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How we act and react (our behaviour) is the outcome of:

A Stimulus: An event or more specifically, a reaction to an event.

Our Neurology: What happens in our brain.

and our Psychology: What goes on in our mind.

Some behaviour is hardcoded genetically in our DNA.

Most is a gift passed down from our ancestors, forefathers and parents.

And, a tiny bit we learn from our own experiences.

Our Brain is made up of 100 billion brain cells, and we create new ones every day.

Neuron’s transmit electrical signals around the brain and nervous systems.

Synapses connect neuron’s to each other through tiny chemicals connectors called neurotransmitters.

Neuron’s pass the signal along the line (via the synapses) to tell us what to think about, and how to act or react.

And when we repeat a pattern the behaviour it is hardcoded into the brain as a neural pathway.

These pathways contain our behaviour instructions (how to act and react) when an incoming stimulus is received.

So the next time we face the same or similar event or environment we act again the same hard wired way.

This process of pattern repeat is how and why David Beckham perfected his free kicks, and how others develop their patterns.

It’s also how you develop and reinforce your own healthy and unhealthy patterns.

This image shows the intensity of brain activity and the associated neural pathways.

Notice the bright red arc, the most intense region, that’s the Limbic System.

Its this region of the brain which ultimately determines how we act and react

The central location of this limbic structure ensures that everything we see, hear, taste, touch and smell goes into here first.

It’s also where memory is managed, the emotional responses are housed, and has significant control of the nervous system,

This is a 3D print of the Limbic system, taken from an MRI scan.

The central pale blue part is our central processing unit which receives all inbound senses.

The flat orange section at the bottom, is responsible for memory management, what to remember, and how to recall it.

The red blob is the amygdala, which houses our fear-based emotions. If you have a temper, this is the button people often press.

You can see a dark blue thread connecting that red blob to a white-pointed structure.

That white structure is responsible for hormone release.

This collection of Neuron’s plays a huge part in our behaviour.

It tells the rest of the brain (and in turn the body) what to concentrate on, what to think about, and whether to act or react.

It largely determines our, and other peoples behaviour

Understanding this structure is at the heart of the work I do.

The next question is, what can be done about it?

If human behaviour is a subject of interest to you search my blog for opinion pieces on behaviour.

If you’ve some behaviours you’d like to change, please get in touch.