The Neuroscience of Psychotherapy: Building and Rebuilding the Human Brain

For years, the brain has been viewed as a relatively static entity, determined by the interaction of genetic preprogramming and early childhood experience. In contrast to this view, recent theoretical perspectives and technological advances in brain imaging have revealed that the brain is an organ continually built and re-built by one’s experiences. We are now beginning to learn that many forms of psychotherapy, developed in the absence of any scientific understanding of the brain, are supported by neuroscientific findings.

Louis Cozolino’s The Neuroscience of Psychotherapy illustrates in a clearly written and accessible way how the brain’s architecture is related to the problems, passions, and aspirations of human beings. As Cozolino so eloquently argues, all forms of psychotherapy-from psychoanalysis to behavioral interventions-are successful to the extent to which they enhance change in relevant neural circuits.

Beginning with an overview of the intersecting fields of neuroscience and psychotherapy, this book delves into the brain’s inner workings, from basic neuronal building blocks to complex systems of memory, language, and the organization of experience. It continues by explaining the development and organization of the healthy brain and the unhealthy brain. Common problems such as anxiety, trauma, and codependency are discussed from a scientific and clinical perspective. Cozolino concludes by introducing the emerging paradigm of the psychotherapist-as-neuroscientist and presents some practical applications of neuroscience to psychotherapy. Throughout the book, the science behind the brain’s workings is applied to day-to-day experience and clinical practice.

Written for psychotherapists and others interested in the relationship between brain and behavior, this book encourages us to consider the brain when attempting to understand human development, mental illness, and psychological health.