1.+escamilla2018 BrainActivation During WAE

Journal of Analytical Psychology, 2018, 63, 4, 484–509
Brain activation patterns in response to

complex triggers in the Word Association
Test: results from a new study in the United
States
Michael Escamilla,
Hugo Sandoval, Vince Calhoun and Marisol Ramirez, El Paso, Texas
Abstract: C.G. Jung’s theory of psychological complexes lies at the root of analytical
psychology theory and practice. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)
provides a powerful tool to validate the theory of complexes and eludicate the
neuropsychologic mechanisms underlying the unconscious activation of significant
memories. In this study, using fMRI, we identify two brain circuits which are activated
in response to complex triggering words. Circuit one involves brain regions involved in
episodic memory and somatic (body) responses and the experience of uncertainty. A
second circuit involves episodic memory, emotion, visual and language association,
and semiotic meaning. Specific brain regions include the right prefrontal cortex, SMA
cortex, left temporal cortex, and the caudate and cingulate. These brain circuits may
be thought of as the biological form in which complexes are experienced. Implications
for analytic psychology practice and theory are discussed.
Keywords: archetypes, brain imaging, complexes, fMRI, frontal cortex, temporal

cortex, word association test
Introduction
Carl Jung, analytical psychology and the word association test
From 1903 to 1906, Carl Jung and his associates at the Burghölzli psychiatric
clinic in Switzerland conducted a number of important experiments to
identify how subjects responded spontaneously to a list of words. Jung edited
a book summarizing these experiments in 1906 in which he and his mentor,
Eugen Bleuler, elucidated a theory of unconscious complexes which could be
triggered by specific words. Which words triggered these unconscious
‘complexes’ were unique to each person (Jung & Riklin, 1919). Jung defined
what he meant by complexes at various stages in his career:
0021-8774/2018/6304/484 © 2018, The Society of Analytical Psychology

Published by Wiley Publishing, 9600 Garsington Road, Oxford OX4 2DQ, UK and 350 Main Street, Malden, MA 02148, USA.
DOI: 10.1111/1468-5922.12430
Brain activation patterns 485
By ‘emotionally charged complex’ we mean the sum of ideas referring to a particular

feeling-toned event.
(Jung and Riklin 1919, fn to para. 167)
Complexes are autonomous groups of associations that have a tendency to move by

themselves, to live their own life apart from our intentions. I hold that our personal
unconscious, as well as the collective unconscious, consists of an indefinite, because
unknown, number of complexes.
(Jung 1935, para. 151)
A complex is an agglomeration of associations – a sort of picture of … a psychological

nature – sometimes of traumatic character, sometimes simply of a painful and highly
toned character. Everything that is highly toned is rather difficult to handle … It is
simply an important affair, and whatever has an intense feeling-tone is difficult to
handle because such contents are associated with physiological reactions, with the
processes of the heart, the tonus of the blood vessels, the condition of the intestines,
the breathing, and the innervation of the skin … it is just as if that particular
complex had a body of its own, as if it were localized in my body to a certain extent.
(Jung 1935, para. 148)
Jung’s notion of complexes thus links together a whole network of words, ideas,
emotions, and biological responses, and he proposed that these complexes
operate in an autonomous or semi-autonomous way, that is, apart from
conscious intention. With the advent of functional brain imaging, we now have
the opportunity to test whether these unconscious reactions can be observed in
the brain. Furthermore, if complexes can indeed be visualized in the brain, we
can gain further knowledge about the neurologic components and brain regions
which are the biologic carriers of emotional/associational complexes.
The word association test (WAT) was originally developed by psychologists
who studied human mental processes by mapping associations when a person
was presented a word (Shamdasani 2003). Early psychologists who used
versions of the WAT included Francis Galton and the ‘father’ of experimental
psychology, Wilhelm Wundt. At the time Jung and his colleagues began to do
WAT experiments at the Burghölzli, the test had been used by various
psychology and psychiatry researchers in Germany and elsewhere. Franz
Riklin, a psychiatrist who worked with Jung on the WAT experiments at the
Burghölzli, had previously studied how to conduct the WAT with psychiatric
colleagues in Germany. The original motivation for the WAT experiments in
these German clinics and at the Burghölzli was to see whether patterns of
association could distinguish different types of patients and thereby facilitate
diagnoses of different psychiatric conditions.
Of the WAT experimental findings published by Jung and colleagues, perhaps
the most important was the first article written by Jung and Riklin focusing on
a control sample of persons without serious mental illness (Jung and Riklin
1919). Their sample consisted of 38 adults, both male and female, and was
composed of psychiatric staff (doctors, nurses, attendants) and family members.
486 Escamilla, Sandoval, Calhoun & Ramirez
Jung and Riklin noted that certain words seemed to cause an emotional reaction
(delay in responding, physiological manifestations) and proposed that upon
hearing the prompt word, an unconscious net of associations and feelings was
set off. As Jung further developed his theory of complexes, he would eventually
consider that everybody had complexes and that these were important building
blocks of each person’s unconscious topology. In later developments of Jung’s
psychological theories, he would also postulate that archetypes (basic, inherited
patterns of experiencing life through particular psychological mechanisms) are,
at the species level, general forms in which an individual is primed to experience
individual complexes. As such, Jung’s entire analytical psychology project,
which he initially considered defining as ‘complex psychology’, depended in
large part on his findings from the WAT studies and his interpretation that
certain words could trigger unconscious psychological reactions.
Neurophysiologic investigation of complexes in the 21st century

Although it is over a hundred years since Jung and Riklin first conducted their
WAT experiments, there has been relatively little study of the WAT in the
Jungian community, and the application of modern tools such as electro-
encepholography and functional brain imaging to WAT studies, which can be
used to biologically validate Jung’s theories, has also been scarce. In contrast,
the use of imaging and encepholography outside the Jungian or analytical
psychology realm has grown exponentially and other branches of psychology
have developed new paradigms and words for discussing psychological
thought, for instance, using ‘implicit and explicit memory’ to define
unconscious and conscious types of memory (Squire & Dede 2015, Stern et al.
1998). The study of brain mechanisms in response to particular tests allows
psychologists to define more accurately and study the biological and brain
processes which underly the processing of experiences and ideally should assist
researchers in testing hypotheses or creating new models for psychology.
Analytical psychology as a field has developed an extensive body of work
based on Jung’s theories. However, it is our belief that a biological
understanding of how the brain processes information and how this relates to
Jung’s theories is still an underdeveloped aspect of analytical psychology.
Although direct experiments by analytical psychologists are rare, there are
several authors within the analytical psychology community that have worked
on synthesizing knowledge about neurocognitive processing and neuroimaging
studies and are helping to bridge this knowledge into therapeutic practice.
Among these authors are Knox (1999, 2004), Wilkinson (2010), Kalsched
(2013) and Petchkovsky et al. (2011, 2013).
In this paper, we provide a test of validity for Jung’s complex theory through
an attempt to see if we can observe distinct differences in brain reaction when a
person is responding to complex triggering words in comparison to neutral
words, using functional brain imaging. Our intention was also to see if we
could identify particular brain circuits or networks that are activated by

complex words in order to help create a biological model to help inform our
understanding of what brain components Jung’s ‘complexes’ actually involve.
To our knowledge, this is the second such study to be conducted using
functional brain imaging and the WAT. Without prior knowledge of the work
of Petchkovsky and colleagues (Petchkovsky et al. 2011, 2013) we used
similar techniques and shared similar goals of trying to identify brain regions
which might be associated with complexes triggered by the WAT. Our current
study thus also offers the opportunity to compare findings with Petchkovsky
et al. and to shed further light on this area of research which, like any
research, requires validation of hypotheses through experimentation and
replication of results. In this paper, we present results of a new, independent
study of fMRI activation during the WAT with the aim of comparing findings
on which neuro-anatomical circuits are involved when ‘complexes’ as defined
by Jung are activated. Our experiments have similarities of design to that of
Petchovsky and his team, however we utilized a different strategy (block
analyses) which allowed us to combine both statistical parametric mapping
(SPM) and independent component analysis (ICA) in deriving the resultant
images. This study thus affords us the opportunity of trying to replicate
independently the findings of Petchkovsky et al. with regard to specific
regions activated in response to complex triggers. Differences in study design
(see discussion for details) also allowed us to parse out actual networks
involved in the process in addition to testing specific regions. Our main
hypothesis in the current study, as in the study by Petchkovsky and his team,
was that there would be differences in brain activation (either specific regions
or specific brain circuits) when comparing functional images of brains
responding to complex generating words versus neutral words.
Methods
Subjects were undergraduate or graduate students taking psychology classes
at a university in west Texas. Inclusion criteria included being in good
general health, having no history of a neurological disorder, no current use
of any psychotropic medications, a requirement that their first language
was English, and no history of claustrophobia (note: claustrophobia
prevents subjects from comfortably undergoing the process of imaging of
the head). A total of twenty participants, 10 males (ages 21-29, mean = 26)
and 10 females (ages 21-29, mean = 25), were able to complete the study
procedures. In order to assess whether the subjects had any current or past
psychiatric conditions, each subject completed an interview with a research
assistant who administered the MINI-plus (Sheehan et al. 1998). The
MINI-plus results were reviewed by a psychiatrist who used DSM-IV
criteria to diagnose any current or past psychiatric disorders. Fifty percent
(n=10) of the subjects had no present or past Axis I disorder and the other
fifty percent (n=10) had a history of one or more Axis I disorder. Two
subjects had a history of major depression, but neither was currently
experiencing an episode. Five subjects had a history of alcohol or substance
abuse/dependence, and four of these met criteria for current abuse/
dependence. The following diagnoses occurred only one time each out of
the twenty subjects: Anxiety Disorder Not Otherwise Specified, Social
Phobia, Agoraphobia, and Specific Phobia. All subjects provided informed
consent and the project was approved by the Institutional Review Board of
Texas Tech University Health Science Center in El Paso.
Word Association Test (WAT) and identification of complexes

The WAT was administered as follows: subjects were seated in a comfortable
chair. Video cameras were used to film the face and upper body from the
front of each subject and from the side in order to film the entire body (the
latter was especially useful in capturing foot and lower torso movements).
Subjects also had a cap with leads for electro-encephalograpy (EEG) during
this phase of the experiment. Reports on EEG results are not included in this
paper. An audio tape with the words read by a female voice using a neutral
tone was utilized to deliver a list of one hundred words, using the protocol
described by Kast (Kast 1980). The recording was used to ensure delivery of
the words in a standardized manner to each subject. Subjects were asked to
respond verbally with the first word that came to mind as each word stimulus
was delivered. After a twenty minute rest, the experiment was repeated (100
words given) with instructions that the subject should try to recall the
response they had previously given.
Videos of each session were reviewed independently by two assessors who
utilized the protocol of Kast (Kast 1980) to rate the response to each word
for any of the following type of response defined as ‘complex indicators’:
response time of 0.4 seconds or greater than the medium response time for
that subject, no response, repetition of the stimulus word, responding with
multiple words, clang reactions, laughing, stuttering, use of neologisms,
stereotypes, changes in facial expression or body movements during response,
or changes in tone of voice. Each of these complex indicators in response to a
word was given a score of 1. In addition, failure to reproduce the word
correctly when the WAT was repeated was considered a complex indicator
and scored 1 point. Total scores of ‘complex indicators’ for each word in the
WAT for each subject were then calculated. If the two independent assessors
disagreed in the score for any word, the tapes were reviewed in order to
arrive at a consensus score.
For each subject, the five stimulus words from the WAT with the highest
scores (i.e. greatest number of ‘complex indicators’) were chosen as words
which stimulated ‘complexes’ for that person. Words which showed no

evidence of complex indicators (scores of 0) were classified for that subject as
‘neutral’ words. At the conclusion of this part of the protocol, each subject
had an individual list of five words that scored the highest for them in
complex indicators and at least 5 neutral words for use in the MRI scanner
(next part of the protocol).
Brain imaging
Subjects underwent scanning using BOLD fMRI (blood oxygenation level
dependent functional magnetic resonance imaging). The first ten subjects
were scanned using a Siemens Magnetom Espree 1.5 Tesla MRI unit. The
subsequent ten subjects were scanned using a Siemens Skyra 3.0 Tesla MRI
unit. Scanning was done within 5 days of the administration of the WAT.
Although we originally planned to play audio tapes of the ‘complex’ and
neutral words for each subject while they were in the MRI machine, we
encountered difficulty in subjects’ ability to hear words while in the scanner.
We therefore presented words to each subject via a computer screen. This
manner of delivering the words to subjects while they were in the MRI
scanner was similar to the manner of delivery used by Petchkovsky et al.
(2011) in their study.
Each subject went through an fMRI session which included two nine minute
blocks of time, one in which they were exposed to complex words (i.e. the five
words from the WAT which had elicited the most complex indicators for that
particular person) and another block in which they were exposed to neutral
words (five of the words from the WAT that had scores of 0 complex
indicators for that person). Subjects were asked to read the word and think of
the first word that came to mind. From one person to the next, the order of
the blocks (complex word session and neutral word session) was reversed so
that half of the subjects completed the complex word session first and half
completed the neutral word session first. The order of the particular words
during each block of time (his/her complex words during the complex session,
and his/her neutral words during the neutral session) was randomized using
Eprime. Each block of time consisted of twelve partitions of time – six
partitions with no task (no stimuli presented) alternating with six task
partitions (words were presented and the subject was asked to associate to
them). Each partition lasted for 45 seconds for a total of nine minutes per block.
To deliver the images and capture blood flow readings, an echo planar
imaging sequence was used. One hundred and eighty volumes were tracked
per session with the following parameters: FOV= 240 mm, Voxel size=
3.8x3.8x5 mm, slice thickness= 5 mm, anterior-posterior phase encoding
direction, interleaved acquisition, echo time (TE) 40 ms, repeat time (TR)
3000 ms, flip angle 90 degrees.
Data analysis
We analyzed differences in brain activation during the partitions of time during
which subjects were presented with neutral words compared to partitions when
there was no task (neutral vs. no-task) for all twenty subjects. We also
compared differences in brain activation of all subjects combined during
presentation of complex words compared to no task (complex vs. no-task)
and finally, we compared activation during blocks of time when complex
words were presented to blocks of time when neutral words were presented
(complex vs. neutral). Two types of statistical analysis were done:
GIFT (Group ICA of fMRI Toolbox) analysis

Group ICA (Calhoun et al. 2001 and 2003; Calhoun and Adali 2012) was
performed to identify brain networks that were activated in response to a task
(neutral vs no task, complex vs no task, complex vs neutral). ICA was
performed on the BOLD fMRI scans of all 20 subjects using GIFT (http://
mialab.mrn.org/software/gift). For these analyses ICA selected fifty different
component or brain networks based on the data and without a priori
hypotheses. The number of components selected was 50 in order to balance
allowing for multiple brain networks against the limited number of subjects in
the study. Of these, 22 were removed based on relatively less high/low
frequency power, ‘edge-like’ patterns, and presence in white matter or
cerebral spinal fluid (Allen et al. 2011). Component voxels above an
empirical T-threshold were then summarized into regions and peak values
using the AAL (automated anatomical labeling) atlas. The retained
component time courses were analyzed using multiple regression to
characterize task-related modulation. The resulting beta values were analyzed
via a one sample t-test across subjects to identify significant effects at p< 0.05.
Statistical parametric mapping (SPM)

We also used statistical parametric mapping (SPM) to look at single regions that
showed increased activation in response to a task (neutral vs no task, complex
vs no task, complex vs neutral) and identified which of these networks was
preferentially activated or de-activated when performing the WAT with either
complex or neutral words. A task model was fit to individual subjects,
producing a contrast map for each subject. These maps were subjected to a
voxelwise SPM analysis using a two-sample t test on contrast maps to test
whether differences in activity were statistically significant (Friston et al.
1994). Statistical significance was determined by cluster level analyses with
significant results defined as having an FDR (false discovery rate) corrected p
value less than 0.05. To identify the Brodmann regions identified by SPM
mapping, we utilized the Yale MNI-Tailarach mapping tool.
Results
We first looked at which brain networks were activated when a subject
responded to the WAT test in the scanner. To do this we looked at which
brain circuits were activated when the subjects were responding to the task
(with either neutral or complex words) in comparison to when they were at
rest (no task). The GIFT analysis identified 50 brain networks and of these 25
networks showed very strong activation or de-activation (T value > than 5.0
or less than -5.0) when the subjects were performing the WAT in the scanner.
These networks include a multitude of brain regions including the frontal
gyrus, precentral gyrus, cingulate gyrus, precuneus, superior and inferior
parietal lobes, middle and superior temporal and occipital gyri, lingual gyrus,
parahippocampal gyrus, insula, fusiform gyrus, angular gyrus, supramarginal
gyrus and cerebellum.
With regard to detecting brain networks or circuits that showed preferential
activation when the person was responding to complex words versus when
they were responding to neutral words, only one network (Circuit 1,
component 27) showed significant differences (p < 0.05), and a second
network (Circuit 2, component 40) approached significance (p=0.07). Table 1
summarizes these two networks and figures 1 and 2 show visual
representations of the brain regions preferentially activated when a person is
responding to complex words (versus neutral words).
Table 1. Main networks activated by task: Complex Words minus Neutral Words
Brain regions
activated (+) or Brodmann
Component # P value T value deactivated (-) Areas
Circuit 1 0.0328 2.3 (+): Paracentral, 4,5,6,7,8
superior and
middle frontal,
postcentral,
precentral
(-): medial frontal,
precuneus
Circuit 2 0.0725 1.9 (+): caudate, superior 21,22,38,39,42
temporal, middle
temporal, inferior
temporal, sub-gyral,
inferior frontal
(-): cingulate,
thalamus,
extra-nuclear
Figure 1. Circuit 1 - Brain Regions Activated in Complex Word Responses minus

Neutral Word Responses. Coronal images of the brain appear in the left lower corner
and regions of increased activation (complex versus neutral) appear in red or yellow
(2016). [Colour figure can be viewed at wileyonlinelibrary.com]
Statistical parametrical mapping (SPM) results

SPM mapping was utilized to analyze differences in activation in specific brain
regions (as opposed to networks). This was the statistical method used in the
earlier study by Petchkovsky et al. (2011, 2013).
When comparing the response to neutral words to no task, brain regions
(and Brodmann numbers) that showed significant activation (cluster level
FDR corrected results less than p=0.05) included the left inferior frontal
gyrus (Broca’s area, semantic tasks) (44, 45), the left visual association
cortex (18), left and right frontal cortex (8, complex movement planning,
uncertainty), left parietal (7), left dorsolateral prefrontal (9) and right
visual association cortex (18). This corresponds to regions activated just
by doing the task of seeing a word and making an association to it
Figure 2. Circuit 2 - Brain Regions Activated in Complex Word Responses

minus Neutral Word Responses. Component # 40. Coronal images of the brain
appear in the left lower corner and regions of increased activation (complex
versus neutral) appear in red or yellow (2016). [Colour figure can be viewed at
wileyonlinelibrary.com]
without the added unconscious emotional reaction engendered by a complex

generating word.
When comparing complex words to no task, the left visual association cortex
(Brodmann 18) and right occipital cortex (Brodmann 19) were significantly
activated (p< 0.05 after FDR correction).
When we compared differences in brain region activation between complex
and neutral words by SPM analyses we did not find any regions approaching
statistical differences after correction for multiple testing. Regions (and
Brodmann numbers) with Zo scores above 2.0 included the left temporal
cortex (21), right para-hippocampus (36), right cingulate (31), left thalamus
(50), and left cerebellum.
Discussion
The experiments and results in this paper offer an independent confirmation
that the human brain responds differently to words which generate complexes
(unconscious reactions, as measured in the word association test) from the
way it does to neutral words (words which do not generate complexes). Our
findings offer a window into defining at a neuro-psychological level what
happens in the brain when complexes are triggered in an individual. The
study suggests that particular brain mechanisms underlie these complexes. In
addition, the study also shows that brain reactions to complex generating
words can be seen if measured within a few days of identifying the complex
words using the standard Word Association Test. Lastly, given that there has
been one previous study using functional brain imaging to identify the neural
substrates involved in the activation of complexes, we can compare results
with that previous study by Petchkovsky et al. (2011, 2013).
What brain circuits are activated by the Word Association Test?

The GIFT analysis identified over twenty different brain circuits that were
activated when participants were responding to the WAT in the scanner
compared to when they were not performing a task. These brain circuits
demonstrated that the WAT task involves frontal (planning), temporal
(auditory, semantic processing) and occipital (visual) lobes as well as a
number of other structures. Responses to neutral words (compared to no
activity) gave us the most direct view of the brain regions involved in simply
performing this task without the complication of circuits set in motion by
complexes being activated. Responses to neutral words suggested four key
brain regions: the left and right visual cortex (Brodmann area 18, this is
expected as the subjects are viewing the written words when in the scanner,
requiring the processing of visual information); Broca’s areas of the left
inferior frontal cortex (Brodmann areas 44 and 45, which are necessary to
comprehend language and words); the left frontal cortex (Brodmann area 8,
involved in planning of complex movements and dealing with uncertainty);
and the bilateral parietal cortex (Brodmann area 7, involved in generating
conscious constructs of objects and visual-motor coordination).
What circuits of the brain are activated when complexes are triggered?
This question is best answered by comparing (the analyses which subtract) the
activation level of the brain while responding to neutral words from the
activation levels when responding to complex words. In general, our data
showed that these differences were much more subtle than the differences
between responding to the WAT compared to doing no task. The GIFT
analysis showed one significant circuit (p< 0.05) and one suggestive circuit
(p = 0.07) as preferentially activated when complex words were read compared

to the neutral words. The block design of our experiment was utilized to help
capture this. Table 1 and Figures 1 and 2 from our current experiment
highlight what these brain regions are.
Circuit 1: memory, body and action

The first circuit (see Figure 3) activates Brodmann areas 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8
bilaterally. These regions can be thought of as parts of the brain involved in
physical reactions and movement in response to episodic memory or as the
brain controlling and deciding on a physical response to a distinct memory.
Due to the speed of the reactions in the WAT, these memories are likely
operating at a level below consciousness. Brodmann’s region 4 is the primary
motor cortex (involved in movement). Brodmann area 5 integrates somatic
and sensory information from various parts of the body. Brodmann 6 is a
part of the frontal cortex that is involved in the direct control of behavior
(premotor cortex) and also involves mirror neurons and the supplemental
motor area. Brodmann 7 is a region of the brain necessary for episodic
memory and for planning action in response to memories. Brodmann area 8,
also in the frontal cortex, is involved in planning complex movements and
has also been linked to feelings of uncertainty (Volz et al. 2005). One can
conceive of these regions as tightly linked (they are even physiologically
Figure 3. Circuit 1: Memory, Body and Action (2017).

contiguous) and operating as a unit that links somatic and body movement with
episodic memory and action in response to specific memories. The somatic
nature of this circuit corresponds to Jung’s idea that:
Whenever there is a high tonus it is just as if that particular complex had a body of its
own, as if it were localized in my body to a certain extent, and that makes it unwieldy,
because something that irritates my body cannot be easily pushed away because it has
its roots in my body …
(Jung, 1935, para. 148)
Circuit 2: memory, emotion, language and meaning

The second circuit (see Figure 4) activated when a complex is triggered (as
highlighted in the GIFT analysis) can be thought of as a circuit that primarily
involves language, emotion and memory. Several of the regions activated here
are in the temporal and parietal regions of the brain and operate bilaterally
(i.e. not just in the left brain where language is primarily processed). The
Brodmann regions are 21 (middle temporal gyrus, necessary for assigning
meaning to words), 22 (superior temporal, necessary for comprehension of
language), 38 (temporal cortex, involved through connections with the
hippocampus and amygdala in visual and episodic memory), 39 (the angular
gyrus, in the parietal lobe, allocates attention in response to memories
Figure 4. Circuit 2: memory, emotion, language and meaning (2017).

(Seghier 2013)) and 42 (temporal lobe, involved in processing and memory of

words and language). This second circuit thus links memories together with
words and with the web of meanings and associations which underlie
language. This second circuit also incorporates sub-cortical structures in its
network, namely the caudate, thalamus, and cingulate. The caudate is a
complex brain region involved in memory, learning, goal-directed behavior,
language and emotion (approach and attachment behaviors and feelings)
(Villablanca 2010). The thalamus and cingulate are key parts of the limbic
system which underlie emotions such as fear, anger, and sexual pleasure.
Specifically, the thalamus serves as an information hub integrating all sensory
modalities (except for smell) and setting levels of alertness while the cingulate
is a key factor in linking behavioral outcomes, motivation, and emotion. The
cingulate has also been linked to depression, schizophrenia and other mood
disorders (Drevets et al. 2008, Fujiwara et al. 2007).
It is important to emphasize here that these neural circuits which function in
response to a complex-generating stimulus are not just the same circuits
involved in performing the WAT (as seen by the responses to neutral words).
Circuit 1 only overlaps with Brodmann areas 6 and 8 from the areas involved
in neutral word response and circuit 2 involves additional temporal, parietal
and limbic regions which are not part of the basic regions used to respond to
neutral words in the WAT. This suggests that when complexes are triggered
specific regions of the brain (neural networks) are activated which are distinct
from the parts of the brain necessary to perform the task of associating to a
word. For Jung and his contemporaries, who were convinced that complexes
functioned autonomously, this suggests a biological basis for distinct neural
networks that can be inadvertently activated through the word association
test, separate from the mechanism used to perform the intended task itself.
Circuit 2, with its connection to the limbic system, and circuit 1, with its
connection to motor function and body, both support Jung’s definition of
complexes as feeling toned – i.e. forming a network, or node, involving
emotion, bodily feeling, memory and words.
Comparison to the study by Petchkovsky et al.

The current study has similarities as well as differences in design with the
Petchkovsky study. Both the Petchkovsky study and the current study used
the same set of stimulus words and methodology for identifying complex and
neutral words. Both studies also used functional MRI and subtraction of
activity levels (complex minus neutral) to study increased brain activity in
response to complex-triggering words, and both studies pooled results from
all subjects in order to provide enough power to have statistically significant
analyses. The main difference is that we utilized a block design approach
which measures activity during segments of time and thus could not analyze
immediate responses to words versus delayed responses (Petchkovsky et al.

measured responses for a 3 second period after the word triggers and for a
20 second period after the word triggers). Our results are most likely
comparable with the 20 second period results in the paper by Petchkovsky
et al. Also, Petchkovsky et al. performed the whole WAT while their patients
were in the scanner. In contrast, our study focused on viewing preselected
complex and neutral words that were identified through completing the WAT
first outside of the scanner. Finally, our subjects were students with an average
age of 25.5 while Petchkovsky’s subjects were psychologists, psychiatrists,
psychotherapists, counselors and Jungian analysts ranging in age from 26 to 63.
There were also some technical differences: the current study had a slightly
larger sample size, used automated reading of the stimulus words during the
WAT, videotaping and consensus scoring, and assessment of psychiatric
conditions and comorbidities. Despite these differences, we can make some
comparisons between the two studies as their overall aims and approach were
quite similar.
In comparing complex versus neutral word activation patterns, significant
results were seen in the GIFT (circuit) analyses where we identified the two
circuits mentioned above as being differentially activated when a person is
responding to complex triggering words compared to when responding to
neutral words. When we looked at overlap of brain regions that are in these
circuits and the regions which Petchkovsky et al. identified in their SPM
(regional) analyses, we found several brain regions that are both highlighted
in our circuit analyses and which are shown by Petchkovsky et al. to be
differentially stimulated when subjects are responding to complex triggering
words (complex minus neutral word activation patterns). Both studies
identified Brodmann areas 6 (prefrontal cortex, SMA) and 22 (temporal), the
caudate and the cingulate as regions of the brain which change when
responding to complex triggering words compared to when responding to
neutral words.
Our regional analyses (SPM) yielded significant results using SPM analyses
with regard to performing the WAT versus no task. Despite having a larger
sample than in the Petchkovsky study however, we did not show the same
level of results for SPM results in the complex versus neutral word
comparison. Our top SPM regions only showed an overlap in one region (left
Brodmann 21, mid temporal) that was highlighted by Petchkovsky et al. but
no SPM region in our complex versus neutral analyses met the criteria for
significance after correcting for false discovery rates. Our less significant
results for comparing complex word versus neutral word results using SPM
may be due to the block design we used (versus the more closely timed
intervals used by Petchkovsky et al.) and the possibility that individual
regions which are activated or deactivated over time might cancel each other
out in the block analyses. It is important to note that our block design was
chosen to enhance our ability to analyze circuits (GIFT analyses) rather than
particular regions (SPM analyses). Our SPM results might also reflect greater
heterogeneity of the sample (as sample sizes increase, so does heterogeneity)
or, finally, may be an artifact of combining images from 1.5 and 3.0 tesla
scanners.
Taken together, both our study (GIFT analyses) and the study by Petchkovsky
et al. (using SPM analyses) have shown distinct brain circuits or regions
activated by complex triggering words. We can therefore affirm with some
confidence that both studies implicate the right prefrontal and SMA (B6), left
temporal (B22), caudate and cingulate as brain regions activated when a
complex is triggered in the WAT.
Comparison to other imaging studies on unconscious processing of emotion

Squire and colleagues (Squire and Dede 2015) have demonstrated that there is
both conscious (‘declarative’ or ‘explicit’) memory and several types of
unconscious (‘nondeclarative’ or ‘implicit’) memory, which involve different
brain systems. Knox (1999, 2004) has drawn links between implicit
(unconscious) memory and internal working models of relationships,
updating Jung’s idea of the complex in terms of internalized patterns of
relationship.
As noted by Squire and Dede (2015):
Nondeclarative memory provides for myriad unconscious ways of responding to the

world. The unconscious status of nondeclarative memory creates some of the
mystery of human experience. Here arise the habits and preferences that are
inaccessible to conscious recollection, but they nevertheless are shaped by past
events, they influence our current behavior and mental life, and they are a
fundamental part of who we are.
(Squire & Dede 2015, p. 3)
Our Circuit 1 overlaps most directly with what Squire and Dede call
nondeclarative simple classical conditioning, a skeletal response pathway with
the involvement of frontal cortex which moderates the tendency to freeze
movement versus the tendency to flee. Our Circuit 2 shows overlap with what
Squire and Dede define as nondeclarative procedural learning (skills and
habits) which primarily involves the caudate, and a simple classical
conditioning, emotional pathway which involves connections between the
amygdala, cingulate and hippocampus. The use of medial temporal cortex in
Circuit 2 also taps into the declarative (conscious) memory through its
activation of the temporal lobe.
In a fMRI study looking at the effect of emotional context on motor
responses, Mazzola, Gallese and colleagues (Mazzola et al. 2013) have shown
that emotional contexts can modulate the activity in the supplemental motor
area of the brain, which is part of Brodmann area 6 and a central component
of our Circuit 1 (memory, body, action). This area of the brain also contains the
mirroring network which Gallese and Carauna (2016) and others have pointed
to as a key entry point into triggering the unconscious somatic information and
subsequent cascade of cognitions we experience when reacting to others in
emotional contexts. Our data support the hypothesis of Wilkinson (2010) and
others that the body and brain contain a major component of information
related to complexes in this unconscious bodily pathway (Circuit 1) which
would ordinarily bypass verbal means of communication. Luckily this
information is still accessible to the therapist as the mirror system
(supplementary motor area) is part of this circuit, which provides the
possibility that this critical information can nevertheless be transmitted to the
attuned, empathic therapist who is able to mirror through unconscious bodily
mechanisms.
Interestingly, a study of MRI activation patterns done by Lanius et al. (2001)
looking at persons who had experienced sexual or motor vehicle accident
trauma showed, upon stimulation by scripts, decreased activation in the
thalamus, cingulate gyrus and medial frontal gyrus in the subjects who had
developed full PTSD. We also noted decreases in activation in these same
three regions when complexes were triggered by the WAT (medial frontal
gyrus in Circuit 1, and thalamus and cingulate gyri in Circuit 2). Lanius et al.
also suggest that decreased activation in these areas may be neurologically
correlated with experiences such as dissociation.
Donald Kalsched has postulated that the processing of trauma requires
what he calls ‘whole experience’, ‘… an integration of affect in the body,
images in the mind, and a component of meaning – how things make sense
in the world’ (2013, p. 8). Kalsched’s three components tap into regions
of the brain that are activated by complexes in our present study,
namely Circuit 1 (which directly engages the body and memory, Brodmann
areas 4-8) and Circuit 2 (which contains brain regions used in the assigning
of meaning (BA21) and also in visual memories (images in the mind, BA38)
(Table 3, Figures 3 and 4)).
Implications for Jung’s complex theory and future research

By revealing the two main brain circuits that are activated when complexes are
triggered, the current study results can elucidate some of the biology
underpinning the observations made by Jung and his associates at the
Burghölzli. It is important to stress that the circuits which came out of this
analysis were not predetermined in any way but represented component
analyses of all possible brain circuits activated in the brains of the
participants of the research project. Given that, the two key circuits which
were identified by GIFT mapping and analysis fit remarkably well into Jung
and Bleuler’s theory of complexes (Bleuler, 1912 and 1919).
The first circuit (memory, body, action) which we identified as responding to

triggering of the complexes is a primarily non-verbal network which links
episodic memories to bodily reactions and activates the parts of the brain
involved in planning movement and acting in response to memory. As this
circuit operates without involvement of the temporal cortex (language
regions), this can be thought of as operating independently of language based
thought. In essence it is taking non linguistic aspects of memory and engaging
the body in a response that is moderated in the frontal cortex. One can see
this as a very basic survival circuit wherein specific memories (episodes)
engage the body in a physical reaction with the body unconsciously
(i.e. outside of the realm of verbal thought) planning and acting on the
memory that has been activated. This circuit does not necessarily use
emotional valence which proceeds from the limbic system but rather directly
links memory to physical action. The internal experience when these regions of
the brain are triggered are feelings of uncertainty. It is as if an important
unconscious memory throws the psyche into a state of uncertainty and
prepares the body to react to the memory. If one thinks of the conscious mind
as part of the mind directed by intention and utilizing verbal words, this
circuit fits with observations Jung made about complexes that they ‘are
psychic contents which are outside the control of the conscious mind … split
off from consciousness … being at all times ready to hinder or to reinforce the
conscious intentions’ (Jung, 1931). This circuit also supports Jung’s
observation that a complex seems to have ‘a body of its own, as if it were
localized in my body to a certain extent’. This finding also supports theories of
the soma/body as being linked to memory and activated by complexes,
independent of circuits involving language based thinking.
This circuit also highlights at least two implications for psychotherapy and
analysis: a non-verbal mirroring component and the possibility of body work
as part of therapy. That mirror neurons might evoke empathic, attuned
responses in the therapist to non-verbal body experiences as a healing
mechanism of action in therapy has been explored by Wilkinson (2010).
Her work integrated research by Allan Schore and demonstrated its
relevance to Jungian concepts. The use of body work specifically in
accessing and treating trauma is a less developed area of analytical
psychology. Sassenfeld (2008) summarizes how attention to the body has
been rather limited in analytical psychology and considered primarily as a
conceptual tool to account for or become aware of implicit memory
mechanisms. Therapies that rely primarily on declarative memory
approaches to the personal unconscious will likely be unsuccessful at
tapping into or fully appreciating the implicit information contained in the
body and delineated here in Circuit 1. This also supports Jung’s own
contention that successful psychotherapy and analysis involved unconscious
aspects of both the analysand and the analyst. In practice, this would mean
being aware of body postures in both the client and analyst as well as
bodily feelings, such as muscle tensions, breathing patterns, physical

manifestations of anxiety, and becoming aware of these patterns when
certain material or topics enter into therapy. In addition to potentially
repairing maladaptive interpersonal relationship patterns (emphasized by
Wilkinson, Knox, and even Kalsched), awareness of these body reactions
might help to flesh out additional complexes that are unconsciously
affecting the client and bring these into conscious awareness. As Sassenfeld
points out, more direct use of the body in therapy has been explored but in
a limited manner. Even in Jung’s time dance therapy was used to
symbolically express unconscious emotions. Data supporting that the body
itself can hold complexes and that it can function as a type of unconscious
memory certainly opens the possibility of becoming aware of and
potentially moderating complexes through work with the body. Indeed Jung
himself was known to utilize body based techniques such as yoga to treat
some of his own psychological suffering (Jung/Shamdasani 1999).
The second circuit (memory, emotion, language and meaning) fits more
classically in terms of complex theory into the idea of an emotional feeling
tone linked to a set of memories and language based thoughts and
meanings. This is the classic chain of verbal associations linked by
memories and chosen by emotional tones (i.e. a memory is associated with
a feeling, which directs the chain of verbal associations – see Bleuler 1919
and 1912). This circuit connects the limbic system, the generator of
emotional tones, with memories and, perhaps most importantly with regard
to analysis, with verbal associative chains. This latter aspect (involvement
of areas of the brain involved in thought and semiotic meaning) provides
the possibility of conscious thought (word or verbal thought based
processing) and explicit memory to be accessed as a part of the complex.
Viewed in this manner the complex also taps into visual semiotic
information or symbols through the involvement of Brodmann area 38.
This circuit links language and affect in one circuit. One can almost see
here the two Lacanian registers of the real, that is the non-verbal
affect/emotion, and the symbolic, including language and meaning, in direct
communication with each other (Boothby 1991). By contrast, Circuit 1
does not directly involve symbolic or verbal content.
In therapy one can view complexes through the symbolic imagery that
comes from dreams, active imagination, or recent emotional reactions
which bothered or captured the client. For Jung dreams often constellated
in symbolic form particular complexes that were being activated. Circuit 2
delineates a brain network underlying complexes that holds together
emotional valence, specific memory, and verbal association chains allowing
the analyst the ability to help the patient understand what his or her
complexes are and through conscious awareness of how these are triggered
be less at the mercy of the powerful emotions that comprise a portion of
this circuit.
The common thread in the two circuits is stimulation of the parts of the brain
involved in episodic memory. This highlights the importance of personal
experience (the personal unconscious) as the building block of complexes and
the psychological mind. As noted by Knox (2004) it is likely that the implicit,
internalized working models, the basis of complexes as understood in modern
analytical psychology, are primarily built on experiences of persons and
situations in the outer world. In other words, they are comprised of
memories, even if implicit, and are not therefore a priori or separate from real
world experience.
Based on our results in these experiments which pooled data from 20 different
persons, we can say that the brain circuits we see activated in the participants of
our study can be thought of as circuits common to human beings and that these
are probably inherited through the development of specialized brain regions
with specific connectivity. In this sense, these circuits may constitute the
biological form of what Jung would call archetypal experiences. The specific
episodic memories or words which activate these circuits are unique and
specific to each of the study subjects, their complexes. But the fact that these
complexes, regardless of their individual expression, will have a bodily
component, a language and symbol component, and an affective component,
and that they stimulate a feeling of uncertainty can be considered to be a hard
wired form which will orchestrate the psychological experience in a manner
that has universality.
As noted in Samuels (1986), one previous hypothesis has been that
archetypes reside in the sub-cortical limbic system. Our data suggests that the
biological form of an individual’s complexes is not limited to a single location
but that it rather involves circuits moving from cortex to limbic system and
the body itself. Perhaps the state of uncertainty (a shift from logical, directed
thinking) triggered as part of circuit 1 (Brodmann area 8, Table 3, Figure 3)
or the increase in attention that is part of circuit 2 (Brodmann area 39, Table 3,
Figure 4) can be considered part of the numinous state sometimes ascribed to
experiencing of archetypes and to the discomfort and anxiety when
experiencing complexes.
Finally, we can also hypothesize that these complexes (activated brain/body
circuits, related to specific memories) have a positive biological function for
the human species. Experiences which were particularly threatening or
pleasurable for a person, for instance in early or later life, if coded as
memories, would have potential survival value if, when some aspect of the
environment (sensory or linguistic) triggers the memory, the body prepares to
react (moving into an uncertain, but ready to act, mode) (circuit 1) and begins
to scan and assign meaning (semiotic) to the situation, driven by emotional
memory (circuit 2). In a practical manner, therapy (as well as art, journaling,
and other means of verbal and semiotic exploration) can access the experience
of complexes through circuit 2 and possibly lead to a refinement in the
utilization of information that comes upon us when a complex is activated.
Limitations
As in any study there are limitations which should be mentioned here. First, this
study utilizes combined data from multiple subjects and therefore gives a
composite view of which brain circuits and regions are activated when
complexes are triggered through words. There may be individual variations
which would be obscured in this combined approach. For instance, individual
differences might theoretically be seen in individuals who have different
diagnostic backgrounds. Our sample size was too small to explore this. As in
the Petchkovsky study, we were limited in needing to use visual written words
to deliver the stimuli for patients within the scanner, thus not directly testing
the effect of spoken words on the neurobiology of the individuals tested.
Finally, the sample size was still on the small side, and the finding for circuit 2
was statistically suggestive but not significant and should therefore be
interpreted with caution. Further testing with larger samples would be
necessary to be certain these two circuits are associated with responses to
complex triggering words. We are partly swayed in the interpretation of our
results by seeing similar brain regions highlighted in the two circuits reported
here and the brain regions previously reported on by Petchkovsky et al.
Further study and elucidation of the neuro-psychologic mechanisms operative
in these brain areas should help guide the development of both analytic
psychology theory and practice.
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Acknowledgements
We thank the persons who volunteered to participate in this study and to the
support of the Center of Excellence in Neuroscience at Texas Tech University
Health Science Center in El Paso. Drs. Mercedes Ramirez and Juan Zavala
assisted with best estimate diagnosis of the research subjects. We also are
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resources and to Dr. Philip Bechtel, who assisted in ratings of the WAT and
contributed to the early stages of this research work.
TRANSLATIONS OF ABSTRACT
La théorie des complexes psychologiques de C.G. Jung est à l’origine de la théorie et de la

pratique de la psychologie analytique. L’imagerie par résonance magnétique
fonctionnelle (IRMf) fournit un outil puissant pour valider la théorie des complexes et
élucider les mécanismes neuropsychologiques qui sous-tendent l’activation inconsciente

de souvenirs significatifs. Dans cette étude, qui utilise l’IRMf, nous identifions deux
circuits cérébraux qui sont activés en réponse à des mots inducteurs complexes. Le
premier circuit concerne des régions du cerveau impliquées dans la mémoire
épisodique et dans les réponses somatiques, ainsi que dans les expériences
d’incertitude. Le second circuit concerne la mémoire épisodique, l’émotion,
l’association visuelle et langagière, la sémiotique. Les régions spécifiques du cerveau
comprennent le cortex préfrontal droit, le cortex SMA, le cortex temporal gauche ainsi
que le noyau caudé et le gyrus cingulaire. Ces circuits cérébraux peuvent être pensés
comme étant la forme biologique dans laquelle on fait l’expérience des complexes.
L’article traite des conséquences pour la pratique et la théorie de la psychologie
analytique.
Mots clés: complexes, IRMf, imagerie cérébrale, le test d’association de mots, cortex
frontal, cortex temporal, archétypes
C.G. Jungs Theorie der psychologischen Komplexe bildet einen Basisbestandteil der
analytischen psychologischen Theorie und Praxis. Die funktionelle
Magnetresonanztomographie (fMRT) bietet ein leistungsfähiges Werkzeug um die
Komplextheorie zu validieren und die neuropsychologischen Mechanismen zu
identifizieren, die der unbewußten Aktivierung von bedeutungshaftigen Erinnerungen
zugrundeliegen. In dieser Studie identifizieren wir mit Hilfe der fMRT zwei
Gehirnschaltkreise, die in Reaktion auf komplexauslösende Worte aktiviert werden.
Der erste Schaltkreis umfaßt Hirnregionen, die an episodischem Gedächtnis und
somatischen (Körper-) Reaktionen beteiligt sind, sowie an der Erfahrung von
Unsicherheit. Eine zweiter Kreis schließt episodisches Gedächtnis, Emotion, visuelle
und sprachliche Assoziation und semiotische Bedeutung ein. Spezifische Hirnregionen
umfassen den rechten präfrontalen Kortex, den SMA-Kortex, den linken temporalen
Kortex sowie Nucleus caudatus und Gyrus cinguli. Diese Hirnschaltkreise können als
die biologische Form betrachtet werden, in der Komplexe erfahren werden.
Implikationen für die Praxis und Theorie der analytischen Psychologie werden diskutiert.
Schlüsselwörter: Komplexe, fMRT, Hirnscan, Wort-Assoziationstest, frontaler Kortex,

temporaler Kortex, Archetypen
La teoria dei complessi di Jung si pone alle basi della psicologia analitica e della sua
pratica. La Risonanza Magnetica Funzionale (fMRI) offre uno strumento potente per
validare la teoria dei complessi e per chiarire i meccanismi neuropsicologici che
sottendono l’attivazione inconscia di memorie significative per mezzo di parole che
hanno una carica complessuale. Un primo circuito comprende regioni cerebrali
coinvolte nella memoria episodica e nelle risposte somatiche, e nell’esperienza
dell’incertezza. Un secondo circuito comprende la memoria episodica, le emozioni, le
associazioni visive e linguistiche, ed il significato semiotico. Specifiche regioni cerebrali
includono la corteccia prefrontale destra, l’Area Motoria Supplementare, la corteccia
temporale sinistra, il nucleo caudato ed il giro del cingolo. Questi circuiti cerebrali
possono essere visti come la forma biologica dell’esperienza dei complessi. Vengono qui
discusse le implicazioni per la pratica e per la teoria della psicologia analitica.
Parole chiave: complessi, fMRI, immagini cerebrali, Test di Associazione Verbale,

corteccia frontale, corteccia temporale, archetipi
Теория психологических комплексов К.Г. Юнга лежит в основе теории и практики

аналитической психологии. Функциональная магнитно-резонансная томография
является мощным средством проверки теории комплексов и проливает свет на
нейропсихологические механизмы, которые составляют основу бессознательной
активации значимых воспоминаний. В этом исследовании мы идентифицировали две
цепи в головном мозге, которые активизируются в ответ на слова-триггеры
комплекса. В первую цепь входят зоны мозга, связанные с эпизодической памятью,
соматическими (телесными) реакциями и переживанием неопределенности. Ко второй
цепи относятся эпизодическую память, эмоциональные, зрительные и языковые
ассоциации, семиотический смысл. Специфические зоны мозга включают правую
префронтальную кору, дополнительную моторную область, левую темпоральную
кору, хвостатое ядро, поясную извилину. Эту цепь можно назвать биологической
формой переживания комплексов. Применения этих данных в аналитической теории и
практике обсуждаются.
Ключевые слова: комплексы, фМРТ, ассоциативный тест, фронтальная кора,

темпоральная кора, архетипы
La teoría de los complejos psicológicos de C.G. Jung está en los fundamentos de la teoría
y práctica de la psicología analítica. La resonancia magnética funcional por imágenes
(fMRI) brinda un instrumento potente para validar la teoría de los complejos y
elucidar los mecanismos neuropsicológicos que subyacen a la activación inconsciente
de recuerdos significativos. En este estudio, utilizando fMRI, identificamos dos
circuitos cerebrales que son activados en respuesta a palabras complejas
desencadenantes. El circuito uno abarca regiones cerebrales involucradas en la
memoria episódica y en las respuestas somáticas (cuerpo) y en la experiencia de
incertidumbre. El segundo circuito envuelve la memoria episódica, la emoción, el área
de asociación visual y de lenguaje, y el sentido semiótico. Las regiones cerebrales
específicas incluyen la corteza derecha prefrontal, la corteza SMA, la corteza temporal
izquierda, el núcleo caudado y el giro cingulado. Estos circuitos cerebrales pueden
pensarse como las formas biológicas en las cuales los complejos son experimentados.
Se discute las implicancias para la teoría y práctica analítica.
Palabras clave: complejos, fMRI, imágenes cerebrales, test de asociación de palabras,

corteza frontal, corteza temporal, arquetipos
与词语联想测试所激活的情结相关的脑激活模式:来自美国的一项新研究成果
荣格关于心理情结的理论,是分析心理学理论与实践的根基。功能性核磁共振成像
(fMRI)是一样有力的工具,用以验证情结理论,以及阐明重要记忆对无意识激活的神经
心理学机制。这篇研究, 通过fMRI, 识别出两个脑回路, 它们被激发情结的词汇所激活。
第一个回路包含的脑区涉及情景记忆和身体 (躯体)反应, 以及关于不确定体验的区域。
第二个回路涉及情景记忆, 情绪,视觉和言语联想,以及符号意义。还涉及特定的脑区,
包括右额叶, SMA皮层, 左颞叶, 以及尾核及扣带回。这些脑回路可以被看作是情结经验的
生理形式。文章讨论了这些发现对于分析心理学实践与理论的意义。
关键词: 情结, fMRI, 脑成像, 词语联想测试, 额叶, 颞叶, 原型

1.+escamilla2018 BrainActivation During WAE

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Journal of Analytical Psychology, 2018, 63, 4, 484–509

Brain activation patterns in response to

Keywords: archetypes, brain imaging, complexes, fMRI, frontal cortex, temporal

0021-8774/2018/6304/484 © 2018, The Society of Analytical Psychology

By ‘emotionally charged complex’ we mean the sum of ideas referring to a particular

Complexes are autonomous groups of associations that have a tendency to move by

A complex is an agglomeration of associations – a sort of picture of … a psychological

Neurophysiologic investigation of complexes in the 21st century

could identify particular brain circuits or networks that are activated by

Word Association Test (WAT) and identiﬁcation of complexes

which stimulated ‘complexes’ for that person. Words which showed no

GIFT (Group ICA of fMRI Toolbox) analysis

Statistical parametric mapping (SPM)

Figure 1. Circuit 1 - Brain Regions Activated in Complex Word Responses minus

Statistical parametrical mapping (SPM) results

Figure 2. Circuit 2 - Brain Regions Activated in Complex Word Responses

without the added unconscious emotional reaction engendered by a complex

What brain circuits are activated by the Word Association Test?

(p = 0.07) as preferentially activated when complex words were read compared

Circuit 1: memory, body and action

Figure 3. Circuit 1: Memory, Body and Action (2017).

Circuit 2: memory, emotion, language and meaning

Figure 4. Circuit 2: memory, emotion, language and meaning (2017).

(Seghier 2013)) and 42 (temporal lobe, involved in processing and memory of

Comparison to the study by Petchkovsky et al.

immediate responses to words versus delayed responses (Petchkovsky et al.

Comparison to other imaging studies on unconscious processing of emotion

Nondeclarative memory provides for myriad unconscious ways of responding to the

(Squire & Dede 2015, p. 3)

Implications for Jung’s complex theory and future research

The ﬁrst circuit (memory, body, action) which we identiﬁed as responding to

bodily feelings, such as muscle tensions, breathing patterns, physical

de Gelder, B. (2006). ‘Towards the neurobiology of emotional body language’. Nature

La théorie des complexes psychologiques de C.G. Jung est à l’origine de la théorie et de la

élucider les mécanismes neuropsychologiques qui sous-tendent l’activation inconsciente

Schlüsselwörter: Komplexe, fMRT, Hirnscan, Wort-Assoziationstest, frontaler Kortex,

Parole chiave: complessi, fMRI, immagini cerebrali, Test di Associazione Verbale,

Теория психологических комплексов К.Г. Юнга лежит в основе теории и практики

Ключевые слова: комплексы, фМРТ, ассоциативный тест, фронтальная кора,

Palabras clave: complejos, fMRI, imágenes cerebrales, test de asociación de palabras,

关键词: 情结, fMRI, 脑成像, 词语联想测试, 额叶, 颞叶, 原型

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