The Quadrune Mind

The quadrune mind model teaches us how the four minds of the human brain—the reptilian, the old mammalian, the new mammalian, and the Human—tell us who we were, who we are, and who we could be.

Although we are all human beings, very few of us think, feel, and act out of our Human mind most of the time. Rather, institutions, society, and our upbringing keep us stuck functioning out of one of our pre-Human mentalities. When this happens, we may feel like we are missing out on the joy, connection, and spiritual growth that life has to offer. We may seek satisfaction in all the wrong places. Or, we may find it in some of the right places, but not fully understand why.   

The quadrune mind model is a neurospiritual guide to finding purpose, meaning, and fulfillment in our human lives—both in ourselves and in our relationships. 

It will answer the questions of what it means to live our best Human life, what keeps us from doing so, and what we can do to become more fully Human, based on what we know about evolution and the structure of the human brain. It will help us better understand our own thoughts, emotions, and behaviors as well as those of others so that we can build better relationships and better communities. 

The quadrune mind model was developed by Tom F. Shadid, Ph.D. It is a philosophical model inspired by the neuroscience of Paul D. MacLean, M.D. We believe that Dr. MacLean’s triune brain model is an excellent foundation for a philosophy of mind that explains how people actually think, feel, and act in real life, both in moments of historic importance and in the mundane day-to-day. The traits discussed in the quadrune mind model are not merely theoretical, but are immediately apparent in news stories, in our friends and families, and, of course, in ourselves. 

Our Blog page will explore aspects of the quadrune mind model as well as how we can understand the latest news items and cultural happenings through the model’s lens.  

We invite you to learn more about the quadrune mind model by visiting our Study Guide page. Read our bios on our About page, learn about scheduling a workshop or presentation on our Presentations page, and reach us through our Contact page.

Disclaimer: All content on Quadrunemind.com, including our blog posts and Study Guide, is intended solely for educational purposes only.