Somatic Psychology

The unholy trio of negative personality traits known as the Dark Triad consists of Machiavellianism (manipulation for personal power), narcissism (selfish self-aggrandizement), and psychopathy (lack of empathy and conscience). But are these traits biologically determined or created by negative social forces? A new study scanned the brains of 50 healthy men with high and low Dark triad traits and found that lower quantities of gray matter in certain areas of the brain correlated with the presence of Dark Triad tendencies.

The period of infancy to early childhood is a critical period in which children first learn how to move and control their bodies and then begin learning more about their parts and functions. This early period sets the stage for later body image development; positive or negative. A positive appreciation of the body's functionality is a key facet of positive body image. This study from the UK asked 301 four to six-year-olds the questions, “Do you love your body?” and “Do you think your body is amazing?” The children responded in their own words and images regarding seven key areas of body functionality.

Thermal sensations—the awareness of variation in body temperature—influences not just your physiology and comfort level, but how you feel in terms of emotional and social distance or affiliation. Thermal dysfunction can indicate a serious body malfunction or be related to a serious psychological disturbance. It’s interesting how something as simple a state of plus or minus 98.6° can affect so many experiences and behaviors.

My old therapist used to say wistfully when the topic came to women, "Oh, women. They are SUCH chemical creatures." I didn't think much of the statement at the time except that it did sound like a subtle putdown because I now known that women and men are both chemical creatures. They just affected by different chemicals and so express themselves differently. And so research shows that women's interest in sexually attractive male qualities--intelligence or masculine looks--varies with their cycles.

Body Dysmorphic Disorder or what was originally known as "Imaginary Ugliness Syndrome" is an extreme body image disorder which affects between 1 to 5 percent of the population. It is marked by an obsessive fixation on an imagined body defect which then drives a person to compulsively alter their body. The condition is extremely distressing and, as in the case of Denise Ivonne Jarvis Gongora, an online influencer with more than 400,000 followers, can be quite deadly.

Men and women suffer in different ways to appear physically attractive and often pay some high prices in terms of clothing and cosmetics, time spent exercising, dieting (sometimes extremely so), and other physical and mental stresses. I suspect, however, that women suffer more than men and wearing high heels is a good example of this "beauty masochism."

It takes years of hard work and support for an athlete to rise to the top of his or sport. Striving to be the best requires an almost total psychological commitment to achievement and to the others around the athlete such as friends, family, coaches, and teammates. What happens when the life is taken away and a person is forced to leave the sport either due to injury or retirement? A qualitative study of Olympian and other elite athletes gives us an insight into the challenges they face making the transition back into "normal" life.

Some Jungian therapists have theorized that the body itself IS the physical manifestation of the unconscious shadow side of the personality. One way this plays itself out is through self-discrepancy theory which states there is a positive correlation between between psychological distress and the gap between one's actual body state and a desired ideal one. Welcome to the human condition.

Most studies on physical attractiveness have focused on the level of personal attractiveness and its components. A handful of studies have looked at the perception of one person toward the attractiveness of their romantic partner. In other words, who is better looking? And, how do people feel about that? One study sheds light on this very interesting aspect of somatic experience and relationship.

It's long been known generally and confirmed by science in recent decades that there are people with two types of circadian sleep-wake cycles: morning or night people. New evidence now shows several other types.

The body's shadow is first discovered in early childhood and becomes an object of delightful interest for a while and then is forgotten about. Research now shows that your shadow is a small and very subtle component of your sense of being embodied.

Falling in love can be a powerful and sometimes overwhelming experience and most definitely it is always a total somatic experience. But what is its neurological nature and who--women or men--fall in love faster?