The Reptilian Brain And The Triune Brain Model (1/7)

The Triune Brain Model – Reptilian, Limbic & Neocortex

The reptilian brain is your physical brain.
The limbic system is your emotional brain.
The neocortex is your thinking brain.

Most people tend to think of the brain as one large single organ, as one brain.

What they may not be aware of however, is that during the 1950s a doctor and researcher named Paul MacLean, came up with a controversial new theory that humans have not one brain, but three.

The Triune Brain Model

Doctor MacLean proposed that through evolutionary time, the human brain began to evolve and become more complex.

As the brain evolved, a new brain was formed over the older brain, until there were three distinct brains, each with its own purpose and function. He called this, the “Triune Brain Model”.

In this article, we are going to be taking a closer look at the Triune Brain Model, and how understanding your brain can help you to better understand both your behaviour, and the behaviour of others.

So to begin, let’s start with our first and oldest brain, something MacLean referred to as the “R-Complex”.

The R-Complex

The R-Complex, also called the “reptilian brain”, is your first and oldest brain. It evolved to serve your genes, by driving fundamental needs such as survival, mating, feeding and self maintenance.

In addition to this, the reptilian brain also took on the responsibility of controlling autonomic bodily functions, such as the beating of the heart, the breathing of the lungs and the regulation of body temperature.

Because of these roles, the reptilian brain is said to be very animalistic and primitive in its nature.

This is why the R-Complex is often referred to as the reptilian brain, as it closely resembles the brain of modern day reptiles, such as lizards.

Its primary role is to make sure that you stay alive, and spread your genes by mating with others.

Reptilian Brain Behaviours

Your reptilian brain is part of your unconscious (subconscious) mind. It carries out a set program of behavioural responses, when presented with certain external triggers. It does not learn from its mistakes, and understands only images, not language.

Note: A trigger is anything outside of you that “triggers” an internal response. For example, you are driving a car and see a red light (trigger) which causes you to stop (behavioural response).

Some of the traits associated with the reptilian brain include: aggression, dominance, seeking a mate, sex, rigidity, obsessiveness, compulsiveness, worship, fear, submission and greed.

Think of a wild animal defending its territory from an invader, and you will have a good idea as to the sorts of behaviours that originate from this part of your brain.

The Limbic System

The limbic system is your emotional brain, and what makes you feel the way you feel when exposed to a certain stimulus.

The limbic system creates chemical messages that connect information to memory, the retention of which is significantly increased when that information is presented in an emotionally charged context.

This is why you are most likely to remember events that created a strong emotional response within you, and why other people will mostly remember the things you said or did to them, that made them feel a certain way.

Learning From Mistakes

Since we are largely driven towards experiencing pleasure, and away from pain, this emotional part of your brain may have evolved to serve and counterbalance the needs of your reptilian brain.

One of the ways the limbic system does this is by ensuring you obtain pleasure from activities such as eating and sex, so that you are motivated to repeat them, and pain from activities that may harm or endanger you, so that you are motivated to avoid them.

Without the emotional brain, you would keep doing the same things in a ritualistic way, never learning from your mistakes.

This is therefore an extremely important part of your brain, and may control more of your behaviour than you realise.

The Emotional State Of Mind

We like to think that most of our decisions are made based on what we think about something. But in reality, the large majority of people make decisions based on their “emotional state of mind”.

In other words, decisions are made based on how they feel about something, rather than what they think about it.

However this statement is slightly misleading, for as you shall find out later on, emotions have the ability to completely ”take over your mind” and change your thoughts.

Understanding this point is crucial if you wish to better understand both your behaviour, and the behaviour of others. In a later article, we shall talk more about the emotional brain and its importance.

The Neocortex

The neocortex is the newest part of your brain, and can be called the “thinking brain”. It controls higher level processes such as logic, reasoning, creative thinking, language and the integration of sensory information.

The fact that you can read this article means your neocortex is working, without it, you would be nothing more than a vegetable.

Neocortical Control Or Submission?

The problem with the neocortex is that it tends to be overpowered by the brains beneath it, especially the emotional brain.

For example, experiencing the emotion of fear can cause the amygdala to send out urgent signals to every part of the brain, causing you to become more alert and ready to respond to any potential dangers.

The brain then searches itself for relevant responses to the threat, taking priority over other forms of thought. If the need arises, an action such as fighting or running away can be carried out immediately and automatically, without you even thinking about it.

These kinds of responses are extremely useful, and could one day save your life. However this lack of neocortical dominance may potentially become a problem in less life threatening situations, as it can cause you to behave in pre-programmed irrational ways. Essentially making you a helpless slave to your emotional brain.