ABSTRACT
This chapter summarises the science of the left and right hemispheres, drawing particularly on Iain McGilchrist’s work. Rather than one being logical and the other emotional, the key difference lies in the left hemisphere’s specialisation for focused attention and the right’s for open attention. The right brain weaves outer and inner (bodily) senses together, and functions as an ensemble with the body, while the left can stand apart from it. They both co-operate and compete, and ultimately make complementary contributions to our experience. Psychological defences are a feature of the left hemisphere, dissociation a feature of the right. Therapists can emphasise processes that arise in the right hemisphere.
