Warren S. Brown
Encyclopedia
Warren S. Brown is director of the Lee Edward Travis Research Institute at the Fuller Theological Seminary
and Professor of Psychology
in the Graduate School of Psychology. He is also a member of the UCLA Brain Research Institute. Dr. Brown received his doctorate in Experimental Physiological Psychology
from the University of Southern California
(1971). Prior to Fuller, Brown spent 11 years as a research scientist at the UCLA Brain Research Institute and was a founding member of the International Society for Science and Religion
.
of the brain and its relationship to higher cognitive processes in humans. In particular, he has been studying the implications of agenesis of the corpus callosum
(i.e., congenital absence of the corpus callosum, the pathway that connects the right and left hemispheres). Brown has been interested in the implications of this disorder for mental abilities and social awareness. Over the last 15 years his lab has conducted the largest study accomplished thus far (both in number of subjects and depth of testing) on cognitive and social
disabilities of individuals with agenesis of the corpus callosum. He has authored or coauthored over 75 scholarly articles in peer-reviewed scientific journals; 15 chapters in edited scholarly books; and over 120 presentations at scientific meetings.
Fuller Theological Seminary
Fuller Theological Seminary is an accredited Christian educational institute with its main campus in Pasadena, California and several satellite campuses in the western United States...
and Professor of Psychology
Psychology
Psychology is the study of the mind and behavior. Its immediate goal is to understand individuals and groups by both establishing general principles and researching specific cases. For many, the ultimate goal of psychology is to benefit society...
in the Graduate School of Psychology. He is also a member of the UCLA Brain Research Institute. Dr. Brown received his doctorate in Experimental Physiological Psychology
Physiological psychology
Physiological psychology is a subdivision of behavioral neuroscience that studies the neural mechanisms of perception and behavior through direct manipulation of the brains of nonhuman animal subjects in controlled experiments...
from the University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
(1971). Prior to Fuller, Brown spent 11 years as a research scientist at the UCLA Brain Research Institute and was a founding member of the International Society for Science and Religion
International Society for Science and Religion
The International Society for Science and Religion is a learned society established in 2001 for the purpose of the promotion of education through the support of inter-disciplinary learning and research in the fields of science and religion conducted where possible in an international and...
.
Neuropsychology Research – Agenesis of the Corpus Callosum
Warren Brown is actively involved in experimental neuropsychological research related to functions of the corpus callosumCorpus callosum
The corpus callosum , also known as the colossal commissure, is a wide, flat bundle of neural fibers beneath the cortex in the eutherian brain at the longitudinal fissure. It connects the left and right cerebral hemispheres and facilitates interhemispheric communication...
of the brain and its relationship to higher cognitive processes in humans. In particular, he has been studying the implications of agenesis of the corpus callosum
Agenesis of the corpus callosum
Agenesis of the corpus callosum is a rare birth defect in which there is a complete or partial absence of the corpus callosum. Agenesis of the corpus callosum occurs when the corpus callosum, the band of white matter connecting the two hemispheres in the brain, fails to develop normally,...
(i.e., congenital absence of the corpus callosum, the pathway that connects the right and left hemispheres). Brown has been interested in the implications of this disorder for mental abilities and social awareness. Over the last 15 years his lab has conducted the largest study accomplished thus far (both in number of subjects and depth of testing) on cognitive and social
Social
The term social refers to a characteristic of living organisms...
disabilities of individuals with agenesis of the corpus callosum. He has authored or coauthored over 75 scholarly articles in peer-reviewed scientific journals; 15 chapters in edited scholarly books; and over 120 presentations at scientific meetings.
Books Published
- Warren Brown, Nancey MurphyNancey MurphyNancey Murphy is Professor of Christian Philosophy at Fuller Theological Seminary, Pasadena, CA. She received the B.A. from Creighton University in 1973, the Ph.D. from University of California, Berkeley in 1980, and the Th.D...
and H. Newton Maloney (eds.) Whatever Happened of the Soul? Scientific and Theological Portraits of Human Nature. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1998.
- Warren Brown (ed.) Understanding Wisdom: Sources, Science, and Society. Radnor, Penn: Templeton Press, 2000.
- Nancey MurphyNancey MurphyNancey Murphy is Professor of Christian Philosophy at Fuller Theological Seminary, Pasadena, CA. She received the B.A. from Creighton University in 1973, the Ph.D. from University of California, Berkeley in 1980, and the Th.D...
and Warren Brown. Did My Neurons Make Me Do It? : Philosophical and Neurobiological Perspectives on Moral Responsibility and Free Will. Oxford, U.K., Oxford University Press, 2007.
- Malcolm JeevesMalcolm JeevesProf Malcolm Jeeves CBE FRSE is Emeritus Professor of Psychology at the University of St. Andrews, and was formerly President of The Royal Society of Edinburgh. He established the Department of Psychology at St...
and Warren Brown. Neuroscience, Psychology and Religion: Illusions, Delusions, and Realities about Human Nature. Radnor, Penn: Templeton Press, 2009.
Sample Research Articles
- Brown, WS, Jeeves, MA, Dietrich, R., and Burnison, DS. (1999) Bilateral field advantage and evoked potential interhemispheric transmission in commissurotomy and callosal agenesis. Neuropsychologia, 37, 1154-1180.
- Brown, W.S. and Paul L.K., (2000) Psychosocial deficits in agenesis of the corpus callosum with normal intelligence. Cognitive Neuropsychiatry. 5, 135-157.
- Brown, W.S., Paul, L.K., Symington, M., and Dietrich, R. (2005) Comprehension of Humor in Primary Agenesis of the Corpus Callosum. Neuropsychologia. 43:906-916.
- Brown, W.S., Symington, M., VanLancker, D., Dietrich, R. and Paul, L.K. (2005) Paralinguistic processing in children with Callosal Agenesis: Emergence of neurolinguistic deficits. Brain and Language. 93, 135-139.