Culture, Mind, and Brain

Recent neuroscience research makes it clear that human biology is cultural biology - we develop and live our lives in socially constructed worlds that vary widely in their structure values, and institutions. This integrative volume brings together interdisciplinary perspectives from the human, social, and biological sciences to explore culture, mind, and brain interactions and their impact on personal and societal issues. Contributors provide a fresh look at emerging concepts, models, and applications of the co-constitution of culture, mind, and brain. Chapters survey the latest theoretical and methodological insights alongside the challenges in this area, and describe how these new ideas are being applied in the sciences, humanities, arts, mental health, and everyday life. Readers will gain new appreciation of the ways in which our unique biology and cultural diversity shape behavior and experience, and our ongoing adaptation to a constantly changing world.

'This is an extraordinary collection written by leaders in psychological anthropology, social psychology, and 'cultural neuroscience'. It presents state-of-the-art research dedicated to understanding the interaction of mind, brain, and culture.' Melvin Konner, Samuel Candler Dobbs Professor of Anthropology, Emory University, 'The question of how culture and the brain interact to shape the mind is one of the great questions of our time. This thoughtful collection demonstrates that interdisciplinary collaboration is crucial to any good answer to such a question.' Tanya Luhrmann, Howard H. and Jessie T. Watkins University Professor of Anthropology, Stanford University, 'At this scientific smorgasbord, you'll whet your appetite on rich intellectual histories prepared by those who lived them. Then, feast on a heaping helping of the latest ideas about how minds, brains, and cultures co-constitute themselves. Finally, relax while taking in wide-ranging literature reviews on the latest findings in neuroscience, anthropology, psychology and other relevant fields.' Joe Henrich, Chair of the Department of Human Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, 'I was just getting used to the age of enactivism. It is now clear that attention to culture will bring the next paradigm shift. This book is a great foundational resource. It foreshadows the way we are going to think about ourselves in the next decade - gracefully spanning from dopamine receptors to the extended evolutionary synthesis, from connectomes to predictive processing. In short, all our favourite things are here - and are woven together beautifully.' Karl Friston, FRS, University College London

Laurence J. Kirmayer is James McGill Professor and Director of the Division of Social and Transcultural Psychiatry at McGill University, where he conducts research on the place of culture in mental health and illness, medical and psychological anthropology, and the philosophy of psychiatry. Carol M. Worthman is Samuel Candler Dobbs Professor at the Department of Anthropology at Emory University. She uses a biocultural approach in comparative interdisciplinary research on health and human development in Africa, Asia, and the USA. Shinobu Kitayama is Social Psychology Area Chair and Robert B. Zajonc Collegiate Professor of Psychology at University of Michigan, where he conducts research on the mutual constitution of mental processes and culture. Robert Lemelson is President of the Foundation for Psychocultural Research and Adjunct Professor of Anthropology at UCLA. He has been conducting psychological and visual anthropological research in Indonesia yearly for the past 20 years. Constance A. Cummings is Project Director of the Foundation for Psychocultural Research, which advances interdisciplinary research on the intersection of brain, mind, and culture. She is co-editor of Formative Experiences (2010) and Re-Visioning Psychiatry (2015), both with Cambridge University Press.