ellie works with a sick Triceratops, but in the book, that dinosaurs is a Stegosaurus. The vehicles that they use for tours in the movie and the book are also different. In the movie, they use Ford Explorers. As for the book, they were using Land Cruisers. A major plot difference between the movie and the book is the absence of the procompsognathus dinosaur. This dinosaur plays a lot of parts in the book. In the opening of the book, a young girl on vacation with her family gets attacked by a procompsognathus dinosaur. The film does not even include the little girl or the dinosaurs escaping the island. Another scene that was changed was the scene of Dr. Hammond was attacked. When Dr. Hammond was recording a T-rexs roar, he fell down and broke his ankle. He was then attacked and eaten alive by the procompsognathus dinosaur. Multiple scenes were changed or even deleted by just removing the dinosaur. Even though there are many key differences, the movie and book of Jurassic Park have some similarities as well. Both the movie and the book are based on Dr. Hammond, the billionaire that is obsessed with dinosaurs. Dr. Hammond goes through many difficulties throughout the movie and the book to try to get the dinosaurs back from the dead. Another scene that was similar in the movie and the book was the construction worker incident. The construction worker was putting the dinosaur into the security cage in both the book and the movie. The worker was then attacked by the dinosaur and never returned. The family ended up suing the Jurassic Park company for lots of money.