This study was conducted to find the region of the brain that deals with our perspective of our future selves and also of others. The brain region that they discovered is called The Temporoparietal Junction (TPJ) and it controls our perspective and also helps us in social situations. In the experiment that was conducted, there were two groups of people, one group had small coils of electric currents hitting their TPJ and the other group (the control) had the coils on a different part of their head. They were asked a few questions and based on the answers that were given when the TPJ was affected, the people were less focused on their future self and more on the present. For example, one of the questions that was asked was whether they wanted to wait a year for all of the money guaranteed or gamble and take whatever they would give them now. Almost all of the people took the money now. Not only does the TPJ help with our self-control but it helps us with seeing the perspective of others. Which is one reason why drug addicts do not think about the perspective of others or the perspective of what their future self could potentially be.
When I was searching for an article to read, this article caught my eye because it has to do with self-control and whether or not we can turn our self-control off. I read a few lines and decided this would be more interesting to read because it deals with how people think and what happens in their brains. I am not a psychology major but the idea of having your self control turned off can be a scary thought! The thing that I found most fascinating was how drug addicts do not cannot see their future self and they cannot get better until they change their way of thinking.
B.N.K.
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/scientists-switch-off-self-control-using-brain-stimulation/
Now this article is very interesting i think it is amazing how much over the last few years we as a species have discovered about ourselves and our bodies especially the brain and how it operates and what controls what. I think this article is great and id love for them to conduct more test into how TPJ is used regularly by people.
ReplyDelete-Jacob C
This could probably be a fantastic opportunity for people to change their lives! Turning ON self control would be amazing, Some people (myself included) do years of therapy to unlearn "bad" behaviors, this seems like it could help speed up that process... i wonder if this could be used in dieting and weight loss applications...
ReplyDelete-aWardell
I have noticed in my attempts to better my self control that it takes a fair amount of looking into the future. I have created long term goals, and formulated the reasons why I want to have a better diet and written them down so I can always have them in sight. This has helped me to better look into who I could be in the future if I just choose, day by day, meal by meal, to be the healthy person I want to be.
Delete-SLH
This is a very neat idea. I don't quite understand exactly how it works though. How would they turn off self control? Is that by stimulating the TPJ? C.W.
ReplyDeleteThey would turn off self control by disrupting the portion of the brain affiliated with the TPJ.
Delete-SLH
My question would be, could we potentially use this in crime situations. Where we need answers from a suspect, so we tinker with their mind for more truthful answers promising them rewards now. Would this be ethical lowering their inhibition?
ReplyDeletePersonally, I think that is a very, very slippery slope and possible infringement of an individual's rights for the "greater good". It also probably would not be upheld in court as the information/confession would be considered manipulated. I do think that criminal justice laws have already considered coercing confessions from criminals for plea deals and other things, but what you are proposing might take it too far as you are "altering" their testimonies. Just my thoughts on it but I am no lawyer.
Delete-Alex G
I think if it was proven to be effective and there wasn't any fault to it enough for the judge to except the results, lets do it! I don't think it would be manipulative, if it was the persons honest thought process. the example that was given in the article stated that people are constantly thinking about the future, but they were given an option no to and basically "YOLO" they would. I would. Criminals are no different. They are thinking about their future outside of prison or jail so they will lie, but with this they wouldn't be able to because their self control will be manipulated to make them think they don't have to lie. At least that is my understand of the TPJ. The article was a little if'y on describing it.
DeleteA.G
This concept definitely has many ethics involved. Although criminals promise to tell the truth they still have agency and are bound to tell a small lie in order to better their chances of living a life they hoped for outside of prison. Although I would love for these prisoners to be forced and manipulated into telling the truth, this cannot be done due to our many certain unalienable rights. These experiments mess with the mind and thats one thing that no one can take from us; and that should never change.
Delete-SLH
This post/article is very intriguing. I think the human brain is so fascinating, and there is still so much that we can learn about it. The discovery of the TPJ can lead to so many more discoveries, and help us push forward in our understanding of the human brain. However, this kind of discovery can also be a little scary. If this possibly helps in manipulating a person's thoughts, that can potentially give people a lot of power.
ReplyDelete-Mindy C.
As some of the other classmates have said, I think it would be cool if we could turn our self control on, or even into over drive. I know I would be much more productive if I had a way to stimulate that artificially. Although then, one has to wonder if over stimulation of self control could cause problems down the road of tolerance to that stimulation and thus, a lack of self control in the future. Really fascinating science and could potentially lead to some very cool stuff.
ReplyDelete-Alex G.
This is a very interesting article. I also was intrigued by what it said about drugs. I believe we can "turn-off" our self-control and drugs is a very good example of that. I'm sure science can find a way to do the same. J. RYAN
ReplyDeleteWow, that was super interesting. Just like the other comments learning or being able to turn off our self control would be super interesting.
ReplyDelete- Mary S.
This reminds me of the video with the children and the marshmallows. Those who were able to wait longer tended to be more successful later in life. B.C.
ReplyDeleteI thought of this same video! There is so much power in our ability to harness our self control and realize the future we can make for ourselves.
Delete-SLH
That is a way cool experiment that was conducted. So if we are able to potentially turn off TPJ, what if we could turn it even more one. If the part in my brain that controls self-control could be made stronger, that would just be fantastic. We would all be such more productive people. Scientists should definitely look into how we can strengthen that part of our brain. -Chad B
ReplyDeleteAlthough we need to be careful in how much of an article we quote when we write our commentary, I think that this was an interesting read. Where does self-control locate? Is it really all contained in a single structure, or even several structures, in the brain?
ReplyDelete-BG
This article was great to see the affects of the TJI. What I found to be interesting is that when these participates were hit with the electrical currents, they became less focused on their future. This makes me realize the affect this can cause who has damage to this part of their brain. It could impede them to look at the consequences of their decisions and how it will hurt them in the future.
ReplyDeleteNP
This article brings up a good point of the affects of a damaged or interfered TJI. If someone has injured this portion of the brain, or it hasn't developed as others has, it can cause serious issues. My questions is, can it be surgically repaired to fix any issues with this portion of the brain, causing them to look at the long term consequences of their actions?
ReplyDeleteNP
I find the brain incredibly interesting! It's amazing how you can stimulate and help the brain make connections, but also incredibly scary that you can just as easily damage and hurt it by using drugs. Where exactly is the TPJ? Im guessing its near the temple, located near the temporal and parietal lobes. What exactly is targeting the TPJ in drugs?
ReplyDeleteR.T.
I don't know if it could necessarily be considered "turning off" your self control. I think it's choosing to make a different decision even if you know it's probably not the right one. Alcohol and drugs can enhance those negative choices.
ReplyDeleteSkyler H.
I agree. I don't think it is completely possible to "turn off" self control. I also want to know more details about how the tests were performed, and if the subjects were aware of what was being tested- just to rule out the placebo effect. I also think this study needs more development and could be very subjective to the person and his/her circumstances.
DeleteHW
Brain research is incredibly interesting. I like how when people's TPJ was negatively affected they made poor long-term decisions. One problem I have with the article is the selection of taking some money now or more later. In some situations having short term money is better then having more money later. - T Anderson
ReplyDeleteThis study reminds me a little of the Stanford Marshmallow Experiment. While the stimulation of the area does not seem quite accurate enough to be used therapeutically, I think this is a promising line of research to pursue. Perhaps we can become better at identifying how stimulating this area might improve outcomes for those with various drug dependencies. -- D.S.
ReplyDeleteThis article was very informative to me. I am not very familiar with psychology, but it has been something that has interested me. This is very interesting to note that there is a portion of our brain dedicated to self control and that this part of our brain can be altered through electrical signals.
ReplyDelete--A.S.
This is interesting. I wonder if adolescent drinking or doing drugs and such damages this part of the brain. I know that when our brains are still developing we tend to think short-term. Maybe this is the part of the brain that is maturing in adolescence. Its interesting that we are able to learn more about how our brains actually work.
ReplyDelete-SN
This article actually makes a lot of sense on how drug addicts can't see the future self, that is why when you tell them it is bad for them they don't care or when you tell them that it is affecting the people around them, they don't see the most important things. I was intrigued by the thought of switching off self control, in not smart so I had no idea this was a thing.
ReplyDeleteSteph S.
this sounds like something I did a while back, with my psychology course. ( not for the course just related.)about how enticement can effect our actions and point of views. we are made almost to be selfish and about the now. really enjoyed the article. I wonder if they could find away to use this to help those effected with the mental problems in the future. sb
ReplyDeleteSo there are many people that have mental handicaps that prevent them from having self control or thinking of the future. Is there a way to recover the TPJ in these patients? Or is this brain function just able to be repressed rather than stimulated?
ReplyDelete-SLH