Human beings have succeeded as the most dominant species on earth in large part due to our ability to connect and cooperate, and to innovate through collaboration and specialisation. This has fine-tuned our unconscious perception of faces, facial expressions, body language and touch. This unconscious drive to connect can draw us together, but it also emphasizes the differences between groups. And it is getting worse, as overcrowding, technology, and the media often focus us on our differences. We become more and more divided into groups as a result. Mark shows us how to recapture the drive for connection to help us look past our differences and reconnect, even with those we perceive to be outside our groups. He starts by discussing the human brain’s specialisation for connection and how it evolved. He focuses on how connection works in practice, then explores the negative consequences of our drive for connection. He ends with a positive perspective by examining how we can use our drive for connection to expand our in-group and extend multicultural societies for the good of our planet.
By:
Mark A. Williams
Imprint: Woodslane
Country of Publication: Australia
ISBN: 9781922800701
ISBN 10: 1922800708
Publication Date: 01 August 2024
Audience:
General/trade
,
ELT Advanced
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Forthcoming
Introduction Part I: Humans as a Connected Species 1 A Very Short History of Us 2 Why We Think without Knowing 3 Identifying People 4 A Puppet on a String Part II: How Does Connection Work? 5 We Are Pack Animals 6 Connected to Learn 7 Home-Cooked Meal for the Soul Part III: The Negative Consequences of Our Drive to Connect 8 Racism, Sexism, and Other -Isms 9 Viral Viruses 10 A Crowded Room 11 Modern Technology Thrives on Connection Part IV: How Can We Fix It? 12 Common Humanity Perspective 13 Get Real 14 Connected Development 15 The Future for the Connected Species
