Lessons from Neuroscience and Experimental Psychology for a Partnership Society

Abstract

This century has seen explosive growth in our knowledge about the human brain and mind due to recent advances in neuroscience, experimental psychology, and neural network modeling, and convergence between those fields. The scientific findings that have emerged confirm that humans have evolved for partnership and cooperation at least as much as they have evolved for domination and competition. Moreover, the findings suggest that partnership interactions promote optimal brain functioning.

Mind and Heart As Partners

“…More speculatively, could an analogous addiction mechanism also account for some people's continuing to stay in abusive relationships, or their persistent attraction to toxic leadership and dominator interactions? Much evidence exists that partnership interactions promote optimal brain function more than do dominator interactions (Eisler & Levine, 2002;Levine, 2015). Yet the persistent abuse of dominator interactions might hijack the brain's dopamine pathways and make the replenishment of dopamine dependent on further abuse.…”

“…Implications of the Compassionate Revolution in different domains of life are discussed in Levine (2015;2018; and summarized here. All of these implications are based on some key organizing principles that differentiate a partnership society from a dominator society.…”