Right Brain Rising Summary

In the excerpt “Right Brain Rising”, Daniel Pink tells his experience in detail of an intriguing brain scan beneficial both to his curious mind, and the world of science. He then goes on to inform readers of the two distinct hemispheres resting in our skulls; following up with the past inferiority associated with the right hemisphere, thought to be due to years of evolution. After acknowledging the disproved theory, Pink delves into information pertaining to psychology’s six principal fields, with scenarios: developmental, physiological/biological, personality, clinical/counseling, social, industrial/organizational.

Perhaps the field that best umbrellas the author’s firsthand experience is Physiological/Biological Psychology, since the procedure

was, put simply: an investigation of his human behavior, thoughts, and emotions. As the excerpt progressed, Pink displayed a photograph of a blurred man holding the viewer at gunpoint. A peaceful introvert’s mind, whom doesn’t leave his or her home, may often be naive, and therefore not process the element of danger that comes along with weaponry. The right brain effortlessly outdoes its counterpart in facial recognition, all
across the human race. On a similar token, in the realm of emotions, amygdalas claim a leading role. They are introduced as “two almond shaped structures…” (Pink, 23). There is one per hemisphere, further proving the theory of the two smoothly operating in coordinance. The man pictured holding a shotgun is a parallel to synthetic stimulants (varying from marijuana to prescribed antidepressants) touched upon in the textbook. Both variants trigger entirely different responses from our brain.
Speaking for the next field at hand, Developmental/Experimental Psychology envelopes learning, memory, sensation perception, cognition, motivation and emotion. Pink alluded to

countless scientific discoveries within the field, one of them being a now invalidated concept of the left hemisphere single-handedly controlling literacy. He informs the reader of Sperry’s eventual discovery. The scientist stated that both hemispheres are responsible for reading and interpreting text. The left analyzes, while the right portion simultaneously dissects what it’s equivalent started. Continuing on the matter of reading, the author in “Right Brain Rising” instructs the reader to perform certain actions, each using either hemisphere. In the midst of the student’s amazement, he suggests that a large majority of languages (English being one of them), read from left to right. Our eyes have been conditioned to flow in said direction from a young age, and have proven to take charge in reading, true to the detail of human brains micromanaging the body’s opposite halves.
Personality psychology is set apart in studying differences within anxiety, sociability, self esteem, desire for success and aggression. As referred to in the text is relevant to Pink’s brief mention of Betty Edwards’ publication, “Drawing is not really very difficult, Seeing is the problem.” This suggests that personality as well as ability are not as easily deciphered from a favored half of the human brain, in comparison to previous beliefs. From a different viewpoint, however: these variations may shape one’s personality. In summary, “Right Brain Rising” provides a prime example of an angry spouse, and how a damaged brain may misinterpret his actions. A damaged left brain will result in perception of the anger, while lacking understanding of why it happened in the first place. Naturally, it flows in both directions, and either way, the spouse with the effected brain’s personality is inevitably altered, therefore putting a dent in the relationship.

Luckily for the struggling couple, the branch of psychology in Hollywood movies
and comes to mind of the common man is Clinical/Counseling Psychology. Although it’s vague job description isn’t entirely inaccurate, psychologists in the clinical field too, experiment with up and coming methods of treating patients. As a matter of fact, there were most likely a select few on sight during some aspects of Pink’s brain scan. Stated on page 16 of the excerpt, “Many popular writers have written that the right hemisphere is the key to expanding human thought, surviving trauma, healing autism and more.” Although that notion is leaning far towards the “savior” concept, clinical psychologists have in part, worked to determine it’s legitimacy. Lastly, to call attention to the gunpoint image once again, a clinical psychologist could display a picture, inkblots, et cetera to evaluate a response in an effort to help their case and narrow down what the patient is dealing with.
Moving on to the next realm, Social Psychologists are not to be forgotten, as they work behind the scenes to develop principles to form support groups for countless issues; in a sensible and controlled format. In addition, these scientists combine their efforts to knock down societal issues like sexual harassment, racial prejudice, homophobia, and so on. The text also hints at the flawed power imbalance in today’s education system. Pink’s views remain neutral, but he is sure to voice concern of “L-Directed thinking” being heavily favored, overshadowing its equally valuable counterpart. Although the correlation is rather foggy, schooling is most definitely an issue put in the hands of Social Psychologists, as it shapes society as a whole.
The sixth area of Psychology is labeled Industrial/Organizational, IO for short. It deals with optimal productivity in the workplace, and how to achieve it. This includes questions

ranging from which gender serves more efficiently in leadership positions to how to select prime employees in the first place.

As are the other five, Industrial/Organizational Psychology is broached within the excerpt, particularly meshed into education as well as the aforementioned field. Since the large majority of students pursue a serious career in some time span following high school, IO is everywhere in society. It is indirectly referenced near the conclusion of “Right Brain Rising” in correspondence to Left Directed Thinking and Right Directed Thinking. The author quotes “They tend to become lawyers, accountants, and engineers. Other people are more comfortable with holistic, intuitive, and nonlinear reasoning. They tend to become inventors, entertainers, and counselors. And these individual inclinations go on to shape families, institutions, and societies.” Industrial/Organizational Psychologists aid in the determination of who is most suitable for these occupations. Furthermore, upon stating that L-Directed Thinking is favored in public schools, it is clear why more people occupy such jobs. We are heavily conditioned from a young age to conform to overly structured styles of learning. Pink’s highly educated standpoint reassures us that although the hemispheres share equal significance, humans are often naturally more apt to the qualities of either

half.
In conclusion, all six key fields within psychology are discussed in one way or another throughout Daniel Pink’s work, “Right Brain Rising”. His views on the mind help individuals and groups pertaining to their respective fields.

Throughout Daniel Pink’s work, “Right Brain Rising”, he informs the reader of the complicated history of left versus right brained thinking, with a background setting of his brain scan.

At the conclusion of the excerpt, Pink suggests the reality of present day education favoring L-directed thinking students. This method’s framework is based on logic and structure, leaving little room for creativity. It is seen in massive business corporations, therefore America’s schools feel obligated to drill students towards that mindset. R-directed thinkers see life from a metaphorical and aesthetic outlook. In terms of the workforce, employment offerings are few and far between. A right-brained thinker can still find work suitable for them in niches like theatrical arts and social work. Unfortunately, with exceptions, these occupations do not bring in as large of a paycheck in comparison to “left brain” jobs. Education systems must work to destroy the accepted belief that the right hemisphere as “useful but

secondary”.
To better educate students from the beginning, there are countless feasible tactics of tailoring education to their needs. For instance, L-directed thinkers typically prefer to work alone, while R-directed thinkers tend to express their innovative ideas best in a group setting. When assigning a project, the class’ instructor can simply leave assignment of groups at the discretion of the pupils. This is an undemanding way of making change, without financial strain.
Furthermore, seeing as budgetary concerns run the system, a seemingly obvious way to remedy the situation is to eradicate standardized testing. The corporations that formulate these tests persuade schools that the assessments are beneficial, and act as a comprehensive “check” to measure what students have obtained. The sad truth, based upon past experience, Pennsylvania’s

Keystone and PSSA exams are nothing more than dreaded by students and faculty; not to mention irrelevant to material taught in the course. This leads to corruption when the same
people responsible for production of the tests offer endless materials to prepare for material that is intended to evaluate topics that we already learned, right? This traps school districts in a blackmail like situation, therefore causing them to expend more money unnecessarily, further benefitting rote memorization abilities of L-directed thinkers.
Moreover, far too many schools require students to complete specific trivial courses in order to graduate. This is a monumental issue, take technology for instance. By forcing a pupil to enroll in a class that they have no interest in, he or she can become excessively stressed after devoting excessive time to the subject. Resulting from this is lack of focus in core classes in which will prove vital later on in life, an issue educators are blind to. It’s solution is blatantly obvious, allow students to select their own schedules based on preference of career path.
In addition, if our modern day system remains unchanged, everyone will accept only the knowledge spoon-fed to us, rather than putting our instinctive curiosity to use. Eventually, society as a whole will deem it a challenge to progress naturally. This concept has already proven tried and true since all students are assumed to choose the path of higher education. In doing so, seventeen year olds are in short, presented with the question “What do you want to do with your life? You only have one shot.” While college is most certainly a positive thing, insisting it is the superior option for every student is negative pressure placed on a personal life decision. In summary, our education system has come a long way, yet has endless cracks waiting to be

mended. Left-brained approaches are not to be removed, simply lessened to accommodate for it’s complementary half, needed to operate in harmony.1