In this engaging discussion, Professor Bruce Hood, a noted developmental psychologist and author, unpacks the intriguing idea that our sense of self is an illusion shaped by childhood experiences. He argues that the self arises from social interactions and is deeply linked to brain development. Hood explores how perceptions and narratives construct our identities, the effects of stress on behavior, and the challenges of self-identity in the digital age, highlighting the crucial role of real-life connections amid online personas.
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insights INSIGHT
Protracted Childhood For Social Learning
Human brains have extended childhood plasticity to encode social interactions and tribal roles.
Social brain areas mature late to support complex intersubjectivity and group living.
question_answer ANECDOTE
Developmental Milestones Of Identity
Hood summarizes milestones: mirror self-recognition, gender categorization, and theory of mind.
These steps show how children build an identity tied to social categories and groups.
insights INSIGHT
Theory Of Mind Shapes Social Self
Theory of mind is essential for intersubjectivity and seeing others as separate agents.
Lacking it (e.g., autism) impairs social integration and shapes identity differently.
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Most of us believe that we are unique and coherent individuals, but are we?
The idea of a “Self” has existed ever since humans began to live in groups and become sociable. Those who embrace the self as an individual in the West, or a member of the group in the East, feel fulfilled and purposeful. This experience seems incredibly real, but a wealth of recent scientific evidence reveals that this notion of the independent, coherent self is an illusion – it is not what it seems.
In this talk, Professor Bruce Hood reveals how the self emerges during childhood and how the architecture of the developing brain enables us to become social animals dependent on each other. You’ll learn how the self is the product of our relationships and interactions with others, and it exists only in our brains. Prof Hood argues, however, that though the self is an illusion, it is one that humans cannot live without.
Professor Bruce Hood is the Professor of Developmental Psychology in Society in the School of Experimental Psychology at the University of Bristol. He has been a research fellow at Cambridge University and University College London, a visiting scientist at MIT and a faculty professor at Harvard.
He has been awarded an Alfred Sloan Fellowship in neuroscience, the Young Investigator Award from the International Society of Infancy Researchers, the Robert Fantz memorial award and voted to Fellowship status by the society of American Psychological Science.
He is the founder of the world’s largest expert speaker database Speakezee.org, and the bestselling author of ”Supersense”, ‘The Self Illusion”, and the ”Domesticated Brain.’ His new book, “Possessed” is published by Allen Lane in 2019.
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