Adolf Tobeña is Professor of Psychiatry and Medical Psychology at the Autonomous University of Barcelona. He is the author of more than a hundred and fifty research papers in psycobiology and neuroscience journals. He has been visiting professor at the universities of London, Venice, Groningen and Tel Aviv.
He has recieved the European Prize of Scientific Assay 2004 (Universidad de València); Ciutat de Barcelona de Ciència Prize 1992; Avui of Journalism Prize 1991. He is a regular contributor in the media. He has conducted popular science programs on radio (Catalunya Radio, Ona Catalana).
Bibliography
- Devotos y descreídos: biología de la religiosidad. PUV (Valencia, 2014)
- Píldoras o Freud. Alianza. (Madrid, 2013)
- Mentes lúcidas y longevas. PUAB (Bellaterra, 2011)
- Cerebro y poder. La Esfera de los Libros. (Madrid, 2008)
- El cerebro erótico. La Esfera de los Libros. (Madrid, 2006)
- Mártires mortíferos: biología del altruismo letal PUV (Valencia, 2004)
- Anatomía de la agresividad humana. Galaxia Gutenberg. (Barcelona, 2001)
Conference
An alienated society?: a psychobiological approach to Catalan secessionism
Spain has not resolved disputes between the different homelands that live within it and neither has solved under the European umbrella. The grand experiment of the European Union seemed a proper frame to dilute particularisms and secessionist impulses. The picture seems to be the opposite: some “national issues” have worsened and the economic crisis, the social unrest or the ideological climate aren’t able to offer convincing explanations. When such confusion appears it is a common temptation, however, to resort to psychopathological pseudo-explanations: transient delusions or maladaptive and fantastic reveries that would penetrate the collective mind of some communities abruptly and inexplicably. Meanwhile and with so great a distraction, focus is diverted and the exploration of core elements of normative group psychology is omitted.
During the germination and outbreak of large-scale collective enthusiasms directed to the conquest of long dreamed horizons of “national freedom”, there are many ingredients that require dissection from the psychobiology of everyday political behavior. In this lecture the ethno-national border and its associated ordinary frictions will be explored with the aim to deepen the understanding of a normative phenomenon and to rule out the useless tendency to apply nebulous psychopathological mediations. The key focus of my scrutiny will be the secular stake “Catalonia vs. Spain” which I know best, besides having achieved international resonance in recent years with the frantic boiling of secessionism demands.