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The Nature of the Beast: How Emotions Guide Us
A pioneering neuroscientist offers a new way of understanding how emotions drive behavior
Does your dog get sad when you leave for the day? Does your cat purr because she loves you? Do bears attack when they’re angry? You can’t very well ask them. In fact, scientists haven’t been able to reach a consensus on whether animals even have emotions like humans do, let alone how to study them. Yet studies of animal emotion are critical for understanding human emotion and mental illness.
In The Nature of the Beast , pioneering neuroscientist David J. Anderson describes a new approach to solving this problem. He and his colleagues have figured out how to study the brain activity of animals as they navigate real-life scenarios, like fleeing a predator or competing for a mate. His research has revolutionized what we know about animal fear and aggression. Here, he explains what studying emotions and related internal brain states in animals can teach us about human behavior, offering new insights into why isolation makes us more aggressive, how sex and violence connect, and whether there’s a link between aggression and mental illness.
Full of fascinating stories, The Nature of the Beast reconceptualizes how the brain regulates emotions–and explains why we have them at all.
Does your dog get sad when you leave for the day? Does your cat purr because she loves you? Do bears attack when they’re angry? You can’t very well ask them. In fact, scientists haven’t been able to reach a consensus on whether animals even have emotions like humans do, let alone how to study them. Yet studies of animal emotion are critical for understanding human emotion and mental illness.
In The Nature of the Beast , pioneering neuroscientist David J. Anderson describes a new approach to solving this problem. He and his colleagues have figured out how to study the brain activity of animals as they navigate real-life scenarios, like fleeing a predator or competing for a mate. His research has revolutionized what we know about animal fear and aggression. Here, he explains what studying emotions and related internal brain states in animals can teach us about human behavior, offering new insights into why isolation makes us more aggressive, how sex and violence connect, and whether there’s a link between aggression and mental illness.
Full of fascinating stories, The Nature of the Beast reconceptualizes how the brain regulates emotions–and explains why we have them at all.
304 pages, Hardcover
Published March 15, 2022
About the author
David J. Anderson
32 books65 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.
David is an innovator in management thinking for 21st Century businesses. Author and pioneer of the Kanban Method he has more than 30 years’ experience working in the high-technology industry. David previously worked at IBM, Sprint, Motorola, and Microsoft where he developed the Kanban Method to greatly improving business outcomes on an enterprise-scale.
Originator of the Kanban Method, and co-creator of the Kanban Maturity Model, the Fit-for-Purpose Framework, and Enterprise Services Planning. David is a global leader in management training and leadership development for professional services, and intangible goods industries.
He is the author of 7 leading books for modern business with the most renowned being published in 2010 “KANBAN: Successful Evolutionary Change for Your Technology Business” which is in the top 5 best-selling Agile books of all time.
David also founded Kanban University, which includes over 400 accredited trainers and consultants. In addition, he created multiple global Kanban conferences and is the Chairman of the David J. Anderson School of Management which provides training in 21st-century business practices for enterprise agility, business resilience, and organizational maturity.
The group of companies founded by David is held within Mauvius Group Inc. This group of companies is focused on improving the quality of management, leadership, and decision making for 21st-century businesses.
David is an innovator in management thinking for 21st Century businesses. Author and pioneer of the Kanban Method he has more than 30 years’ experience working in the high-technology industry. David previously worked at IBM, Sprint, Motorola, and Microsoft where he developed the Kanban Method to greatly improving business outcomes on an enterprise-scale.
Originator of the Kanban Method, and co-creator of the Kanban Maturity Model, the Fit-for-Purpose Framework, and Enterprise Services Planning. David is a global leader in management training and leadership development for professional services, and intangible goods industries.
He is the author of 7 leading books for modern business with the most renowned being published in 2010 “KANBAN: Successful Evolutionary Change for Your Technology Business” which is in the top 5 best-selling Agile books of all time.
David also founded Kanban University, which includes over 400 accredited trainers and consultants. In addition, he created multiple global Kanban conferences and is the Chairman of the David J. Anderson School of Management which provides training in 21st-century business practices for enterprise agility, business resilience, and organizational maturity.
The group of companies founded by David is held within Mauvius Group Inc. This group of companies is focused on improving the quality of management, leadership, and decision making for 21st-century businesses.
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
June 4, 2023
مشکل اینجاست که ما برای درمان یا علاج بیشتر اختلالهای روانپزشکی داروی خوبی نداریم. داروهایی که داریم به قدری عوارض جانبی ناخوشایند و تضعیفکنندهای دارند که بسیاری مصرف آنها را قطع میکنند و گریبانگیر عواقبش میشوند (مثل دیوید فاستر والاس، رماننویس درخشان و مولف «شوخی بیپایان»، که داروهای افسردگیاش را، به خاطر عوارض جانبیشان، متوقف کرد و عاقبتش به خودکشی ختم شد)
اگر من زمانی که از سر کار به خانه برمیگردم، گربهام را ببینم که تاقباز است و پنجههایش را هوا کرده، برداشتم این خواهد بود که او از دیدنم خوشحال است-چون اگر من جای گربه بودم، تمام روز تنها در خانهی بسته، از دیدن انسان خوشحال میشدم. با اینهمه، من روشی مستقل و عینی برای پی بردن به احساسات گربهام ندارم، الا اینکه رفتارش را زیر نظر بگیرم. ولی من نمیتوانم هم رفتار او را با این فرض که از احساساتش آگاهم توضیح بدهم و هم از راه مشاهدهی رفتارش بگویم چه احساسی دارد-این منطق دوریست. شاید او فقط یاد گرفته که با تاقباز خوابیدن و پنجههایش را هوا کردن میتواند مرا وادارد شکمش را ماساژ دهم
وقتی حیوان مذکری از گونهای مشخص سوار مذکر دیگری میشود، آیا این رفتاری همجنسخواهانه و نمایانگر عشق یا رابطه است، یا اینکه نمایش سلطهگری؟ تلاش برای استنباط حالت عاطفی دقیق یک حیوان، صرفا از روی مشاهدهی رفتارش، کار شاقیست
البته ممکن است بعضی از حالات عاطفی که از لحاظ تکاملی قدمت دارند، مانند ترس، میان انسان و بسیاری از گونههای حیوانی مشترک باشد؛ در حالیکه بعضی دیگر (مثل احساس شادمانی از بدبیاری دیگران) ممکن است مختص انسان باشد
Image: Sir Frederic Leighton, Flaming June.
March 9, 2022
Emotions in general are very hard to map and research, even in humans where we can ask individuals how they are feeling while running brain scans. In animals where we can't even scientifically confirm if they are capable of experiencing emotions, it's almost impossible. Almost. David Andersen shows that by studying fruit flies and mice it is possible to map some neural pathways that can lead to tremendous advances in human healthcare and understanding.
I think it is important to note that this book is not full of light-hearted examples of animal emotions, it focuses primarily on the research behind identifying which neurons control different responses such as fear and aggression. A lot of time is spent explaining the differences between emotions and feelings, and many points are reiterated several times (which may serve to help remind people of key points they've already read but did slow down the pacing). I loved the instances where the author's personality shone, such as when he inserted his own stories or anecdotes about his cats, wife, and reaction to hearing a rattlesnake. I also really like how it delves into exposing some of the problems in our own pharmaceutical and healthcare systems. One thing I didn't care for was the random comment on chimpanzees feeling depressed in zoo settings, especially knowing first-hand how much care goes into making sure they receive as much stimulating enrichment and as varied an environment as possible. But I recognize that's a controversial topic, much as laboratory research on animals, in general, is also not always viewed as favorable.
Overall I thought it was a well-written and engaging look at the science behind why animals act certain ways. I would recommend it to researchers, educators, or anyone wanting to look scientifically into brain processes and emotion. The graphs and visual tables helped illustrate points, and every effort was made to explain things in a way most individuals can grasp. I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley.
I think it is important to note that this book is not full of light-hearted examples of animal emotions, it focuses primarily on the research behind identifying which neurons control different responses such as fear and aggression. A lot of time is spent explaining the differences between emotions and feelings, and many points are reiterated several times (which may serve to help remind people of key points they've already read but did slow down the pacing). I loved the instances where the author's personality shone, such as when he inserted his own stories or anecdotes about his cats, wife, and reaction to hearing a rattlesnake. I also really like how it delves into exposing some of the problems in our own pharmaceutical and healthcare systems. One thing I didn't care for was the random comment on chimpanzees feeling depressed in zoo settings, especially knowing first-hand how much care goes into making sure they receive as much stimulating enrichment and as varied an environment as possible. But I recognize that's a controversial topic, much as laboratory research on animals, in general, is also not always viewed as favorable.
Overall I thought it was a well-written and engaging look at the science behind why animals act certain ways. I would recommend it to researchers, educators, or anyone wanting to look scientifically into brain processes and emotion. The graphs and visual tables helped illustrate points, and every effort was made to explain things in a way most individuals can grasp. I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley.
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August 27, 2022This was a disappointing book that I had to DNF it halfway through, because it's marketed as one thing according to that synopsis, and the actual book is something else that wasn't as interesting, and I might've kept reading it anyway if the writing style was approachable or comprehensible, and less of "talking-in-circles".
May 26, 2023
It just isn't for me: The first two chapters explored the interesting concept of states in comparison to autonomic behaviours: behaviours manifest from an internal motivation state like fear or aggression. Behaviours are separate from instinct: for example, we can be in an internal state of aggression but do not exhibit this state through physical altercation. This book goes into detail about the necessity of reviewing states and their behaviours; we cannot be sure of an animals internal state from it's exhibited behaviour and it's important to do so because many of our psychological inferences are based on the external behaviour of an animal being a product of the underlying internal state.
This book is far too repetitive and while it does address nuance I found it to be awfully daunting and sometimes unnecessary to explore this idea. He repeats this notion so much that it doesn't allow you to apply the concept of behaviours and states to the text your reading and assimilate applications of this difference to his book. In a ironic twist to the book's title, I felt unguided by my emotions and my brain because the contents of the book were extremely rigid and prevented me from formulating my own thoughts due to monotony, hyper-fixation, excessive repetition. Lastly, I think many of us would've liked examples from other animals; of course fruit flies are ripe for exemplars due to mendelian inheritance and a short lifespan. Also, while humans can communicate their internal states to a certain degree I think this book could've extrapolated more on the human side of things as it would engage the audience more than trying to simulate the mental state of a fruit fly.
This book is far too repetitive and while it does address nuance I found it to be awfully daunting and sometimes unnecessary to explore this idea. He repeats this notion so much that it doesn't allow you to apply the concept of behaviours and states to the text your reading and assimilate applications of this difference to his book. In a ironic twist to the book's title, I felt unguided by my emotions and my brain because the contents of the book were extremely rigid and prevented me from formulating my own thoughts due to monotony, hyper-fixation, excessive repetition. Lastly, I think many of us would've liked examples from other animals; of course fruit flies are ripe for exemplars due to mendelian inheritance and a short lifespan. Also, while humans can communicate their internal states to a certain degree I think this book could've extrapolated more on the human side of things as it would engage the audience more than trying to simulate the mental state of a fruit fly.
February 13, 2024
If anything, this book excels at demonstrating just how difficult it is to study emotions in an objectifiable and quantifiable manner. I have such a strong appreciation and admiration for the researchers that take up this seemingly impossible conquest.
However, much like some other reviews mention, I don't necessarily take issue with how technical this book is, but more that it is predominantly focused on the experimental apparatus for studying aggression in flies. I was hoping to receive more study in an anthropological/evolutionary context and why certain emotions exist in humans and their ultimate purpose. Some of the more primitive emotional states such as anxiety, fear, anger, depression might seem somewhat intuitive and shared among most animal species, but things like joy, pleasure, love, embarrassment, etc. are not even mentioned.
If you're looking at a comprehensive view of human emotion, this certainly does not supply that. But if you're more intrigued by the psychopathological states, experimental setups, and insights into the future of psychotropic medical advancements, then this book meets those needs.
However, much like some other reviews mention, I don't necessarily take issue with how technical this book is, but more that it is predominantly focused on the experimental apparatus for studying aggression in flies. I was hoping to receive more study in an anthropological/evolutionary context and why certain emotions exist in humans and their ultimate purpose. Some of the more primitive emotional states such as anxiety, fear, anger, depression might seem somewhat intuitive and shared among most animal species, but things like joy, pleasure, love, embarrassment, etc. are not even mentioned.
If you're looking at a comprehensive view of human emotion, this certainly does not supply that. But if you're more intrigued by the psychopathological states, experimental setups, and insights into the future of psychotropic medical advancements, then this book meets those needs.
September 13, 2023
3.5 stars - like other reviewers have said, the book should've been subtitled differently, maybe something like "The Science of Emotional States." What Anderson is attempting to do here is to encourage the scientific community to view emotions not as subjective "feelings" but as objective, measurable, internal states which lead to behaviors that are different from reflexes. This is helpful because much of what prevents the scientific community from studying emotions is that emotions are seen as subjective feelings and therefore impossible to objectively quantify and measure. No doubt, Anderson's attempts to disentangle "emotions" from "emotion states" is noteworthy and will likely lead to many cool findings on the relationship between behaviors and emotion states, but the excessive hedging and elaborating that Anderson had to do to ensure that his research would be taken seriously is a bit of a bore. I wasn't sure if the book was meant for the general public or if it was more for the scientific community.
February 4, 2023
I dislike it when books don't deliver on their clickbait bylines.
This book does not unveil "how emotions guide us".
Firstly, emotions are redefined as internal brain states which other scientists would probably refer to as affect. In fact, a large part of the author's study is on what he calls "emotion primitives" such as persistence, scalability, valence, and generalization.
Secondly, all the studies are on insects or animals: fruit flies, mice etc. None of these have actually been tested in humans yet. Therefore, it hardly shows how we, homo sapiens, are "guided by emotions".
Despite all this, I still rate 4 stars because the research is fascinating. It takes a bottom-up approach to understanding emotion states. While it does raise more questions than answers, I am interested to see what future studies uncover.
Take note that this a science book. Unless you are really interested in this specific area, it is not an easy book to get through as can be seen in the other reviews.
This book does not unveil "how emotions guide us".
Firstly, emotions are redefined as internal brain states which other scientists would probably refer to as affect. In fact, a large part of the author's study is on what he calls "emotion primitives" such as persistence, scalability, valence, and generalization.
Secondly, all the studies are on insects or animals: fruit flies, mice etc. None of these have actually been tested in humans yet. Therefore, it hardly shows how we, homo sapiens, are "guided by emotions".
Despite all this, I still rate 4 stars because the research is fascinating. It takes a bottom-up approach to understanding emotion states. While it does raise more questions than answers, I am interested to see what future studies uncover.
Take note that this a science book. Unless you are really interested in this specific area, it is not an easy book to get through as can be seen in the other reviews.
October 13, 2023
I was really disappointed by this book. I had high hopes, having heard Anderson's interview on The Huberman Labs podcast. He was so articulate and interesting on the podcast, and sadly it seems like all of that disappeared when writing this book. The book spends way too long on certain points (rehashing the same argument that we should use "emotions" to refer to the persistent states of animals, even if we don't know that they have feelings", subjective experiences of those states) and wasn't structured in a way that presented interesting results or outcomes. I enjoyed learning a bit more about optogenetics and getting a better understanding of how this cutting-edge neuroscience technique is helping us map the functions of the (fly and mouse) brain, but other than that I mostly found this book quite lacking.
August 24, 2022
Lots of science talk, but some pretty revolutionary ideas that make sense and offer the potential to learn so much about how humans (and animals) work.
“Describes a new approach to study the brain activity of animals as they navigate real-life scenarios, like fleeing a predator or competing for a mate. This research has revolutionized what we know about animal fear and aggression. Explanations of what studying emotions and related internal brain states in animals can teach us about human behavior, offering new insights into why isolation makes us more aggressive, how sex and violence connect, and whether there’s a link between aggression and mental illness.”
“Describes a new approach to study the brain activity of animals as they navigate real-life scenarios, like fleeing a predator or competing for a mate. This research has revolutionized what we know about animal fear and aggression. Explanations of what studying emotions and related internal brain states in animals can teach us about human behavior, offering new insights into why isolation makes us more aggressive, how sex and violence connect, and whether there’s a link between aggression and mental illness.”
April 23, 2023
A good book overall, but a bit too technical and focused on the science of neurology. While interesting, it requires some effort to comprehend and isn't a very light read for someone who is not that much into the topic.
The overall concept is very good and offers a nice perspective into how emotional states affect our everyday behavior. But it should be advertised more accurately so people can have a clear idea what to expect when diving into it.
The overall concept is very good and offers a nice perspective into how emotional states affect our everyday behavior. But it should be advertised more accurately so people can have a clear idea what to expect when diving into it.
October 18, 2021
I am very sorry but this book was not for me. It was very well written and gave great examples to back up what the author was talking about. This book would be great for someone who knows a little more about the subject before they read it. I would recommend this book if you are trying to figure out emotions, but like I said it just wasn’t for me.
May 26, 2022
I love readings about emotions and this was a very different approach to it than I have ever read before. The author is a neuroscientist that looks at them in terms of molecules, cells and brain function. Very interesting I definitely recommend it (if you’re not into sciency talk definitely not for you)
April 18, 2022
The first half was all about fruit flies and very little about anything that was advertised, like if your cat purrs to show affection, or if your dog actually is lonely for you when go to work. The next part was slightly more interesting but definitely not as advertised.
Disappointing.
Disappointing.
June 25, 2022
An extraordinary book elaborating the scientific definition of emotion and how to study it using the cutting edge neuroscience tools.
Want to Read
September 13, 2022Recommended by Andrew Huberman
December 8, 2022
Unfortunately I found it very hard to read, probably intended for a more advanced audience!
January 19, 2023
Maby im just stupid but this book got my brain smoking... Imma have to read it again, felt like I could only comprehend 30% of the Infos given
June 20, 2024
I love the book’s title, subtitle and cover image
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews