The misunderstood chemical
Vision, our primary sense, holds a dominant role in shaping our perception of the world. Our eyes, intricate organs capable of capturing and processing vast amounts of visual information, provide us with a rich and detailed understanding of our surroundings.Visual information is processed rapidly by the brain, allowing us to react quickly to changes in our environment. Our eyes can perceive a wide range of details, from fine textures to distant objects. A significant portion of human learning is visual. We learn through images, diagrams, and demonstrations. Facial expressions, body language, and eye contact are crucial for effective communication and social bonding.
Hardly surprising, therefore, that the other senses get little attention and must play 'second fiddle' to vision. The McGurk Effect is a fascinating perceptual phenomenon that demonstrates the powerful influence of vision on auditory perception.
When we see a person's lips moving to form one sound, but hear a different sound, our brain often combines the two sensory inputs to create a third, perceived sound. This illusion highlights how our brain prioritises visual information, even when it conflicts with auditory input.
We think we 'know' vision. It is familiar and therefore supposedly easy to understand. Yet it is so easily fooled with optical illusions, such as the movement we create out of 16 frames of static images as we watch a movie. Few people understand that in order to scan a visual situation, we have to be blind for a significant amount of time as our eye saccade.
In a similar way, our understanding of our bodily systems seems to be dominated by the cardiac and respiratory systems, probably as a result of their importance to staying alive. But, by and large, in most circumstances, these systems are fairly simple and predictable, based on simple mechanical principles of pressure and oxygen transfer.
The endocrine system is far more important than most other systems in terms of human behaviour and survival. Hormones can create a signal in our gut when we are disgusted, even by abstract or hypothetical stimulus. Think how we people are sick when they observe a horrific shooting, even though they may not be in any immediate danger. It is hormones that are mediating much of what we do - it is not about avoiding danger or staying alive - it is about surviving the social context in which we must live as helpless naked apes.
Working in conjunction with the endocrine system is the nervous system, especially the brain. It is the brain that triggers hormonal activity, but which is also 'trained' by these hormones. Chronic stress, which involves the release of stress hormones like cortisol, can have long-lasting effects on the brain, including impaired memory and increased risk of mental health disorders.
Some neurotransmitters, such as norepinephrine, also known as noradrenaline, is a chemical that acts as both a neurotransmitter and a hormone and plays an essential role in the regulation of arousal, attention, cognitive function, and stress reactions.
Among the least understood of the neurotransmitters that regulate our behaviour is dopamine. Commonly thought to be the 'pleasure chemical' of the brain, dopamine is misunderstood in its function as part of the 'reward system'.
The conventional understanding of rewards is that they follow an incident. Old video documentaries show pigeons given a reward when they press a button. The classic idea, often manifesting in child-rearing, is "If you do X, you will get a reward (afterwards)." "Clean your room and then you can go out and play cricket."
You might not be surprised to find that this system is rarely effective. The reason is simple. This is not how dopamine and our biological 'reward' system works.
Essentially, in the evolutionary landscape, acquiring food is hard work. Too often, the chase simply does not reward. In many species, success in hunting barely seems to justify the effort. However, should a species decide not to hunt (or gather) because the pay-off is too slim, they quickly disappear. Any organism that can motivate the individual to pursue what much of the time is a futile quest automatically has an advantage over others.
Of course, too many futile missions can lead to exhaustion and death, but the probabilities are favourable. If ten missions give one success and a full belly, this is success. This is the archetypical 'long game'. This is where dopamine comes in.
Experiments show that dopamine levels are highest not after the tasks, but before. The 'feel good potion' persuades, not rewards. But this is not all, not at all. If the outcome is more doubtful (that is, more missions are likely to fail), higher level of nature's motivator are needed to sustain the long game. Thus, dopamine levels are higher when the outcome is uncertain. In fact, certain outcomes (do they trick, get the treat) cause dopamine levels to decay.
As if this were not counter-intuitive enough, the dopamine system has other special features in humans that form part of our biological propensity for tribalism. When a human is issuing righteous punishment, dopamine levels 'hit the roof'. We are 'wired' to eliminate the traitor or to punish heavily breaches of social rules. No surprise, therefore, that elections are fought so hard over 'law and order' despite there no being a jot of evidence to demonstrate that harsher penalties change criminal behaviour.
But, of more interest is those who lack dopamine. Researchers now tie this condition firmly with ADHD. Those who live with ADHD are not lazy. They simply lack a chemical needed to motivate them to do what is needed. Instead of setting out on 9 unsuccessful missions, they rationally evaluate the chances for each event. Most simply do not gamble because they know the odds are stacked against them. Most are incredibly cautious about purchases, fearing that they might 'make a mistake'.
And many seek recreation that has a known reward. They do not jump out of aeroplanes. They don't like surprises.
Society in general needs to better understand dopamine. It could be a way in to understanding a large section of our population.
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