Outbursts: Where did Their IQ points Go and What were They...( Psychologist...),Health

Psychologist and Emotional Intelligence expert examines causes of recent public outbursts of Wilson, Williams and West in regards to losses of IQ and Emotional Intelligence. Take EI and Derailer Assessments at www.truenorthleadership.com

Santa Barbara, CA (PRWEB) September 28, 2009 -- In front of millions of viewers Joe Wilson shouts "you lie' to the president, Serena Williams calls out line judge with profanity over a foot fault and Kanye West takes the mike from Taylor Swift to express his unwanted comments about who should get the award. What were they thinking? In reality their thinking was severely impaired to the tune of 10-15 less IQ points.

These "amygdala hijacks" demonstrated to the world how easy it is to "derail" in seconds if you can't control your emotions, says psychologist and Emotional Intelligence expert Dr. Relly Nadler.

The "amygdala hijack" is a term coined in Daniel Goleman's Emotional Intelligence, his first book on the subject. The amygdala is the emotional part of the brain, which regulates the fight or flight response. When agitated or threatened, it can respond irrationally. A rush of stress hormones floods the body before the prefrontal lobes, which regulate executive function, can mediate this reaction.

These three surprising reactions and aggressive responses by public figures demonstrate the three signs of the "amygdala hijack": 1) strong emotional reaction, 2) sudden onset, and 3) regret for your actions when you reflect later.