Affiliation: Case Western Reserve University
Email: tony.jack@gmail.com

Biography

My research and teaching lie at the intersection of neuroscience, psychology, and philosophy. I am particularly interested in how academic research can effect positive change in individuals. Most of my career has been focused on neuroimaging research. I have led research on the neuroscience of coaching. My approach combines cognitive neuroscience with network neuroscience to uncover the hidden structure of human cognition. This reveals a profound division in the brain between analytic thinking —making us ‘rational’ and ‘intelligent’ through math, science, and logic — and empathic thinking — making us ‘reasonable’ and ‘wise’ through social understanding, ethical awareness, spiritual and emotional insight. My research, writing, teaching, and coaching synthesizes insights from philosophy, neuroscience, and psychology (including basic research and clinical approaches) to inform the good life.

I currently serve as the Beamer-Schnieder professor of ethics, principal investigator of the Brain, Mind & Consciousness Laboratory, research fellow of the Coaching Research Lab, and associate professor of philosophy with secondary appointments in psychology, neurology, neuroscience & organizational behavior at Case Western Reserve University. In addition to other teaching, for the last decade I have taught a popular class on the art & science of happiness. I also serve as an executive coach and teach one day executive education workshops on empathy and the neuroscience of leadership for the Weatherhead School of Management.

Prior to coming to Case Western Reserve University to start my laboratory in 2007, I studied and trained at world-leading centers for the Mind and Brain: Philosophy & Psychology BSc from Oxford University; Psychology PhD from University College London; postdoc at Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Queen Square, London; and research fellow at Department of Neurology, Washington University in St. Louis.

Articles

Jack, A.I., Passarelli, A., Boyatzis, R. (2023) When fixing problems kills personal development: fMRI reveals conflict between Real and Ideal selves, Frontiers in Human Neuroscience https://doi.org/10.3389/fnhum.2023.1128209

Still, Carolyn H.; Jack, Anthony I.; Wright, Kathy D.; Sattar, Abdus; Moore, Shirley M. (2022) Neural Processing of Health Information and Hypertension Self-Management in African Americans, Nursing Research

Wright, Kathy D.; Jack, Anthony I.; Friedman, Jared P.; Jones, Lenette M.; Sattar, Abdus; Fresco, David M.; Moore, Shirley M. (2020) Neural Processing and Perceived Discrimination Stress in African Americans, Nursing Research 69 (5) p331 doi: 10.1097/NNR.0000000000000441

Webel, A.R., Schreiner, N., Salata, R.A., Friedman, J., Jack, A.I., Sattar, A., Fresco, D.M., Rodriguez, M., Moore, S.M. (2019) The Effect of an HIV Self-Management Intervention on Neurocognitive Behavioral Processing. Western Journal of Nursing Research.

Moore, S.M., Musil, C.M., Jack, A.I., Alder, M.L., Fresco, D.M., Webel, A., Wright, K.D., Sattar, A., Higgins, P. (2019). Characterization of Brain Signatures to Add Precision to Self-Management Health Information Interventions. Nursing Research.

Jones, L.M., Wright, K.D., Jack, A.I., Friedman, J.P., Fresco, D.M., Veinot, T., Moore, S.M. (2019). The Relationships between Health Information Behavior and Neural Processing in African-Americans with Prehypertension. Journal of the Association for Information Science and Technology.

Jack A.I., Rochford, K.C., Friedman J.P., Passarelli A., Boyatzis R.E. (2019) Pitfalls in Organizational Neuroscience: A Critical Review and Suggestions for Future Research. Organizational Research Methods doi: 10.1177/1094428117708857

Boyatzis R.E. & Jack, A.I. (2018) The neuroscience of coaching. Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research 70 (1), 11

Friedman, J.P. & Jack, A.I. (2018) Mapping Cognitive Structure onto the Landscape of Philosophical Debate: an Empirical Framework with Relevance to Problems of Consciousness, Free will and Ethics. Review of Philosophy and Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13164-017-0351-6

Friedman, J.P. & Jack, A.I. (2018) What Makes You So Sure? Dogmatism, Fundamentalism, Analytic Thinking, Perspective Taking and Moral Concern in the Religious and Nonreligious. Journal of Religion and Health, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-017-0433-x

Jack A.I., Friedman J.P., Boyatzis R.E., Taylor S.N. (2016) Why Do You Believe in God? Relationships between Religious Belief, Analytic Thinking, Mentalizing and Moral Concern. PLoS ONE 11(3): e0149989. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0149989

Rochford, K.C., Jack, A.I., Boyatzis, R. E., French, S. E. (2016) Ethical leadership as a balance between opposing neural networks. Journal of Business Ethics, doi:10.1007/s10551-016-3264-x

Feng, I.J., Jack, A.I., & Tatsuoka C (2015). Dynamic adjustment of stimuli in real time fMRI. PLoS ONE 10 (3), e0117942

Petersen, R. B., Lissemore, F. M., Appleby, B., Aggarwal, N., Boyatzis, R. E., Casedesus, G., Cummings, J., Jack, A. I., Perry, G., Safar, J., Sajatovic, M., Surewicz, W. K., Wang, Y., Whitehose, P., Lerner, A. (2015) From Neurodegeneration to Brain Health: An Integrated Approach. Journal of Alzheimer’s disease, 46 (1). DOI:10.3233/JAD-150043

French, S. E., & Jack, A. I. (2015). Dehumanizing the Enemy: The Intersection of Neuroethics and Military Ethics. In D. Whetham (Ed.), The Responsibility to Protect: Alternative Perspectives: Martinus Nijhoff.

Friedman, J., Jack, A. I., Rochford, K., Boyatzis, R. E. (2015) Antagonistic neural networks underlying organizational behaviour. In D. A. Waldman & P. Blathazard (Eds.) Organizational Neuroscience: Emerald

Jack, A. I. (2014). A scientific case for conceptual dualism: The problem of consciousness and the opposing domains hypothesis. In J. Knobe, T. Lombrozo & S. Nichols (Eds.), Oxford Studies in Experimental Philosophy (Vol. 1): Oxford University Press.

Boyatzis RE, Rochford K and Jack AI (2014) Antagonistic neural networks underlying differentiated leadership roles. Front. Hum. Neurosci. 8:114. doi: 10.3389/fnhum.2014.00114

Jack, Anthony I., Philip Robbins, Jared P. Friedman, and Chris D. Meyers (2014). "More than a feeling: Counterintuitive effects of compassion on moral judgment," in J. Sytsma (ed.), Advances in Experimental Philosophy of Mind, London: Bloomsbury, 125-179.

Kubit, B. & Jack, A. I. (2013) Rethinking the role of the rTPJ in attention and social cognition in light of the opposing domains hypothesis: findings from an ALE-based meta-analysis and resting-state functional connectivity. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience.

Jack, A.I., Boyatzis, R., Khawaja, M., Passarelli, A. & Leckie, R. (2013) Visioning in the Brain: an fMRI Study of Inspirational Coaching and Mentoring Social Neuroscience.

Jack, A.I., Dawson, A.J., Norr, M.E. (2013) Seeing Human: distinct and overlapping neural signatures associated with two forms of dehumanization. Neuroimage, 79C, 313-328. doi: S1053-8119(13)00468-0

Jack, A. I., Dawson, A., Begany, K., Leckie, R. L., Barry, K, Ciccia, A, Snyder, A. (2013) fMRI evidence of reciprocal inhibition between social and physical cognitive domains, Neuroimage, 66C, 385-401. doi: S1053-8119(12)01064-6

Jack, A. I. & Robbins, P (2012). The phenomenal stance revisited. Review of Philosophy and Psychology, 3 (3): 383-403,

Sestieri, C., Sylvester C.M., Jack A.I., d’Avossa G., Shulman G.L. , Corbetta M., (2008) Independence of anticipatory signals for spatial attention from number of nontarget stimuli in the visual field. J Neurophysiol. 100(2):829-38.

Sylvester C.M., Jack A.I., Corbetta M., Shulman G.L. (2008) Anticipatory suppression of non-attended locations in visual cortex marks target location and predicts perception. J Neurosci. 28(26):6549-56

Sylvester C.M., Shulman G.L., Jack A.I., Corbetta M. (2007) Asymmetry of anticipatory activity in visual cortex predicts the locus of attention and perception. J Neurosci. 27(52):14424-33.

Jack, A. I., Patel, G. H., Astafiev, S. V., Snyder, A. Z., Akbudak, E., Shulman, G. L., & Corbetta, M. (2007) Changing human visual field organization from early visual to extra-occipital cortex. PLoS ONE 2(5): e452

Jack, A. I., Shulman, G. L., Snyder, A. Z., McAvoy, M., & Corbetta, M. (2006). Separate modulations of human V1 associated with spatial attention and task structure. Neuron, 51(1), 135-147.

Robbins, P., & Jack, A. I. (2006). The phenomenal stance. Philosophical Studies, 127(1), 59-85.

Gallagher, H. L., Jack, A. I., Roepstorff, A., & Frith, C. D. (2002). Imaging the intentional stance in a competitive game. Neuroimage, 16(3), 814-821.

Jack, A. I., & Roepstorff, A. (2002). Introspection and cognitive brain mapping: From stimulus-response to script-report. Trends In Cognitive Sciences, 6(8), 333-339.

Summerfield, C., Jack, A. I., & Burgess, A. P. (2002). Induced gamma activity is associated with conscious awareness of pattern masked nouns. International Journal Of Psychophysiology, 44(2), 93-100.

Jack, A. I., & Shallice, T. (2001). Introspective physicalism as an approach to the science of consciousness. Cognition, 79(1-2), 161-196.