Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Neuroscience, Resilience, and the Embodiment of “Mental” Disorder

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Critical Thinking in Clinical Assessment and Diagnosis

Part of the book series: Essential Clinical Social Work Series ((ECSWS))

  • 3163 Accesses

Abstract

The transdiagnostic perspective described in this chapter focuses on the core neurocognitive processes that underpin and cut across a broad array of psychosocial disorders. Beginning with a discussion of stress, cognitive appraisal, and adaptation, chapter authors demonstrate how a downward spiral of stress, negative emotion, biased cognition, and maladaptive coping can disrupt the normal healthy functioning of brain and body and result in the maladaptive patterns that underlie a range of mental disorders. Each of the processes that contribute to this downward spiral is explored in depth: automaticity, attentional bias, memory bias, interpretation bias, and thought suppression. An analysis of resilience follows, indicating a pathway for a corrective “upward spiral” that draws on the broaden-and-build theory in which positive emotions broaden individuals’ repertoires of cognition, affective response, and behavior through adaptive neuroplasticity and thereby build lasting internal resources. The chapter then explores the neurobiological evidence for the role of mindfulness in enabling individuals to extricate themselves from the stress reaction by facilitating cognitive reappraisal and responding with less emotional distortion and cognitive bias. It concludes by suggesting that a transdiagnostic approach can offer an effective means of case conceptualization and selection of targeted, actionable, and effective interventions.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 39.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Hardcover Book
USD 69.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Notes

  1. 1.

    We are adopting the term disorder to represent a higher order category that subsumes various forms of interpersonal and intrapersonal suffering, involving disruptive changes in cognition, emotion, physiology, and social interactions that prevent adaptive functioning. Our use of this term is found on the Merriam-Webster definition of the transitive verb: v) meaning to disturb the regular functions of. We wish to distinguish our use of the term form the standard psychiatric definition, which implies the presence of a static disease entity stemming from genetically driven structural brain abnormalities.

References

  • Baer, R. A., Smith, G. T., Hopkins, J., Krietemeyer, J., & Toney, L. (2006). Using self-report assessment methods to explore facets of mindfulness. Assessment, 13, 27–45.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bandura, A. (1991). Social cognitive theory of self-regulation. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 50, 248–287.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bargh, J. A., & Chartrand, T. L. (1999). The unbearable automaticity of being. American Psychologist, 54, 462–479.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bateson, G. (1972). Steps to an ecology of mind. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Beck, A. T., Rush, A. J., Shaw, B. F., & Emery, G. (1979). Cognitive therapy of depression. New York, NY: Guilford.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bishop, S. R., Lau, M., Shapiro, S., Carlson, L., Anderson, N. D., Carmody, J., et al. (2004). Mindfulness: A proposed operational definition. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice, 11(3), 230–241.

    Google Scholar 

  • Block, J. H., & Block, J. (1980). The role of ego-control and ego-resiliency in the origination of behavior. In W. A. Collings (Ed.), The Minnesota symposia on child psychology, 13, 39–101.

    Google Scholar 

  • Block, J., & Kremen, A. M. (1996). IQ and ego-resiliency: Conceptual and empirical connections and separateness. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 70, 349–361.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brading, A. (1999). The autonomic nervous system and its effectors. Malden, MA: Blackwell Science.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cannon, W. B. (1939). The wisdom of the body (2nd ed.). New York: Norton (original work published 1932).

    Google Scholar 

  • Chrousos, G. P., & Gold, P. W. (1992). The concepts of stress and stress system disorders: Overview of physical and behavioral homeostasis. Journal American Medical Association, 267, 1244–1252.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Compas, B. E. (2006). Psychological processes of stress and coping. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1094, 226–234.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Connor-Smith, J. K., Compas, B. E., Wadsworth, M. E., Thomsen, A. H., & Saltzman, H. (2000). Responses to stress in adolescence: Measurement of coping and involuntary stress responses. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 68, 976–992.

    Google Scholar 

  • Davidson, R. J. (2004). What does the prefrontal cortex “do” in affect: Perspectives on frontal EEG asymmetry research. Biological Psychology, 67(1–2), 219–233.

    Google Scholar 

  • de Lange, F. P., Koers, A., Kalkman, J. S., Bleijenberg, G., Hagoort, P., van der Meer, J. W., et al. (2008). Increase in prefrontal cortical volume following cognitive behavioural therapy in patients with chronic fatigue syndrome. Brain, 131, 2172–2180.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • DeLongis, A., & Holtzman, S. (2005). Coping in context: The role of stress, social support, and personality in coping. Journal of Personality, 73, 1–24.

    Google Scholar 

  • De Raedt, R., Baert, S., Demeyer, I., Goeleven, E., Raes, A., Visser, A., et al. (2011). Changes in attentional processing of emotional information following mindfulness-based cognitive therapy in people with a history of depression: Towards an open attention for all emotional experiences. Cognitive Therapy and Research, 36, 1–9.

    Google Scholar 

  • Desimone, R., & Duncan, J. (1995). Neural mechanisms of selective visual attention. Annual Review of Neuroscience, 18, 193–222.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dias-Ferreira, E., Sousa, J. C., Melo, I., Morgado, P., Mesquita, A. R., Cerqueira, J. J., et al. (2009). Chronic stress causes frontostriatal reorganization and affects decision-making. Science, 325, 621–625.

    Google Scholar 

  • Eisenberg, L. (2004). Social psychiatry and the human genome: Contextualising heritability. British Journal of Psychiatry, 184, 101–103.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Engel, G. L. (1977). The need for a new medical model: A challenge for biomedicine. Science, 196(4286), 129–136.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Eriksson, P. S., Perfilieva, E., Bjork-Eriksson, T., Alborn, A. M., Nordborg, C., Peterson, D. A., et al. (1998). Neurogenesis in the adult human hippocampus. Nature Medicine, 4(11), 1313–1317.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Field, M., Munafo, M. R., & Franken, I. H. (2009). A meta-analytic investigation of the relationship between attentional bias and subjective craving in substance abuse. Psychological Bulletin, 135, 589–607.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Folkman, S., & Moskowitz, J. T. (2000). Positive affect and the other side of coping. American Psychologist, 55(6), 647–654.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fredrickson, B. L. (1998). What good are positive emotions? Review of General Psychology, 2(3), 300–319.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fredrickson, B. L. (2001). The broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions. American Psychologist, 56(3), 218–226.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fredrickson, B. L. (2003). The value of positive emotions: The emerging science of positive psychology is coming to understand why it’s good to feel good. American Scientist, 91, 330–335.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fredrickson, B. L. (2009). Positivity: Groundbreaking research reveals how to embrace the hidden strength of positive emotions, overcome negativity, and thrive. New York: Crown Publishing Group.

    Google Scholar 

  • Friedman, R. S., & Förster, J. (2010). Implicit affective cues and attentional tuning: An integrative review. Psychological Bulletin, 136(5), 875.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Garland, E. L. (2013). Mindfulness-oriented recovery enhancement for addiction, stress, and pain. Washington, DC: NASW Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Garland, E. L., Fredrickson, B. L., Kring, A. M., Johnson, D. P., Meyer, P. S., & Penn, D. L. (2010a). Upward spirals of positive emotions counter downward spirals of negativity: Insights from the broaden-and-build theory and affective neuroscience on the treatment of emotion dysfunctions and deficits in psychopathology. Clinical Psychology Review, 30, 849–864.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Garland, E. L., Gaylord, S. A., Boettiger, C. A., & Howard, M. O. (2010b). Mindfulness training modifies cognitive, affective, and physiological mechanisms implicated in alcohol dependence: Results from a randomized controlled pilot trial. Journal of Psychoactive Drugs, 42, 177–192.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Garland, E. L., & Fredrickson, B. A. (2013). Mindfulness broadens awareness and builds meaning at the attention-emotion interface. In T. B. Kashdan & J. Ciarrochi (Eds.), Linking acceptance and commitment therapy and positive psychology: A practitioner’s guide to a unifying framework (pp. 30–67). Oakland, CA: New Harbinger Publications, Inc.

    Google Scholar 

  • Garland, E. L., Froeliger, B. E., Passik, S. D., & Howard, M. O. (2013). Attentional bias for prescription opioid cues among opioid dependent chronic pain patients. Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 36, 611–620.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Garland, E. L., & Howard, M. O. (2009). Neuroplasticity, psychosocial genomics, and the biopsychosocial paradigm in the 21st century. Health and Social Work, 34(3), 191–200.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Garland, E. L., & Howard, M. O. (2013). Mindfulness-oriented recovery enhancement reduces pain attentional bias in chronic pain patients. Psychother Psychosomatics, 82(5), 311–318.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Garland, E. L., & Howard, M. O. (2014). A transdiagnostic perspective on cognitive, affective, and neurobiological processes underlying human suffering. Research on Social Work Practice, 24(1), 142–151.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gottlieb, B. H. (1997). Coping with chronic stress. New York: Plenium Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Goyal, M., Singh, S., Sibinga, E. M. S., Gould, N. F., Rowland-Seymour, A., Sharma, R., et al. (2014). Meditation programs for psychological stress and well-being: A systematic review and meta-analysis. JAMA Internal Medicine, 174(3), 357–368.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hatcher, A. S. (1989). From one addiction to another: Life after alcohol and drug abuse. The Nurse Practitioner, 14(11), 13–20.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hayes, S. C., Luoma, J. B., Bond, F. W., Masuda, A., & Lillis, J. (2006). Acceptance and commitment therapy: Model, processes and outcomes. Behavior Research and Therapy, 44, 1–25.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Herman, J. P., & Cullinan, W. E. (1997). Neurocircuitry of stress: central control of the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenocortical axis. Trends in Neurosciences, 20, 78–84.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hölzel, B. K., Carmody, J., Vangel, M., Congleton, C., Yerramsetti, S. M., Gard, T., et al. (2012). Mindfulness practice leads to increases in regional brain gray matter density. Psychiatry Research, 191(1), 36–43.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hölzel, B. K., Lazar, S. W., Gard, T., Schuman-Olivier, Z., Vago, D. R., & Ott, U. (2011). How does mindfulness meditation work? Proposing mechanisms of action from a conceptual and neural perspective. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 6, 537–559.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jänig, W. (2008). Integrative action of the autonomic nervous system neurobiology of homeostasis. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kabat-Zinn, J. (1994). Wherever you go, there you are. New York: Hyperion.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kabat-Zinn, J. (2003). Mindfulness-based interventions in context: Past, present, and future. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice, 10(2), 144–156.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kandel, E. R. (1998). A new intellectual framework for psychiatry. American Journal of Psychiatry, 155(4), 457–469.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lazarus, R. S. (1991). Emotion and adaptation. New York: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lazarus, R. S. (1993). From psychological stress to the emotions: A history of changing outlooks. Annual Review of Psychology, 44, 1–21.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lazarus, R. S., & Folkman, S. (1984). Stress, appraisal, and coping. New York: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • MacLeod, C., Mathews, A., & Tata, P. (1986). Attentional biases in emotional disorders. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 95, 15–20.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Maguire, E. A., Gadian, D. G., Johnsrude, I. S., Good, C. D., Ashburner, J., Frackowiak, R. S., et al. (2000). Navigation related structural change in the hippocampus of taxi drivers. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 97(8), 4398–4403

    Google Scholar 

  • Marsella, A. J. (1998). Urbanization, mental health, and social deviancy: A review of issues and research. American Psychologist, 53(6), 624–634.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mathews, A., & MacLeod, C. (2005). Cognitive vulnerability to emotional disorders. Annual Review of Clinical Psychology, 1, 167–195.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Maturana, H., & Varela, F. (1987). The tree of knowledge: The biological roots of human understanding. Boston: Shambhala.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mayer, J. D., McCormick, L. J., & Strong, S. E. (1995). Moodcongruent memory and natural mood: New evidence. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 21, 736.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McCutcheon, V. (2006). Toward an integration of social and biological research. The Social Service Review, 80(1), 159–178.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McEwen, B. S., & Wingfield, J. C. (2003). The concept of allostasis in biology and biomedicine. Hormones and Behavior, 43(1), 2–15.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mineka, S., Rafaeli, E., & Yovel, I. (2002). Cognitive biases in emotional disorders: Information processing and social-cognitive perspectives. In R. J. Davidson (Ed.), Handbook of affective sciences (pp. 976–1009). Cary, NC: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Monideepa, T., Tu, Q., Ragu-Nathan, B. S., & Ragu-Nathan, T. S. (2007). The impact of technostress on role stress and productivity. Journal of Management Information Systems, 24, 301–328.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mundkur, N. (2005). Neuroplasticity in children. Indian Journal of Pediatrics, 72(10), 855–857.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Padesky, C. (1994). Schema change processes in cognitive therapy. Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, 1, 267–278.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pascual-Leone, A., Amedi, A., Fregni, F., & Merabet, L. B. (2005). The plastic human brain cortex. Annual Review of Neuroscience, 28, 377–401.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rauch, S. L., Shin, L. M., Whalen, P. J., & Pitman, R. K. (1998). Neuroimaging and the neuroanatomy of PTSD. CNS Spectrums, 2, 30–41.

    Google Scholar 

  • Richardon, G. E. (2002). The metatheory of resilience and resiliency. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 58(3), 307–321.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rosenberg, E. L. (1998). Levels of analysis and the organization of affect. Review of General Psychology, 2(3), 247–270.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rosmond, R. (2005). Role of stress in the pathogenesis of metabolic syndrome. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 30, 1–10.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rossi, E. L. (2002). Psychosocial genomics: Gene expression, neurogenesis, and human experience in mind-body medicine. Advances in Mind-Body Medicine, 18(2), 22–30.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sapolsky, R. M. (2004). Is impaired neurogenesis relevant to the affective symptoms of depression? Biological Psychology, 56(3), 137–139.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schmitz, T. W., De Rosa, E., & Anderson, A. K. (2009). Opposing influences of affective state valence on visual cortical encoding. Journal of Neuroscience, 29(22), 7199–7207.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schneider, W., & Chein, J. M. (2003). Controlled & automatic processing: Behavior, theory, and biological mechanism. Cognitive Science, 27, 525–559.

    Google Scholar 

  • Segal, Z. V., Williams, J. M. G., & Teasdale, J. D. (2002).  Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for depression: A new approach to relapse prevention. New York: Guilford.

    Google Scholar 

  • Selye, H. (1974). Stress without distress. Philadelphia, PA: J.B. Lippincott Co.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shapiro, S. L., Carlson, L. E., Astin, J. A., & Freedman, B. (2006). Mechanisms of mindfulness. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 62(3), 373–386.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sherin, J. E., & Nemeroff, C. B. (2011). Post-traumatic stress disorder: the neurobiological impact of psychological trauma. Dialogues in Clinical Neuroscience, 13, 263–278.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sterling, P., & Eyer, J. (1988). Allostasis: A new paradigm to explain arousal pathology. In S. Fisher, & J. Reason (Eds.), Handbook of life stress, cognition, and health. New York: Wiley.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sweatt, J. D. (2013). The emerging field of neuroepigenetics. Neuron, 80(3), 624–632.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Talarico, J. M., LaBar, K. S., & Rubin, D. C. (2004). Emotional intensity predicts autobiographical memory experience. Memory and Cognition, 32(7), 1118–1132.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tugade, M. M., Fredrickson, B. L., & Barrett, L. F. (2004). Psychological resilience and positive emotional granularity: Examining the benefits of positive emotions on coping and health. Journal of Personality, 72(6), 1161–1190.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wegner, D. M., & Erber, R. (1992). The hyperaccessibility of suppressed thoughts. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 63(6), 903.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wegner, D. M., Schneider, D. J., Carter, S. R., & White, T. L. (1987). Paradoxical effects of thought suppression. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 53, 5–13.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Weinstein, A., & Lejoyeux, M. (2010). Internet addiction or excessive internet use. The American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse, 36(5), 277–283.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wenzlaff, R. M., & Wegner, D. M. (2000). Thought suppression. Annual Review of Psychology, 51, 59–91.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Williams, J. M., Teasdale, J. D., Segal, Z. V., & Soulsby, J. (2000). Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy reduces overgeneral autobiographical memory in formerly depressed patients. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 109, 150–155.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Social Work, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA

    Eric L. Garland & Elizabeth Thomas

Authors
  1. Eric L. Garland
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Elizabeth Thomas
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Eric L. Garland .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. School of Social Work, Smith College, Northampton, Massachusetts, USA

    Barbara Probst

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2015 Springer International Publishing Switzerland

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Garland, E.L., Thomas, E. (2015). Neuroscience, Resilience, and the Embodiment of “Mental” Disorder. In: Probst, B. (eds) Critical Thinking in Clinical Assessment and Diagnosis. Essential Clinical Social Work Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-17774-8_6

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation