The polyvagal perspective

doi:10.1016/j.biopsycho.2006.06.009

Biological Psychology

Volume 74, Issue 2, February 2007, Pages 116-143

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biopsycho.2006.06.009 Get rights and content

Abstract

The polyvagal theory introduced a new perspective relating autonomic function to behavior, that included an appreciation of the autonomic nervous system as a “system,” the identification of neural circuits involved in the regulation of autonomic state, and an interpretation of autonomic reactivity as adaptive within the context of the phylogeny of the vertebrate autonomic nervous system. The paper has two objectives: first, to provide an explicit statement of the theory; and second, to introduce the features of a polyvagal perspective. The polyvagal perspective emphasizes how an understanding of neurophysiological mechanisms and phylogenetic shifts in neural regulation leads to different questions, paradigms, explanations, and conclusions regarding autonomic function in biobehavioral processes than peripheral models. Foremost, the polyvagal perspective emphasizes the importance of phylogenetic changes in the neural structures regulating the autonomic nervous system and how these phylogenetic shifts provide insights into the adaptive function and the neural regulation of the two vagal systems.

Section snippets

Overview

The polyvagal theory (Porges, 1995) introduced a new perspective relating autonomic function to behavior. This perspective includes an appreciation of the autonomic nervous system as a “system,” the identification of neural circuits involved in the regulation of autonomic state, and an interpretation of autonomic reactivity as adaptive within the context of the phylogeny of the vertebrate autonomic nervous system. The polyvagal theory encourages a level of inquiry that challenges scientists to

The polyvagal theory: a phylogenetic theory of adaptive reactions to challenge

Within this historical context, the polyvagal theory was presented (Porges, 1995) as an emerging model of neural regulation of the autonomic nervous system. In the original presentation (Porges, 1995), the following seven points were listed to summarize the theory:

(1)
The vagal system does not represent a unitary dimension.
(2)
There are two vagal motor systems.
(3)
In mammals, the concept that vagal tone represents a single or summed system may have limited physiological or heuristic value.
(4)
The functional

Levels of inquiry

Imbedded in the polyvagal theory is a generalizable and expansive perspective of inquiry. What are the features of this perspective? How does this perspective influence the conceptualization of research questions and paradigms in psychophysiology? The polyvagal perspective reflects a level of inquiry that emphasizes neurophysiological mechanisms and neurobiological organizing principles to determine how heart rate measures, as non-invasive features of adaptive neural circuits, are related to

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^☆: The preparation of this manuscript was supported, in part, by grants MH 067446 and MH 60625 from the National Institutes of Health.

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The polyvagal perspective☆

Abstract

Section snippets

Overview

The polyvagal theory: a phylogenetic theory of adaptive reactions to challenge

Levels of inquiry

Mayo Clinic Proceedings

Pain

Trends in Cognitive Sciences

Journal of Psychosomatic Research

Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews

Brain Research Bulletin

Brain Research

Neuroscience Letters

Biological Psychology

Brain Research

Current Biology

Neuroscience

Journal of Neurological Sciences

Biological Psychiatry

Biological Psychiatry

International Journal of Psychophysiology

Trust in the brain

Nature Neuroscience

Journal of Clinical Child Psychology

Power spectrum analysis of heart rate fluction: a quantitative probe of beat to beat cardiovascular control

Science

Respiratory variations of the heart rate. I. The reflex mechanism of the respiratory arrhythmia

Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B

Does the stapes reflex remain the same after Bell's Palsy?

American Journal of Otology

The relation between respiration and the pulse-rate

Journal of Physiology

Autonomic cardiac control. I. Estimation and validation from pharmacological blockades

Psychophysiology

Heart rate variability: origins, methods, and interpretive caveats

Psychophysiology

Cardiac conditioning and skeletal responding in curarized dogs

Psychological Review

Physiological and neurocognitive correlates of adaptive behavior in preschool among children in head start

Developmental Neuropsychology

The Heart Rate

The application of time-series statistics to psychological research: an introduction

The middle-ear muscles

Scientific American

Vagally mediated inhibition of acoustic stress-induced cortisol release by orally administered kappa-opiod substances in dogs

Endocrinology

Cardiac reactivity is associated with changes in negative emotion in 24-month-olds

Developmental Psychobiology

Data-dependent filter characteristics of peak-valley respiratory sinus arrhythmia estimation: a cautionary note

Psychophysiology

Cardiac vagal tone indices of temperamental reactivity and behavioral regulation

Developmental Psychobiology

Cardiac vagal regulation across the preschool period: stability, continuity, and implications for childhood adjustment

Developmental Psychobiology

Hemispheric asymmetry for emotional stimuli detected with fMRI

Neuroreport

Neuroendocrine perspectives on social attachment and love

Psychoneuroendocrinology

Vagal tone as indicator of treatment response in major depression

Psychophysiology

Nucleus ambiguus projections to cardiac ganglia of rat atria: an anterograde tracing study

Journal of Comparative Neurology

Statistical Power Analysis for the Behavioral Sciences

Individual differences in emotion regulation and behavior problems in preschool children

Journal of Abnormal Psychology

Neural mechanisms of autonomic, affective, and cognitive integration

Journal of Comparative Neurology

Central neuronal circuit innervating the lordosis-producing muscles defined by transneuronal transport of pseudorabies virus

Journal of Neuroscience

Atropine sulfate effects on aviator performance and on respiratory-heart period interactions

Aviation Space Environment Medicine

Respiratory sinus arrhythmia during recovery from isoflurane-nitrous oxide anesthesia

Anesthesia and Analgesia

Sympathovagal balance: a critical appraisal

Circulation

The human respiratory gate

Journal of Physiology

Vagotonia: A Clinical Study in Vegetative Neurology