The Brain is putty; it is morphed by the thoughts, opinions, and perspectives we harbor, which are thereby determined by experiences we encounter throughout our lives in addition to the characteristics we are innately predisposed to.
Our own thoughts, beliefs, perceptions, realities, and actions, impact who we become as individuals, and what our societies become as a byproduct. Our “capital T truths,” or the set of core beliefs which compose our core values, stand as the defining pillars of our identities.
How then, does a belief form?
As critical as the formation of a thought is to our survival, existence, and consciousness, neuroscientists are yet to capture this phenomenon under an fMRI (functional magnetic resonance imaging) scan. What they have come to understand however is why people are prone to thinking, and acting out in certain manners, and why society favors certain activities and thoughts, over others.
It all boils down to the positive associations we form at the neuro-biochemical level. In simple terms (because science is pretty much, never straightforward), dopamine, or another “reward” chemical, is released in response to any action, and thereby increases the tendency for us to act, or even think a certain way again; we’re basically being classically conditioned by our own brain chemistry. We gradually learn to associate this thought, or action with the blissful sensation aroused due to the secretion of happy chemicals.
Societal responses also impact the probability of an action or thought being expressed.
Nurture toys with nature; our upbringing, encounters, and experiences directly alter our neurochemistry, and thereby alter our thoughts, and actions. For example, people say “bless you,” in response to someone sneezing, because as children they were taught that the social norm was to respond in this manner. The first time a child says “bless you,” they receive a “thank you,” or an indication of social approval. This approval, translates to social acceptance, a feeling humans have evolved to crave as social animals. If in response to their “bless you,” a child receives a negative response such as “#%& you,” chances are, the action of saying “bless you” will not be repeated on their end, until this action is met with a positive social response.
This very principle applies to the development of our capital T truths. A child growing up in a Christian household, for example, is primarily exposed to Christian ideals and values. The kid is not born a Christian, but nurture toys with their neurochemistry, and allows positive associations to be formed in relation to adopting the teachings of Christianity. These positive associations would once again be influenced by the positive social response to their actions and mindset.
Fun fact about the religious brain; while researching I uncovered interesting “religious brain” experiments conducted at the University of Utah.
These experiments revealed that while engulfed in a spiritual activity, such as meditation, chanting, or praying, religious brains secrete oxytocin in response to such actions; the same chemical secreted when in love, or aroused. This experiment proves that the “love," “peace,” and "commitment," spirituals and religious folk claim they experience during the act of worship is real; it’s the secretion of oxytocin.
Our thoughts and perceptions are powerful, yet weak; our strengths, yet our weaknesses. Reality is just a global web of everyone’s neurons, collectively influencing one another.
