Psychology, Emotion and Intuition in Work Relationships: The Head, Heart and Gut Professional

Psychology, Emotion and Intuition in Work Relationships: The Head, Heart and Gut Professional highlights the increasing importance of human relations in professional life. In modern society, all those who work with or provide services to others are increasingly called upon to be not just technical experts, but also ‘head, heart and gut professionals’ – who can work and relate to others with their head, heart, and gut. The book explains and synthesises these elements in an accessible way, based on a sound theoretical perspective combined with practical guidance. The authors address how to manage client expectations; how to deal with risk, uncertainty and imperfection, as well as how to improve communication and interpersonal skills. Attention is also given to the central role of empathy and rapport in professional relationships, while recognising the need for proper professional boundaries. Psychology, Emotion and Intuition in Work Relationships will be a valuable guide for all modern practising and training professionals in a broad range of fields, including mental health, law, social and healthcare, teaching and academia, technology, financial and other services – indeed, for anyone who provides services and has working relationships of any kind.

Table of Contents:
Psychology, Emotions and Intuition in Work Relationships: The Head, Heart and Gut Professional Contents Plan 1. On being a professional The concept of "professional" in this work A more effective professional role and understanding The focus on substantive education and training Gaining some understanding of the behaviour of others Gaining some understanding about ourselves What does the public expect from professionals? Professional and personal authenticity Professional jargon, mystification and patronisation Conspiracy against the laity The patronising professional Client’s reactions and empowerment Helping and healing professions Defining the helping professions Healing professions The concept of the wounded healer Further reading 2. Head, heart and gut: Head – Brain and mind Head, heart and gut in functioning and decision-making The brain: central to understanding and functioning Basic neuroscience: the brain and nervous system Introduction to 100 billion neurons: The nervous system The human brain: old and new The brain’s hemispheres: left and right brain Two ways of thinking Automatic processing Conscious attentive processing Intelligence Some specialist views of the brain The mindful brain The social brain The ethical brain The spiritual brain The mommy brain The "new" brain The mind Further reading 3. Head, heart and gut: Heart – Emotions The heart as metaphor? Cultural and biblical heritage The heart’s physiological role in relation to the brain and emotions Emotions and feelings Emotional intelligence Kinds of emotions The purpose and effect of emotions Feelings and consciousness Emotions: reality and myths The myth of rational decision-making The myth that "negative emotions" are bad The myth that "venting" an emotion will resolve it The myth that women are emotional but men are not Further relevance of emotions Further reading 4. Head, heart and gut: Gut – Intuition Gut as metaphor Intuition What do we mean by intuition? Everyday and expert intuition A sixth sense? Creative and predictive intuition Complementary thinking Heuristics Intuition cautions Availability error The halo (and devil) effect Framing effect Fundamental attribution error The representativeness heuristic The overconfidence effect Anchoring Sunk costs fallacy Some other factors and biases affecting intuition Further reading 5. The hidden power of the unconscious Don’t mention the war Dagwood Bumstead and Basil Fawlty Fundamental relevance of the unconscious Freud’s unconscious Jung’s collective unconscious and "shadow" The cognitive approach Freudian, Jungian or cognitive? What is this elusive unconscious? Does it even exist? Some practical implications Making decisions and choices: free will? Intuition and "gut feelings" Slips of the tongue and other errors Body language (non-verbal communication) Placebos and nocebos, Pygmalion and Rosenthal Powerful and suppressed emotions distort effective functioning Unconscious competence Higher intuitions and inspiration A springboard to other aspects Further reading 6. The amygdala hijack: Triggers and strategies The multiple roles of the amygdala The amygdala hijack Triggering the "amygdala hijack" Fear Panic Anger Shame and humiliation 21st Century multi-tasking Rekindling amygdala hijack activators Some strategies for dealing with amygdala hijack triggers Empathy and compassion Move off the topic causing distress Support a shift into cognitive brain mode Take a break Deep breathing Humour Some longer-term strategies Further reading 7. Understanding personality The uniqueness of personality Lord Scrutton’s elephant The relevance of personality Personality types and traits Big Five Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) Contradictions in traits and preferences Other personality tests Personality disorders and traits DSM-5 and other classifications Maladaptive personality traits Personality development Cultural influences on behaviour patterns Linear-active and multi-active Cultural norms Nature or nurture? Some practical implications Self-awareness Relating to clients, patients, co-workers and others Identifying and working with troubled personalities The well-rounded professional Further reading 8. Empathy, attunement and professional boundaries Empathy: The essence of professional and personal relationships Empathy and evolution Empathy and sympathy Empathy and rapport Empathy in a professional context Empathy, compassion and humanity Empathy and reflective function (mentalisation or "theory of mind") "Against empathy"? Attunement Attunement between parent and child: attachment theory Interpersonal adult attunement Intrapersonal attunement The basic neuroscience of empathy, attunement and attachment Mirror neurons Other parts of the brain affecting empathy and attunement Neural development and attachment Neurobiology Professional boundaries Boundaried empathy Other professional boundaries Personal-professional boundaries Some final thoughts about boundaries Further reading 9. Professional relationships and expectations Expectations of professional relationships Expectations about the professional personally Expectations about the professional environment Expectations about the work to be done Managing clients’ expectations The power of expectations Client centredness (person-centredness) Transference and countertransference Transference Countertransference Authority, power, trust and dependence Authority Power Trust Dependence Culture and gender Culture Gender Further reading 10. Enhancing professional relationships: Communication and other interpersonal skills Essential communication skills Active listening Observing non-verbal communications Acknowledging Helping people to hear Summarising Questioning Reframing Avoiding professional jargon and mystification Some other interpersonal skills Establishing rapport Maintaining professional presence and professional energy Managing clients’ expressions of emotions Understanding the value and use of symbolism and metaphor Some communication practicalities Terms of engagement Some practicalities concerning communications Further reading 11. Balancing professional and systemic tensions The essential tension of opposites Conflict and change Systems and change Profession v. Business Public professional persona v. private persona Tradition v. change: challenging the system Systems thinking Challenging and changing systems The value of tradition The downside of tradition Recognising and managing concerns about change Other competing professional tensions Work pressure v. need for self-care and leisure Budgetary constraints v. quality of care Leadership v. democratic decision-making Professional v. personal values Further reading 12. High conflict personalities Understanding high conflict personalities What is a high conflict personality and how does it manifest? Why professionals might need to know about high conflict personalities Why do some people have high conflict personalities? Attachment disorganisation Personality disorder Maladaptive personality traits and systemic influence Links between attachment, personality traits and disorders, and high conflict Cautions and reservations Strategies for professionals dealing with high conflict personalities Boundaried empathy Empathetic objectivity – or reason and compassion Structure and records Small steps Proactivity Dealing with a client’s "world view" Helping with understandings and responses Helping decision-making inhibited by strong emotions Seeking third party support where appropriate High conflict endings Further reading 13. Difficult people Raise your hand if you’re a difficult person Everyone is crazy except thee and me – and sometimes I’m not too sure about thee What do you mean "difficult"? Why some people are difficult and some strategies for dealing with them Cautionary introduction High conflict personalities Anger – overt or suppressed Non-cooperation and passive aggression Power and control – and Machiavellianism Negativity Ambivalence and indecision Intolerance of other views It’s the situation, stupid Further reading 14. Uncertainty, risk and imperfection Living with uncertainty The discomfort of uncertainty Black Swans Coping with uncertainty Superstition: illusory control over uncertainty The relationship between uncertainty and risk Risk assessment and management Risk-benefit analysis Appreciating levels of risk and benefit Complexity of risk measurement – decision trees The considerable significance of subjective judgment Prospect Theory Risk tolerance and aversion Imperfection Striving for perfection Living with imperfection When imperfection constitutes professional negligence (malpractice) Imperfection and paradox Further reading 15. Negotiation Negotiation fundamentals To negotiate or not to negotiate – that is the question Dealing with non-negotiable values "Bargaining with the devil" Negotiation approaches Interest-based cooperative negotiation Competitive negotiation Reconciling interest-based and competitive approaches Some practical aspects of negotiation Preparation, design and set-up Zone of (Possible) Agreement and the negotiation dance The initial stages: anchoring Continuing the negotiations Some psychological aspects of negotiation Emotions and the myth of rationality Perceptions Personality traits Culture and gender in negotiation Further reading 16. Conflict and disputes: management and resolution Conflict and dispute outline Distinguishing conflict and dispute The paradox Conflict Dispute Conflict resolution and management Conflict resolution Conflict management Modes of responding to conflict Dispute resolution: primary processes Negotiation Litigation – the court process Religious courts Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR): Introduction Non-adjudicatory ADR Mediation (conciliation) The mini-trial (Executive Tribunal) Neutral case evaluation (Early neutral evaluation) Adjudicatory ADR Arbitration Contractual adjudication Dispute Boards Expert determination Administrative or statutory tribunals Hybrid ADR processes Med-arb (mediation-arbitration) Arb-med (arbitration-mediation) Neutral fact-finding expert Ombudsman Online dispute resolution (ODR) Further reading 17. Beyond technique Beyond technique: the concept Self-nurturing and establishing calm Meditation Mindfulness Yoga Purpose and meaning Earning a living Making a difference Having a sense of purpose and meaning Expressing our humanity Working holistically Enhancing expertise and skill Maintaining professional identity and self-esteem Unconscious competence revisited Further reading 18. Support needs and resources Professional backup, teams and networks Working in teams Professional networks and bodies Supervision, consultancy, coaching and mentoring Supervision Consultancy Coaching Mentoring Some frailties and problems requiring personal support The Achilles Syndrome, self-doubt and the secret fear of failure Stress Anxiety and panic Depression Addiction Other personal issues indicating a need for support Relationship issues Personality disorders and traits Autism and Asperger Syndrome Dissatisfaction with life path: Self-actualising and meaning Counselling, psychotherapy and complementary therapies Counselling and psychotherapy Complementary therapies Further reading 19 Transitions and Endings Life and work transitions Transitions: "Little dying" – endings and new beginnings Life and work stages: The Empty Raincoat Client and patients endings Managing contentious endings Preparing for retirement/Third Age Financial preparation Emotional preparation Practical preparation Transitions and endings Further reading Bibliography Index