psychological flexibility allows for better attention

alex 20th May 2024 at 8:28pm

There are overlaps with The Shallows and its neuroplasticity arguments.

As psychological flexibility increases, your brain quiets. You are spending less time in defensive scanning and planning, and that allows for more focus on what you want to be attending to, like work tasks or listening thoughtfully to a friend. Attentional control increases and the parts of the brain that regulate attention grow in strength. Yes, it is correct to say that your brain determines your behavior. But it is equally correct to say that your behavior changes your brain. To say one without the other is like saying, “I can only pick up fifty pounds because my muscles are weak,” without noting that they are weak because you never exercise. An enormous body of research illuminates why the ACT skills lead to helpful brain changes and changes in gene expression.