Biopsychological View of Ambition

Need for achievement(N-ach) is defined by the Psychlopedia as, a mental state that produces a psychological motive to excel or to reach a goal. It would be interesting to see what part of the brain reacts to those who possess a higher N-Ach in comparison to those who don’t. In a brain scan different parts of the brain light up showing where the brain is more active.  Those who score highest in persistence had the greatest activity in the limbic region, the area of the brain related to emotions and habits. We are in luck! I found an article that provides some evidence that our brains can be trained to handle stress and in the long run, trained to score a higher N-Ach.

According to Alex Hutchinson who wrote "Cracking the Athlete's Brain," they've discovered that the distinction between a normal and resilient brain often resides in the interplay between two areas: the insular cortex and the medial prefrontal cortex, or MPC. The insula, which is part of the limbic region, is located deep within the cerebral cortex, beneath the frontal, parietal and temporal opercula. The functions of the insula are associated with visceral functions, usually automatic functions like blushing, fear, and sexual situations. The insula also functions in integrating autonomic information. Autonomic information is unconscious information like heartbeat and breathing.  “In a series of studies starting in 2009, Martin Paulus, (a leading player in search for brain--training techniques,) and his colleagues put hardened Marines, elite adventure racers, and regular Joes through various cognitive tasks while monitoring their brain activity in real time with an fMRI scanner. To provide an 'aversive stimulus'—a scaled-down version of the stress they'd experience when coming under enemy fire or taking a wrong turn during a multi-day race—the researchers occasionally interfered with subjects' breathing, restricting airflow to masks they were wearing." "The subjects knew the sensation was coming but not always when. Some members of the control group panicked and had to be removed from the scanner, but the Marines and the adventure racers handled the scenario with ease. In the fMRI scanner, they showed higher activation in the insular cortex immediately before the restricted breathing started. They had, essentially, prepared themselves for the unpleasant sensation. Then, while it was happening, the same region of the brain showed lower activ-ity and carried on with business as usual. "That kind of anticipation and preparation is critical," Paulus says.

We could actually use this study as proof that we can train ourselves to survive daily stresses and continue on with business as usual. That being said, we must change our thought process and remold our minds using the Self-Regulated Learning tools to be ambitious. I strongly believe ambition can be taught to all.

 How do you think you would handle this test? If you have trained for this type of experience what kind of exercises would you suggest? How do you deal with stress triggers?