The Amygdala and Amygdala Hijacking: Fight or Flight

The Amygdala

The amygdala is a small, almond shape part of the brain. It plays a large role in our emotions and our emotional intelligence. Humans actually have two on them, one for each side of the brain. They are part of the brain’s limbic system. They act as the brain’s emotional centers as well as core centers for memory formation, particularly emotional memories.

What the Amygdala does

One of the amygdala’s roles is to assign emotions to received sensory stimulus. When humans receive sensory information (e.g. sight, sound) the messages first pass from the sensory organs (e.g. eyes, ears) to the thalamus (don’t worry what this is). The thalamus then splits the signals and passes them on to both the rational thinking neo-cortex and to the amygdala.

The amygdala receives the signals and processes them by comparing them to historic memories. It does this milliseconds before the neo-cortex receives and processes the information.

If the Amygdala identifies a form of threat within the signal, it triggers an adrenal “fight of flight” response. This leads to shutting down the rational neo-cortex’s instructions and preparing the body for immediate physical action. If the Amygdala identifies no threat, then the neo-cortex remains in control. Daniel Goleman refers to this process as an “amygdala hijack” in his book, “Emotional Intelligence”.

Why this Matters

Everyone experiences their own version of Amygdala Hijacking, the “fight or flight” response from time to time when triggered by specific stimulus. It could be a raised voice, it could be a sudden movement, or it could even be spotting an error in a piece of work that you’ve completed.

When people are in their “fight of flight” modes, their bodies are geared for action, not for thinking. They may behave irrationally, and certainly will not be good at rational, detailed thinking.

As an individual, being aware of when you enter your own “fight or flight” mode is helpful. This awareness will help you manage and think your way out of it. Likewise, when working with or leading others, knowing when they are in their “fight of flight” modes will help you know when to step away, work effectively with them and maintain and build effective working relationships.  These skills are key parts of emotional intelligence.

The brain is a fascinating thing and hugely affects our working experiences. The basics of brain anatomy may be helpful to be aware of. Oxytocin and Adrenaline, which contributes to our fight or flight response, might also be interesting to learn more about. The “Chimp Paradox” is a popular book that explores the issue of emygdala hijack in more detail.

Understanding our emotions in work is helpful for all kinds of things. Doing so can help increase our emotional intelligence. You can listen to our podcast on emotional intellligence below.

While there is absolutely no need to understand neuroscience to be effective in most careers, a basic understanding of where our thoughts and emotions come from may help individuals improve their emotional intelligence, respond to and manage their emotions, empathize and work well with with others and respond well in difficult, emotional situations.

In our experience, emotional intelligence is a hugely important skill in the world of work. It’s one that nearly most people can get better at. We recommend that everyone learn more about their own emotional responses to events. We also recommend and that everyone tries to develop their emotional intelligence / ability to navigate unuhelpful thoughts and feelings. These skills will only become more important as automation and AI play increasing roles in the world of work.

We know that some people dispute that emotional intelligence is a thing. Or that it can be learned. Or that the brain works this way. Despite this, we think it’s a helpful way for people in work to think about themselves and their interactions with others.

This post is based on work on emotional intelligence by Daniel Goleman, as published in his book: Emotional Intelligence.

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