From Axons to Identity: Neurological Explorations of the Nature of the Self

by Todd E. Feinberg MD

A leading neuroscientist offers an intriguing scientific journey to understanding the neurobiology of the self. What can dementia, delusions, and other neurological disorders teach us about how the brain creates personal identity and a unified sense of self? Here, a leading neurobiologist offers an intriguing scientific approach to understanding the neurobiology of the self.

Drawing on both the latest neuroscientific research, as well as the author's decades of experience with neurological patients, From Axons to Identity examines the link between brain and identity in fascinating new ways. Dr. Feinberg presents case studies of individuals with brain pathologies and unusual psychiatric syndromes that cause them to deny parts of their bodies or believe in the presence of mysterious imposters or imaginary friends, and then presents a groundbreaking new theory of these conditions that relates them to the normal course of psychological development. By examining what goes wrong in individuals with these conditions, Dr. Feinberg presents an engaging new theory with far-reaching implications for the link between brain and identity. From Axons to Identity proposes a new view of the processes of the brain and the self that is unique and revelatory.

Genres: Psychology, Neuroscience, Philosophy, Nonfiction

288 pages, Hardcover

First published April 3, 2009

Reviews

[Howard Blumenfeld · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is an excellent primer for the neurological understanding of identity and the concept of the self. Feinberg illustrates the ways in which the brain constructs your reality, alluding to numerous case studies involving individuals who experienced a traumatic brain injury, severe mental illness, or other idiopathic conditions, and how they affected their perception of themselves. Some of the case studies are quite alarming and reveal just how fragile our sense of self truly is. This book is a great read and difficult to put down. Highly recommended!

[Eliade Weismann · Rating 4 out of 5]

I will not deny the enthusiasm I had for this book for months after putting it down. I had a great reverence for Todd Feinberg's explorations, and this book catalyzed me to research identity and the experience of selfhood in great depth. It was only after I began to read about the same subject matter that this book covers that I realized From Axons to Identity might not be as impressive as I thought. For all those who would read this book, I would refer you to the paper by Gallagher and Cole (1995) "Body schema and body image in a deafferented subject."