The Emotional Life of the Brain
Presenter:
Dr. Richard Davidson
Time:
17:55
Summary
Dr. Richard Davidson, a psychologist and neuroscientist, delves into the intricacies of human resilience and vulnerability in "The Emotional Life of the Brain." He shares pivotal moments, including his encounter with the Dalai Lama, that shaped his journey toward understanding kindness and compassion alongside anxiety and stress.
Transcript
I'm a psychologist and a neuroscientist by training. When I first began my career, I began with a question. Why is it that some people are more vulnerable to life's slings and arrows than others more resilient?
And that question is still central to all the work that we do. And we're particularly interested in how we can nudge people along this continuum, to nourish and nurture the qualities that promote human flourishing. In the early part of my career, I focused almost exclusively on the negative side of the equation on adversity on the brain circuits that were important for understanding why some people are more vulnerable to stress, why others may be more
likely to develop a depression or anxiety.