Art, music, literature, theater, poetry and architecture are not products of an isolated mind and heart. They are created on behalf of a belief that other people care as much as we do about full appreciation for one another and for the culture we have created. Our mirror neurons may be activating our appreciation of other people and the culture we have created together because we have observed other people appreciating one another and the artistic productions of our culture. It is possible that we will come to appreciate that painting in our national museum because we witness other people appreciating it. Perhaps, we are “charged up” by a powerful speech being delivered by a charismatic speaker in part because we witness other people being “charged up” (whether this speech was delivered by Adolph Hitler at a Nuremberg rally or Martin Luther King on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial).
From a polystatic perspective, our baseline regarding the value of a work of art might be adjusted as we adjust our anticipation of appreciation for this painting or sculpture based on our observation of other people’s appreciation for this painting or sculpture. Our psychosocial template(s) devoted to culture might be altered based in part on the reactions of other people to specific cultural artifacts. Our mirror neurons associated with enjoyment and gratification might be activated as we watch other people look intently at the Van Gogh paintings in the Chicago Art Museum or grasp their sense of awe first viewing the Winged Victory of Samothrace at the Louve in Paris. We are collectively enthralled by a great work of art. Mirror neurons may play an important role in determining what we anticipate when using language to interact with another person or when anticipating our reactions to a great (or not so great) work of art.
Beyond the matter of language and art, mirror neurons influence the fundamental way in which we feel about and interact with other people. Specifically, there are many implications for professional coaching regarding the social neurobiology of mirror neurons. What do mirror neurons have to do with the formation of empathy (both in the client and coach)? To what extent does an effective coach “understand” her client in part because some of her own neurons are firing in ways that mirror the experiences and actions of her client?
Are there ways in which effective coaches help a client acquire a new skill set by observing other people (and even the coach herself) provide leadership, solve problems, make decisions, etc.—and is this skill set acquisition based at least in part on the activation of mirror neurons in the client? We do not yet have clear answers to these questions; however, we can anticipate that the answers to be found in this domain of social neurobiology will provide us with new insights and valuable guidance in our work with clients.
Polystasis as a Self-Organizing System
As we expand on the model of polystasis, it is important to remind ourselves that our brain has no central operating system. Like many complex and dynamic biological systems, our brain is a “self-organizing system” that is lead not by some leading part but rather from the interactions between parts of the system that exist side-by-side (the “neighborhood effect”). Just as a flock of birds or swarm of fish move in a remarkably coordinated manner as a result of each bird’s or fish’s immediate reaction to the bird or fish right next to them, so we find that human systems also move in a remarkably powerful and coordinated manner because each participant in this system tends to immediately react to the movement of the person next to them.
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