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DTSTART:20250101T000000
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DTSTART;TZID=Asia/Kolkata:20260407T133000
DTEND;TZID=Asia/Kolkata:20260407T144500
DTSTAMP:20260328T052052Z
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LAST-MODIFIED:20260328T052052Z
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SUMMARY:Psychology Seminar
DESCRIPTION:Dear All\, \nThe Department of Psychology invites you to a Seminar on "Characters in search of a performer: Neural signatures of role performance\, from theatre to therapy" \nAbstract: What happens in the brain when we deliberately blur the boundary between self and other\, when we become someone else\, inhabit a character? Here\, we will explore the neuroscience of role-play and acting\, important not only to theatre and narrative dance practices\, but also offstage – from children’s pretend play to the professional or personal roles we perform in everyday life. I chart our current understanding of the neural basis of role embodiment\, and share original research that uses an interdisciplinary mixed methods paradigm with fMRI neuroimaging to track how activation in brain networks for self-reflection and social understanding in role-playing participants may shift with changing aesthetic distance (roles closer or farther from the self)\, and how it may differ between ‘trained actors’ and ‘novices’\, the latter reflecting typical participants in drama therapy and psychodrama. I also consider how these neural signatures intersect with those of aesthetic appreciation and creativity. Building on this\, I discuss the potential of role-play and expressive arts as transdiagnostic tools for wellbeing. I conclude with insights from implementing arts-based interventions in real-world settings\, highlighting both the potential and the challenges of translating these ideas into real support systems. \nAbout the Speaker: Sanjna Banerjee is a neuroscientist and theatre artist exploring the neuropsychology of  performance\, creative arts and social behaviour\, with applications to arts-in-health. She completed her PhD in cognitive neuroscience at the Indian Institute of Science\, where she studied  visuospatial attention\, sensory processing\, and decision-making. Currently\, she is conducting academic research on the neural signatures of acting with the Jameel Arts and Health Lab\, (NYU Steinhardt)\, ground research on arts-in-health implementation with the Foundation for Arts and Health India\, and collaborative performance based research on embodied cognition in dancers. Alongside her scientific work\, she has maintained an active theatre practice – writing\, directing\, choreographing\, and performing in collaboration with musicians\, dancers\, and students. She aims to build truly interdisciplinary frameworks of research and practice connecting the arts\, brain\, behaviour\, and wellbeing. \nWe look forward to your active participation.
URL:https://www.ashoka.edu.in/event/psychology-seminar/
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