Further Reading — Chapter 2: How the Brain Works

Annotated resources for deeper exploration. Items marked with ★ are especially recommended as starting points.

Accessible Overviews of Neuroscience

★ Sapolsky, R. M. (2017). Behave: The Biology of Humans at Our Best and Worst. Penguin Press. Arguably the best single volume on the neuroscience of human behavior by a leading behavioral biologist. Sapolsky's writing is witty, rigorous, and astonishing in scope — starting with "what happened in the second before the behavior" and working backward through biology, evolution, culture, and development. If you read one science book because of this chapter, read this one.

★ LeDoux, J. (1996). The Emotional Brain: The Mysterious Underpinnings of Emotional Life. Simon & Schuster. LeDoux's research on the amygdala and fear pathways is foundational to everything discussed in this chapter about the low road, threat detection, and emotion regulation. This book is somewhat technical in places but remarkably readable for primary source material.

Gazzaniga, M. S. (2011). Who's in Charge? Free Will and the Science of the Brain. HarperCollins. Gazzaniga, one of the founding figures of cognitive neuroscience, offers a thoughtful account of what neuroscience actually tells us about free will, consciousness, and agency — substantially less nihilistic than popular accounts. Directly relevant to the misconceptions section of this chapter.

On Stress and the Brain

★ Sapolsky, R. M. (1994). Why Zebras Don't Get Ulcers. W. H. Freeman. The definitive accessible account of stress biology. Sapolsky explains why psychological stress is physiologically similar to physical threat, why chronic stress damages the hippocampus and immune system, and what individuals can actually do about it. One of the most practically useful books in this reading list.

McEwen, B. S., & Lasley, E. N. (2002). The End of Stress as We Know It. Joseph Henry Press. McEwen developed the concept of allostatic load — the cumulative biological cost of chronic stress — which is discussed later in Chapter 12. This book is an accessible introduction to the neurobiology of stress and recovery.

On Neuroplasticity

★ Doidge, N. (2007). The Brain That Changes Itself. Viking Press. Case studies of remarkable neuroplastic recovery — people who reclaimed function after brain injury, learned to see with their tongues, and overcame longstanding psychological patterns. Readable and inspiring, though some claims about the extent of plasticity should be read critically alongside more conservative scientific accounts.

Merzenich, M. (2013). Soft-Wired: How the New Science of Brain Plasticity Can Change Your Life. Parnassus Publishing. Merzenich is one of the pioneers of neuroplasticity research. This is a practical guide to applying plasticity science to cognitive maintenance across the lifespan. Particularly relevant for Chapter 26 (Learning and Expertise).

On Emotion Regulation and the Brain

Gross, J. J. (Ed.). (2014). Handbook of Emotion Regulation (2nd ed.). Guilford Press. The definitive academic reference on emotion regulation, edited by the researcher whose work on reappraisal vs. suppression is discussed in this chapter. Dense and technical; most relevant for the motivated reader.

Siegel, D. J. (1999). The Developing Mind: How Relationships and the Brain Interact to Shape Who We Are. Guilford Press. Siegel's influential model of interpersonal neurobiology — how early relationships literally shape neural architecture. Particularly relevant for Chapters 15 (Attachment) and 19 (Family Dynamics). Readable and integrative.

On Social Neuroscience

Cacioppo, J. T., & Patrick, W. (2008). Loneliness: Human Nature and the Need for Social Connection. W. W. Norton. Cacioppo's research on loneliness showed that social isolation activates threat-detection systems and has measurable health consequences. This book explains the neuroscience of social connection — why the social brain needs social input as surely as the body needs food. Essential background for Chapter 20 (Friendship and Belonging).

Primary Sources (for motivated readers)

LeDoux, J. E. (1994). Emotion, memory and the brain. Scientific American, 270(6), 50–57. A highly accessible Scientific American article by LeDoux summarizing the amygdala and fear research. A good entry to primary source literature.

Arnsten, A. F. (1998). The biology of being frazzled. Science, 280(5370), 1711–1712. A brief, accessible review of stress hormones and prefrontal cortex function. Explains the neurochemical basis of cognitive impairment under stress.

Gross, J. J., & John, O. P. (2003). Individual differences in two emotion regulation processes: Implications for affect, relationships, and well-being. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 85(2), 348–362. The foundational paper on reappraisal vs. suppression as emotion regulation strategies, with evidence for reappraisal's superior outcomes. A landmark empirical paper worth engaging with directly.

Caution: On Neuroscience Hype

Popular neuroscience writing sometimes overstates what research actually shows. A few resources for critical engagement:

Satel, S., & Lilienfeld, S. O. (2013). Brainwashed: The Seductive Appeal of Mindless Neuroscience. Basic Books. A careful critique of "neuroexplanation" — the tendency to treat brain scans and neuroscience vocabulary as more explanatory than they are. Useful counterweight to the enthusiasm of some popular neuroscience writing.

Neuroskeptic (blog — available online) A neuroscience blogger (pseudonymous) who regularly reviews and critiques claims in popular and academic neuroscience. Valuable for developing a critical eye.