IS IT THINK > FEEL > DO OR MAYBE THE FEELING INFORMS THE THINKING?

 IS IT THINK > FEEL > DO OR MAYBE THE FEELING INFORMS THE THINKING?

Great to attend the Jersey Business Productivity Conference today, and hear from Jamil Qureshi, a performance-enhancing psychologist and an expert in high-performing teams. 

Research has suggested that the process of feeling an emotion can often occur before we have had time to fully process or think about a situation. This is believed to be a result of our evolutionary history, where rapid emotional responses could have been beneficial for survival.

One of the studies supporting this idea is "The somatic marker hypothesis and the possible functions of the prefrontal cortex" by Antonio Damasio. Damasio's Somatic Marker Hypothesis suggests that emotions (which manifest physically in our bodies) help guide our decision-making process. According to this hypothesis, when we're faced with a decision, emotions associated with past experiences can help guide our choices before we consciously deliberate over them.

Another relevant study is "Emotion speeds up perceptual decision making" by Marius Usher and colleagues. The researchers found that emotional stimuli can hasten the brain's decision-making processes, effectively allowing individuals to react more quickly when emotions are involved.

Joseph Ledoux's Work, such as the book "The Emotional Brain The Mysterious Underpinnings of Emotional Life", also emphasizes that our brains process emotional stimuli through a 'low road' that bypasses the cerebral cortex (the part of the brain responsible for conscious thought), leading to quicker emotional responses.

These studies provide a broad scientific basis for the idea that emotions can precede conscious thought. However, the exact details can vary depending on the specifics of the situation and the individual person.

The human brain is incredibly complex, and while we've made great strides in understanding it, there's still a lot we don't know. Neuroscience is an active field of research, and new discoveries could continue to change our understanding of how emotions and thoughts interact.

WHEN IS IT THINK > FEEL > DO?

Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) is a type of psychotherapy that teaches individuals how to identify and change destructive or disturbing thought patterns that have a negative influence on behavior and emotions. The primary goal of CBT is to help individuals learn to become their own therapists, understanding and controlling their thoughts and behaviors.

Here's a brief summary of how CBT can help us pause and think before we act

AWARENESS OF THOUGHTS AND FEELINGS: The first step in CBT is to help individuals recognize their automatic thoughts and emotional responses to certain situations. This could mean noticing when you're feeling anxious, angry, or upset, and what thoughts are associated with these feelings.

IDENTIFY NEGATIVE OR DISTORTED THINKING: After recognizing the automatic thoughts, the next step is to identify when these thoughts might be based on cognitive distortions or 'faulty thinking' patterns. This can include things like catastrophizing (assuming the worst will happen), overgeneralizing (believing that one negative event means everything will go wrong), or black-and-white thinking (seeing everything in extremes with no middle ground).

CHALLENGE AND CHANGE NEGATIVE THINKING: Once the negative or distorted thinking has been identified, CBT then helps individuals challenge these thoughts. This could mean asking for evidence for and against a thought, considering alternative explanations, or using problem-solving techniques to handle difficult situations.

PRACTICE AND APPLY NEW SKILLS: Finally, CBT involves applying these skills in real-life situations. This means that in situations where you might react automatically, you instead pause, recognize your thoughts and feelings, challenge any negative or distorted thinking, and then choose a different course of action based on this more balanced perspective.

In essence, CBT helps people learn to interrupt automatic thought and reaction patterns, enabling them to pause, evaluate their thoughts and feelings, and choose a more considered course of action.

Really interested in the science of Thinking Feeling Doing - so much so that I named my business ThinkingFeelingBeing!

Tim HJ Rogers

ICF Trained Coach, IoD Business Mentor, Mediator
MBA Management Consultant + Change Practitioner
Commonwealth Triathlete, World Champs Rower & 4 x GB Gold Medallist
Mob 447797762051 Tim@AdaptConsultingCompany.com
Home International Regatta Programme.
Athlete Centered, Performance Focussed, Data Driven
Our Aim: To podium at the Coastal Rowing Home International Regatta events, every year for 4 years.

REFERENCES:

Hofmann, S. G., Asnaani, A., Vonk, I. J., Sawyer, A. T., & Fang, A. (2012). The Efficacy Of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy A Review Of Meta-Analyses. Cognitive Therapy And Research, 36(5), 427–440. Https://Doi.Org/10.1007/S10608-012-9476-1

Damasio, A. R. (1996). The Somatic Marker Hypothesis And The Possible Functions Of The Prefrontal Cortex. Philosophical Transactions Of The Royal Society Of London. Series B, Biological Sciences, 351(1346), 1413–1420. Https://Doi.Org/10.1098/Rstb.1996.0125

Usher, M., Russo, Z., Weyers, M., Brauner, R., & Zakay, D. (1999). Emotion Speeds Up Perceptual Decision Making. Nature Neuroscience, 2(11), 966–970.

Ledoux, J. (1996). The Emotional Brain The Mysterious Underpinnings Of Emotional Life. Simon & Schuster.