Reading: Social Safety, Reducing Social Threat

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George M. Slavich (UCLA) says that: The human brain and immune system are principally designed to keep the body biologically safe by continually monitoring and responding to social, physical, and microbial threats in the environment. This neurocognitive and immunologic ability for humans to quickly understand and respond to potentially dangerous social situations is ultimately critical for survival.

Because situations involving social conflict, isolation, devaluation, rejection, and exclusion historically increased risk for physical injury and infection, anticipatory neural–immune reactivity to social threat was likely highly conserved.

When sustained, however, this multilevel biological threat response can increase individuals’ risk for several inflammation-related diseases.

Reference: George M. Slavich, Centre for Psychoneuroimmunology, Psychiatry and Biobehavioural Sciences, UCLA

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