The self-organization of the right brain and the neurobiology of emotional development.
Abstract
Dynamical systems theory is now being extensively utilized in physics, chemistry, and biology to explore the emergence of pattern and order in inanimate and animate complex systems. A central principle of this perspective is that a dynamical complex system is assembled as a product of the interactions of the elements of the system in a particular context. The early organization of the human brain is a prototypical example of a hierarchically structured complex system that is dynamically assembled and expresses a capacity to evolve toward a state of higher organization. In this chapter I offer evidence to show that the context in which the infant's brain develops, especially the early-developing right hemisphere, is within the emotion-transacting relationship with the primary caregiver. Referring to my work on the neurobiology of emotional development, I will suggest that three dynamical systems concepts – state changes, self-organization, and the central role of energy flows – must not be used only as metaphors but rather directly incorporated in their literal form into the core of models of human development. A fundamental focus of nonlinear dynamical systems theory is the modeling of complex patterns of state changes in all physical and biological systems. This clearly implies that the basic unit of analysis of the process of human development is not changes in behavior, cognition, or even affect, but rather the ontogenetic appearance of more and more complex psychobiological states that underlie these state-dependent emergent functions (Schore, 1994).
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The development of behavioral and physiological systems to regulate emotion occurs rapidly in early infancy and is dependent on experience, especially social interactions with parents.
“The development of behavioral and physiological systems to regulate emotion occurs rapidly in early infancy and is dependent on experience and, most important, experience in social interactions with parents (Calkins, 1994;Gunnar & Donzella, 2002;Schore, 2000;Tronick, 1989).”
From Infants' vagal regulation in the still-face paradigm is related to dyadic coordination of mother–infant interaction (2004) · cites this paper as Schore, 2000
Sensitive and responsive parenting may facilitate the organization of infants' physiological systems to achieve regulation.
“Various theoretical perspectives propose that sensitive and responsive parenting may facilitate the organization of infants' physiological systems to achieve regulation, which is necessary to support more complex social-emotional and cognitive development (Panksepp, 2001;Schore, 2000;Siegel, 2001).”
From Mother-infant vagal regulation in the face-to-face still-face paradigm is moderated by maternal sensitivity (2009) · cites this paper as Schore, 2000
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“…has been modeled as emergent patterning of synaptic networks (Edelman 1987; Edelman & Tononi 1997; Harkness & Tucker 2000; Post & Weiss 1997; Schore 2000), and circular causality has been identified between superordinate mental states (e.g., attention, expectancy) and subordinate neural…”
BackgroundSchore, A. N. (2002) · Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry · doi:10.1046/j.1440-1614.2002.00996.x · Cited by 528 · see citing works
“These deficits are the expression of a malfunctioning orbitofrontal cortical-subcortical system, the senior executive of the right brain [14,18,29,31,45,56].”
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Schore, A. N. (2000) · Attachment & Human Development · doi:10.1080/146167300361309 · Cited by 527 · see citing works
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Lewis, M. D. (2000) · Child Development · doi:10.1111/1467-8624.00116 · Cited by 414 · see citing works
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“The development of behavioral and physiological systems to regulate emotion occurs rapidly in early infancy and is dependent on experience and, most important, experience in social interactions with parents (Calkins, 1994; Gunnar & Donzella, 2002; Schore, 2000; Tronick, 1989).”
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“…of traumatically dissociated affect, the therapist must shift from a left to a right hemispheric dominant state of evenly hovering attention (Schore, 1994, 1997b, 2000e, 2001c, 2002b, d), an empathic state in which, according to Kohut (1971): [T]he deeper layers of the analyst’s psyche are…”
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“Rather, they coevolve rapidly as attention, perception, emotion, and motor output become spontaneously coordinated (Freeman, 1999; Schore, 2000).”
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“…from emotion theories about the dynamic nature of the emotional system (Damasio, 1994; Frijda & Zeelenberg, 2001; Lewis, 1996; Scherer, 1987, 2001; Schore, 2000) with findings from (mathematical) signal and system theory (Box, Jenkins, & Reinsel, 1994; Goodwin & Sin, 1984; Grewal & Andrews, 1993).”
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“This higher alpha activity in the anterior regions of the aging brain may be interrelated with the role of the frontal lobes in affect regulation and self-organization (for overviews, see Schore 1994; 2000).”
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“…the connections between the right orbitofrontal cortex, involved in decision-making processes, and the limbic system structures, involved in emotional processes, converging then in the capacity for the autoregulation and mentalization of internal states (Bateman & Fonagy, 2006; Schore, 2000).”
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Riksen-Walraven, M. (2002) · Radboud Repository (Radboud University) · Cited by 9 · see citing works
The emotionally engaged analyst I: Theories of affect and their influence on therapeutic action.
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“…the individuals who together constitute the social context (Freeman, 2000; Fogel, 1993; Fogel & Thelen, 1987; Lewis, 2000; Mascolo et al., 2000; Schore, 1994, 2000) This process of coordinating emotional-adaptive processes between the participants to a social interaction occurs automatically,…”
BackgroundInfluentialCommentary by Allan N. Schore (Los Angeles)
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WITHDRAWNPreprint
Shefer, Y. D., & Fuchs, A. (2025) · doi:10.31234/osf.io/qjtgb_v1
Schore, A. N. (2001) · Infant Mental Health Journal · doi:10.1002/1097-0355(200101/04)22:1
Self-citation
- Authors
- Schore, A. N.
- Corresponding author
- Schore, Allan N.
- Venue
- Emotion, Development, and Self-Organization
- Publisher
- Cambridge University Press
- Published
- 2000-07-31
- Pages
- 155-185
- OpenAlex
- W2501165056
- Cited by
- 46
- References
- 0
- Citations by year
- 2025: 3 · 2022: 1 · 2021: 1 · 2020: 1 · 2018: 1 · 2017: 1 · 2015: 2 · 2014: 1 · 2013: 3 · 2012: 1
- FWCI
- 25.13
- Type
- book chapter
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Cambridge University Press eBooks (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Psychoanalysis and Psychopathology Research
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development
- Physical Sciences › Computer Science › Computational Theory and Mathematics › Chaos, Complexity, and Education
- Keywords
- self-organization, emotional development, dynamical systems theory, infant brain development, caregiver-infant relationship, state change, energy flow, nonlinear dynamics, complex systems, emergence of order
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