The power of prediction and how to use it: Lydia Krabbendam at TEDxBreda

Brain research is often interpreted as if our behaviour is hardwired in our brain. But this is too simple an explanation. The social environment in which we grow up, elicits unique patterns of behaviour, which in turn influence the development of our brain. This impacts not only through long-lasting influences, but also through the immediate impact of the current situation. The combination of the current situation together with previous situations, allows us to form a prediction of what is likely to happen next; allowing us to respond proactively. This 'mindset' influences how we perceive and act upon new information. Being aware that the situation has this impact can be very useful, even though much of its effect may still occur outside our awareness. For example, a situation that conveys the message that some students, e.g. girls, are less likely to successfully complete a study in engineering, may create a mindset in these students that makes them actually perform worse on this topic. We may not be able to control the wide range of cultural, social and physical influences that impact on the formation of our mindsets. However, there is a lot more that we can influence than we realise. One powerful tool to influence mindsets is through the feedback we give to others and to ourselves. In my talk, I will discuss how we can use our knowledge of mindsets to create optimal situations in which people can flourish.

Regarding Lydia Krabbendam
Lydia Krabbendam is professor of Educational Neuropsychology at the VU University Amsterdam. She obtained her Ph.D. at Maastricht University in 2000, on cognition in people with psychosis. Over the years, her interest shifted towards cognition in healthy developing individuals (but she still thinks and publishes about the implications of her current research for understanding psychosis). She is specifically interested in the question of how social cognitive abilities, such as perspective taking and empathy, enable us to engage in social interactions, and the other way round, how our repeated patterns of social interactions shape our social cognitive abilities. Her research focuses on these processes in children, adolescents, and young adults, with the ultimate aim to make the research relevant to educational practice.