Understanding the neural basis of conflict and communication

Presented by: Tim Hicks, author of Embodied Conflict: The Neural Basis of Conflict and Communication
Date: Monday 10 June 2019
Location: Edinburgh
Venue: The Royal Society of Edinburgh, 22-26 George St, Edinburgh EH2 2PQ
Time: 08:30 – 10:30

Our brain’s most basic function is the ability to encode perceptual experience in dynamic neural networks, what can be called neural matrices of meaning. This capacity to encode our experience in neural structures is the basis of learning, memory, cognition, and identity and provides the physical framework for our beliefs and understandings, those very experiences that are involved in conflict and its resolution.

Tim Hicks, leading Oregon mediator and author, will present ideas from his recent groundbreaking book Embodied Conflict: the neural basis of conflict and communication. He will describe the neural encoding function in laymen’s terms and will discuss key characteristics of the encoding function, exploring their implications for communication, relationship, and conflict resolution.

Read John Sturrock’s review of the book here. 

This is really important stuff, for anyone dealing with human decision-making, policy-making, disputes and relationships generally. Our future may, literally, depend on how well we understand this. 

Core is delighted to host this special seminar with Tim Hicks in Edinburgh on 10 June at 08:30 -10:30.

Important Information: This event is now fully subscribed and we are now putting names on a waiting list should spaces become available. If you would be interested in attending and would like your name to be added to the waiting list, please email Miriam Kennedy at Miriam.Kennedy@core-solutions.com.

About the Book

Our abilities to learn and remember are based on the fundamental brain capacity to encode and store perceptual experience in abiding neural structures. These neural structures are the mechanisms by which we know, think about, create beliefs about, and understand the world in which we live. A number of characteristics of the neural encoding function are at the root of and help to explain conflict in our social relations and why some conflicts are difficult to prevent and resolve. Embodied Conflict presents the neural encoding function in layman’s terms, outlining seven key characteristics and exploring their implications for communication, relationship, and conflict resolution.

Among early reviews:

“Practical, accessible, easy to read, and yet deeply rooted in science, Tim Hicks has written an extremely valuable book for conflict specialists or for anyone struggling to understand the conflicts they face in life. Starting from the premise that ‘an understanding of the neural workings of the brain’ will help us to better understand and intervene in conflict, Hicks walks us carefully through an understanding of essential concepts of neural science and then applies these both broadly and specifically to how we can understand what happens in conflict and how we can use this understanding in very practical ways. This is a very valuable addition to our understanding of conflict.”
Bernie Mayer, conflict specialist and author

"Embodied Conflict: The Neural Basis of Conflict and Communication by Tim Hicks is a well-written and thoroughly researched explanation of this new and vital area of thought for mediators and dispute resolution professionals, the best compilation of this knowledge base that I have seen.” 
Jim Melamed, mediator and CEO of Mediate.com

“Addressing one of the important issues of our times, Tim Hicks provides a clear and readable analysis of the scientific basis of human conflict.  At a basic level, he explains the mind’s embodied basis in the neurobiology of personal development.  At the same time, he also recognizes the psychological reality of conflict.  We must realize that what are negotiating in our most intense conflicts is not just some material self-interest, but the very foundations of our identities.” 
Don Tucker, neuroscientist and psychologist