The Neuroscientific Basis Of Psychoanalysis

This book offers a comprehensive and interdisciplinary synthesis of psychoanalytic theory and contemporary neuroscience. It systematically revisits Freud's core constructs - such as the unconscious, drives, defence mechanisms, psychosexual development, and clinical processes - and maps them onto current neurobiological evidence. The central argument is that psychoanalysis, far from being an outdated metaphor, provides a robust and prescient functional framework for understanding the mindbrain relationship. The book distinguishes itself by integrating over 200 empirical studies from neuroimaging, lesion research, electrophysiology, and behavioural paradigms into a coherent narrative. Its educational value lies in its structured, accessible yet rigorous presentation, making it suitable for both students and practitioners seeking a scientifically grounded yet clinically meaningful perspective. This book will help to satisfy the growing need for a unified, non-reductionist model of human subjectivity that bridges clinical insight with biological plausibility.

Autorentext

Michele Di Salvo is an Italian researcher, author, and expert operating at the dynamic intersection of neuroscience, psychology, AI and law. With a career spanning scientific research, clinical theory, and policy analysis, he is recognized for his interdisciplinary approach to understanding the human mind and its interaction with emerging technologies. He currently is Academic Coordinator at the ENIA Foundation and Director of NeuralNexus Review. His work has garnered significant recognition, including the 2024 AI Awards for Ethics for his public advocacy of "neural rights" and cognitive liberty. He is author of 12 seminal scientific books such as "Autism Research between Psychology and Neuroscience" (Springer, 2024) and "A Perspective on the Neurobiological Basis of Autism" (Routledge, 2025), along with numerous peer-reviewed articles.

Inhalt

1. Introduction.- 2. The Architect of the Unconscious The Work of Sigmund Freud, between Theories, Criticism and Legacy.- 3. The Unconscious Revisited Discovering the Neuroscientific Basis of a Hidden Mind.- 4. Topography of the Mind: Exploring the Neuroscientific Basis of Conscious, Preconscious, and Unconscious.- 5. The Neural Basis of Language Embodied Language and the Reformulation of Psychoanalytic Practice.- 6. The Neural Basis of Freudian Slips: The Neural Correlates of Freudian Slips and Their Implications for Conscious-Unconscious Dynamics.- 7. The Theatre of the Mind A Neuroscientific Exploration of Dreams.- 8. The Architecture of the Mind in the Brain: In Search of the Neural Correlates of the Id, Ego, and Superego.- 9. Eros and Thanatos in the Brain In Search of the Neural Substrates of Life and Death Drives.- 10. From the Oral Stage to the Genital Stage: In Search of the Neural Correlates of Freudian Psychosexual Development.- 11. The Brain in Analysis: Neuroscience of Fundamental Psychoanalytic Processes.- 12. The Guardians of the Mind Neuroscience of the Ego's Defence Mechanisms.- 13. Between Molecules and Mind Neuropsychoanalysis as an Epistemological Bridge and Tool for Dynamic and Personalised Psychodiagnosis.- 14. Neurophysiology of Emotions The Bridge Between Mind and Body.- 15. The Unfinished Project: From Freud's Neurological Dream to Kandel's Neuroscientific Synthesis in the Search for a Unified Science of the Mind.- 16. ANNEX I Psychotherapy and cognitive and neural plasticity. The social brain and post-traumatic stress disorder.- 17. ANNEX II Multiple intelligences and specialisation. A return to Gardner and the need to rethink psychology in Hillmanian transparency.- 18. ANNEX III Past, present and future of conversion disorders: A neuropsychological understanding and redefinition of the body-brain-mind unity. 19. ANNEX IV From -10 to +30 A journey through the first 40 months of the life of homo sapiens: from the birth of emotions to the naming of feelings to the age of reason.