Plato, the brain, and the soul: Further research into neural correlates for plato’s tripartite soul

Author

Stayce R. Camparo, Harvard UniversityFollow

Periodical Title

Modern Psychological Studies

Volume

25

Number

2

Department

Dept. of Psychology

Publisher

University of Tennessee at Chattanooga

Place of Publication

Chattanooga (Tenn.)

Abstract

This paper explores neuropsychological evidence for Plato’s philosophical theory of the tripartite soul as explained in Plato’s Republic. Plato contends that an express relationship of the three elements that make-up the soul (reason, appetitive, and spirit) interact to promote just behavior, and that just behavior is optimal for individual and societal well-being. Specifically, just behavior is considered to arise from reason’s oversight of the other two elements. Apparent in this theory is the proximity Plato’s analysis has with the current psychological understanding of cognitions that activate behaviors. Strack and Deutsch’s (2004) 2-system model of reflective and impulsive processing, with the addition of Wiers and Stacy’s (2006) supplementary moderators of emotion and motivation, display evidence that Plato’s theory has footing in psychological theory.

Subject

Psychology

Keyword

Plato; Tripartite Theory; Brain Function; Behavior; Decision-making; Moral-reasoning

Discipline

Psychology

Document Type

article

DCMI Type

Text

Language

English

Rights

http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/

License

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/

Recommended Citation

Camparo, Stayce R. (2020) "Plato, the brain, and the soul: Further research into neural correlates for plato’s tripartite soul," Modern Psychological Studies: Vol. 25: No. 2, Article 7.
Available at: https://scholar.utc.edu/mps/vol25/iss2/7