This site explores the myriad connections between empathy, narrative, consciousness, and selfhood through the lenses of literature, neuroscience, psychology, philosophy, and more.
Author: Dr. Shoshannah Bryn Jones Square
I received my PhD in English literature from the University of Oxford (UK) in 2017, my dissertation for which explores the prosocial potential of reading, which increases our empathy. After completing my PhD, I worked as a Special Programs & Student Records Assistant at the U of Winnipeg and later as a Research Grants Officer (Canadian Institutes of Health Research) for the Office of Research Services at the U of Manitoba (UM). I then worked as Postdoctoral Fellow (UM) under the supervision of Dr. Faubert and as a Research Affiliate with UM’s Institute for the Humanities. I have also worked as an Instructor in the Department of English and as an Interdisciplinary Instructor in the Faculty of Arts at Kwantlen Polytechnic University (KPU).
I have had articles on imagination, literature, empathy, mental health, emotional contagion, and social change published in Essays in Romanticism (2020) and Studies in the Literary Imagination (2018), and my chapter for The Routledge Handbook of Health and Media, “Climate Health Is Human Health: Working Through Eco-Anxiety with the Written Word in Print and Digital Media,” co-authored with Dr. Carol-Ann Farkas (MCPHS University), will be published in early 2022. My latest project, “Books, Brains, and Benevolence: An Interdisciplinary Study of Empathy,” advocates for a radical shift from a self-focused to an other-focused society and for a renewed awareness of how intimately connected we are to one another and to our environment.
I am currently a Research Affiliate with The University of Manitoba Institute for the Humanities - which promotes cross-disciplinary research in the Humanities - a member of the Emergent Phenomenology Research Consortium, and an Independent Contractor with the non-profit charity organization Emergence Benefactors, which supports the science of emergence.
I am the lead organizer of the interdisciplinary global forum “Redesigning Our World,” which will take place in April 2022 and enable people to come together to think collectively about the fate of our shared planet.
I also co-host The Brains & Banter Podcast with an awesome group of students, academics, artists, and activists. We offer a multiplicity of perspectives on topics like the climate crisis, mental health, systemic racism, social justice, criminal justice, prison reform, higher education, spirituality, storytelling, consciousness, metaphor, music, comedy, art, activism, philosophy, psychology, psychiatry, neuroscience, and more.
This is a video from “Empathy, Social Justice, and the Arts,” an event held at Bishop’s University (BU) in Bandeen Hall on Friday, December 16, 2022!
A very special thanks to Alex Bergeron for creating and editing this video and for the beautiful soundtrack; you are incredibly talented, and we are deeply grateful for your help and talent!
Another special thanks to BU’s Faculty of Arts and Department of English for sponsoring and funding the event! We could not have done this without you!
Thank you also to all of the participants, volunteers, and attendees and to Eric Akbar Manolson!
A big thanks to Sarah Boudreau for taking photos of and filming the event!
In this clip from The Brains & Banter Podcast’s conversation with Anne Macksoud, John Ankele, and Dr. Kylie Harris, co-host Dr. Shoshannah Bryn Jones Square (that’s me) talks about interconnectedness, collectivism, and the positive potential of living in uncertainty.
Please watch out for the full episode later in June 2022!
Thank you so much to Emmanuel Juma with Ashy Productions for creating this clip and its very cool accompanying thumbnail!
Thank you also to The University of Manitoba (UM) Institute for the Humanities; UM’s Dean’s Office, Faculty of Arts; and to the UM’s Conference Sponsorship Program for providing funding for this project and its associated global forum “Redesigning Our World” (June 2022) – we are so grateful!
In this clip from The Brains & Banter Podcast’s forthcoming episode with Anne Macksoud, John Ankele, and Dr. Kylie Harris, which will be released later in June 2022, Anne, a documentary filmmaker with “Old Dog Documentaries,” talks about the beauty and transformative power of paying attention and being in the moment.
Bio (Anne Macksoud and John Ankele): “We are two ‘old dogs’ saddened by the suffering we see all around us and moved to take action. Since 1985, we have produced and directed documentary films about the subtleties of individual human experience and the complexities of our collective challenges. Our political leaders cannot solve the problems of our time. They themselves are too beholden to privileged, powerful constituencies motivated to preserve the status quo. Change must start with ordinary people who understand the interrelatedness of our global community. Ordinary people have the will, resourcefulness, and compassion to craft new solutions serving our common good. We offer our films as catalysts for this kind of solution— as tools for education and activism in the name of social justice and climate change. We invite you to watch them at home, show them to your friends, and share them with your classes and your community.”
Thank you to Emmanuel Juma with Ashy Productions for creating this amazing clip!
Thank you also to The University of Manitoba (UM) Institute for the Humanities; UM’s Dean’s Office, Faculty of Arts; and to the UM’s Conference Sponsorship Program for providing funding for this project and its associated global forum “Redesigning Our World” (June 2022) – we are so grateful!
The EPRC, which Dr. Ingram helps organize, is a group of 100+ multidisciplinary researchers from across the globe working to bring together clinical, scientific, and spiritual paradigms to improve clinical outcomes.
What many might call “spiritual”, “mystical”, “energetic”, etc. experiences and effects, we refer to as emergent phenomena. As emergent practices continue to scale up in society, our aim is to give health care systems, mental health providers, and those helping to teach and promote various practices the information they need to make better decisions about how to both promote the benefits of these practices and manage the various effects they can produce.
The EPRC’s mission is to use ontologically-agnostic, multidisciplinary, first-person, psychometric, neurophenomenological, biochemical, and clinical scientific methods to conduct studies on emergent practices and phenomena to generate clinically-relevant information that can add value to care.
Thank you for your interest!
Please feel free to contact us at info@theeprc.org.
In this clip from The Brains & Banter Podcast, Dr. Daniel M. Ingram, MD MSPH, talks about the power of placebos. Please watch out for more clips and for the full episode later in June 2022!
Dr. Ingram is Board Chair and acting CEO of Emergence Benefactors, an incorporated nonprofit 501(c)(3) tax-exempt charity organization supporting the science of emergence.
His current research interests include finding ways to bring clinical competence, data-backed diagnostic and management strategies, and options for disconcerting emergent phenomena to therapists and other healthcare providers, particularly those in emergency medicine, as well as to use scientific methods to help emergent practitioners optimize their practice for good outcomes. He was a board certified emergency medicine physician for 12 years, mostly working in major trauma centers, and his MSPH is in epidemiology.
Daniel also helps organize the Emergent Phenomenology Research Consortium (EPRC), a group of 100+ multidisciplinary researchers from across the globe working to bring together clinical, scientific, and spiritual paradigms to improve clinical outcomes.
Thank you very much for the very talented Emmanuel Juma with Ashy Productions for creating this clip!
In this clip from The Brains & Banter Podcast, Dr. Daniel M. Ingram, MD MSPH, talks about the importance of enhancing perception through repetition and practice as an emergency physician.
Please watch out for more clips and for the full episode later in June 2022!
Dr. Ingram is Board Chair and acting CEO of Emergence Benefactors, an incorporated nonprofit 501(c)(3) tax-exempt charity organization supporting the science of emergence. His current research interests include finding ways to bring clinical competence, data-backed diagnostic and management strategies, and options for disconcerting emergent phenomena to therapists and other healthcare providers, particularly those in emergency medicine, as well as to use scientific methods to help emergent practitioners optimize their practice for good outcomes.
He was a board certified emergency medicine physician for 12 years, mostly working in major trauma centers, and his MSPH is in epidemiology.
Daniel also helps organize the Emergent Phenomenology Research Consortium (EPRC), a group of 100+ multidisciplinary researchers from across the globe working to bring together clinical, scientific, and spiritual paradigms to improve clinical outcomes.
Thank you so much to Emmanuel Juma with Ashy Productions for creating this clip! Twitter: @AshyProductions; Instagram: @AshyProduction
Thank you to everyone for watching! Much love and gratitude!
In this clip from The Brains & Banter Podcast, Bree Benjamin, LMFT and Founder of the Vermont Center for Integrative Therapy, talks about her experience working with teenage girls, particularly those with eating disorders.
Watch out for more clips and the full episode in the coming weeks!
Opened in 2010, VTCIT is one of the first mental health centers to combine ancient systems of healing interwoven with current cutting edge systems of care. Utilizing her decades of experience as a psychotherapist also trained in healing and spiritual practices, Bree created a unique four phase model of understanding and care delivery through which she birthed protocols for eating disorders, trauma, and mood disorders among other diagnoses. Bree has lectured and presented extensively at institutions, conferences, and universities on topics such as integrative medicine, eating disorders, and addictions. She has trained and supervised over 150 practitioners from disciplines ranging from internal medicine to yoga therapy.
In 2015, VTCIT and Bree were featured in the documentary film ALL OF ME, which explored the deeper issues and meaning surrounding eating disorders for individuals and their families. In 2018, following a desire to reach a wider range of professionals and clients, Bree scaled back VTCIT.
She currently leads a small team in the service of creating and delivering cutting edge clinical programs and professional training that change how we view and deliver care. Out of a deep desire to change the paradigm of mental health treatment, Bree continues to teach, write, and train in the areas of somatics, eating disorders, spirituality, addiction, and trauma.
Bree is also a Team Member with The Emergent Phenomenology Research Consortium, a group of 100+ multidisciplinary researchers from across the globe working to bring together clinical, scientific, and spiritual paradigms to improve clinical outcomes.
Thank you very much to Emmanuel Juma with Ashy Productions for creating this clip.
Thank you also to The University of Manitoba (UM) Institute for the Humanities; UM’s Dean’s Office, Faculty of Arts; and to the UM’s Conference Sponsorship Program for providing funding for this project and its associated global forum “Redesigning Our World” (June 2022) – we are so grateful!
In this clip from The Brains & Banter Podcast, Bree Benjamin, LMFT and Founder of the Vermont Center for Integrative Therapy, explains how she got into integrative care.
Watch out for more clips and the full episode in the coming weeks!
Opened in 2010, VTCIT is one of the first mental health centers to combine ancient systems of healing interwoven with current cutting edge systems of care. Utilizing her decades of experience as a psychotherapist also trained in healing and spiritual practices, Bree created a unique four phase model of understanding and care delivery through which she birthed protocols for eating disorders, trauma, and mood disorders among other diagnoses. Bree has lectured and presented extensively at institutions, conferences, and universities on topics such as integrative medicine, eating disorders, and addictions. She has trained and supervised over 150 practitioners from disciplines ranging from internal medicine to yoga therapy.
In 2015, VTCIT and Bree were featured in the documentary film ALL OF ME, which explored the deeper issues and meaning surrounding eating disorders for individuals and their families. In 2018, following a desire to reach a wider range of professionals and clients, Bree scaled back VTCIT.
She currently leads a small team in the service of creating and delivering cutting edge clinical programs and professional training that change how we view and deliver care. Out of a deep desire to change the paradigm of mental health treatment, Bree continues to teach, write, and train in the areas of somatics, eating disorders, spirituality, addiction, and trauma.
Bree is also a Team Member with The Emergent Phenomenology Research Consortium, a group of 100+ multidisciplinary researchers from across the globe working to bring together clinical, scientific, and spiritual paradigms to improve clinical outcomes.
Thank you very much to Emmanuel Juma with Ashy Productions for creating this clip.
Finally, a very special thanks to the University of Manitoba (UM) Institute for the Humanities; UM’s Dean’s Office, Faculty of Arts; and to the UM’s Conference Sponsorship Program for providing funding for this project and its associated global forum “Redesigning Our World,” June 3 to 5, 2022.
This is a fun reel, created by Emmanuel Juma with Ashy Productions, from a talk I gave for the Toronto Rehabilitation Institute’s monthly AI meeting in April 2022.
Thanks again, Emmanuel! You can follow him on Twitter and Instagram.
The Brains & Banter Podcast is so thrilled to announce that the amazing and inspiring Lauren Ducrey will be a guest on our podcast – watch out for the episode in June 2022!
Lauren Ducrey is a poet, student of mindfulness (Inner MBA), and a UX content strategist at Google.
She holds two Master’s degrees – one in American Literature, and the other in Sustainability & Social Innovation.
She has also worked as a speechwriter for the French Consul in New York City and as an educator for multilingual students.
She published her first book of poetry, Tongues Tied, in November 2021, and she is about to release her first poetry and music album in collaboration with Paris-based guitarist Hadrien Remy.
Lauren is dedicated to breaking poetry out of its ivory tower as she believes it is a universal tool for mental health and wellbeing.
Books, Brains, and Benevolence 