[Literature Review] Exploration of Research Applying Polyvagal Theory in a Management and Leadership Context, in Support of Practices that Promote Embodied Awareness.
Christopher L. Wilson
BPSY at California Institute of Integral Studies
GEN1502
Dee Reed, PhD
October 12, 2024
The intersection of neuroscience and leadership has gained significant attention in recent years (Rock & Schwartz, 2006). It is becoming accepted that emotional intelligence is likely as valuable or more valuable than intellectual intelligence in many management and leadership settings. Emotional intelligence is not intellectual but embodied, and in the West, awareness of embodiment is not culturally supported. In support of embodied awareness, This literature review explores what research has been done on applying polyvagal theory in a management and leadership context. It begins with an introduction to polyvagal theory (Porges, 2021) by summarizing critical insights from the book Polyvagal Exercises for Safety and Connection (Dana, 2020). Then, a literature review covering three works provides an overview of the following: a) Theme analysis research on transactional, transformational, and servant leadership (VanderPal & Brazie, 2022). b) Integrating polyvagal theory with agile project management (VanderPal & Brazie, 2024). c) Navigating embodied self-awareness states in a management context (Banfield, 2024).
This review synthesizes neuroscience, psychology, and management studies to understand how physiological states impact leadership behaviors and employee performance. The findings show how training managers, leaders, and teams to develop embodied self-awareness (ESA) can integrate neuroscience with leadership theory.
Literature Review
Introduction to Polyvagal Theory
Polyvagal theory, developed by Dr. Stephen Porges, was introduced in 1994 while working as director of the Brain-Body Center at the University of Illinois at Chicago. The theory emerged from Porges' research on the relationship between the vagus nerve and social behavior and heart rate patterns in human fetuses and newborns (Porges, 2021). “Metaphorically, polyvagal theory is the solution of a Rubik’s puzzle, a solution to how evolution repurposed the mammalian autonomic nervous system to contain defensive reactions and enable sociality to thrive” (Porges, 2021, p. 1). As Dana (2020) explains, "Over the course of evolution, both the brain and the autonomic nervous system have grown and changed" (Dana, 2020, p. 3). Polyvagal theory identified how three distinct branches of the autonomic nervous system: the dorsal vagal system (immobilization), the sympathetic system (mobilization), and the ventral vagal system (social engagement) evolved sequentially and adapted to create three branches that work together and respectfully in service of either survival or social connection, restoration, and growth. (Dana, 2020, p. 37). It is important to explicitly identify this either/or switch when exploring embodied awareness in a management and leadership context.
Ventral vagal system - social engagement and feelings of safety
Sympathetic nervous system - mobilization and fight/flight responses
Dorsal vagal system - immobilization and shut-down responses
Dana explains, "Through the lens of the autonomic nervous system, resilience is the ability to return to a ventral vagal state following a move into sympathetic or dorsal vagal responses." (p. 158). The autonomic nervous system, shaped by adaptation throughout human evolution, continues to be shaped by individual experiences. Dana (2020) notes, "Shaped by experience, the autonomic nervous system acts in service of survival, responding to cues of safety and danger in the present moment based on experiences in the past" (Dana, 2020, p. 124). Early life experiences, particularly in relationships with caregivers, are crucial in shaping our autonomic patterns. Dana (2020) states that our nervous system begins being shaped in the womb, then in our earliest family and social interactions, and finally, through the process of survival into adulthood. To thrive, we must learn to reshape our autonomic nervous system's automatic reaction patterns to cues for danger. These patterns can become maladaptive when the environment changes or past traumas continue influencing present-day responses.
However, the nervous system's plasticity allows for reshaping through intentional practices. Dana's BASIC Method stands for befriend, attend, shape, integrate, and connect. The BASIC Method outlined by Dana provides a framework for applying polyvagal theory in therapeutic and self-regulation practices that may also align with leadership and management environments. The five steps provide a framework to work with the autonomic nervous system. Befriend: Develop awareness of autonomic states. Attend: Track autonomic shifts and patterns. Shape: Engage in practices to regulate the autonomic nervous system. Integrate: Incorporate new autonomic patterns. Connect: Cultivate co-regulated connections.
As Dana (2020) explains, "Repatterning the nervous system depends on bringing explicit awareness to implicit experiences, interrupting automatic response patterns, and engaging the ventral vagal safety circuit" (Dana, 2020, p. 36). The BASIC method guides clients through a process of becoming aware of their autonomic states (Befriend and Attend), actively working to influence these states (Shape), incorporating new patterns into daily life (Integrate), and improving relationships (Connect). Through repeated practice, these exercises can help create new neural pathways and more adaptive autonomic responses. As Dana (2020) emphasizes, "With ongoing practice, you create more flexibility in your responses and feel the benefits of a resilient autonomic nervous system" (Dana, 2020, p. 163).
Dana emphasizes the importance of bringing awareness to our bodily sensations and autonomic states through neuroception to change our perception of challenges and move towards a state of safety and connection. Neuroception is "the messages the autonomic nervous system receives and records from inside your body, in the environment around you, and between you and other people" (Dana, 2020, p. 65). This approach recognizes that while our nervous systems have been by evolution and experience, they retain the capacity for change throughout our lives. By understanding the hierarchical nature of our autonomic responses and actively engaging in practices promoting safety and social engagement, individuals can reshape their nervous systems to support health, growth, and connection better. While the book focuses on clinical applications, many concepts and practices could be relevant to workplace and leadership contexts. For example, Understanding how physiological states impact behavior and performance, developing skills to regulate one's nervous system under stress, creating environments that promote feelings of safety and connection, recognizing signs of dysregulation in oneself and others, using co-regulation to support team members, and working through challenges. Dana (2020) bringing attention to the present moment invites individuals to consider the origins of cues of danger.
In contrast, a cue for danger in the present moment was once needed to survive. Through the lens of neuroception in the present moment, is the cue needed now? Leaders who cultivate these embodied awareness states in themselves and their teams may enhance collaboration, creativity, and resilience.
Example Exercises To Reshape The Autonomic Nervous System
Two exercises from Dana's book, Polyvagal Exercises for Safety and Connection, are provided as explicit examples of the BASIC method in practice.
Finding Glimmers (Dana, 2020, pp. 120-122). This exercise helps individuals identify moments of ventral vagal openness. Dana explains: "Glimmers are the micro-moments of ventral vagal experience that routinely appear in everyday life yet frequently go unnoticed. To ensure survival, human beings are built with a negativity bias. This means you are biologically wired to pay more attention to negative events than positive ones and can often miss the ventral vagal moments that coexist with moments of dysregulation." (Dana, 2020, p. 120).
The exercise involves priming a client to notice multiple micro-moments of ventral vagal openness between sympathetic and dorsal autonomic states, identifying these moments, and allowing them to expand by “giving the glimmer time to become a glow” (Dana, 2020, p. 122) may increase resilience.
The Vagal Brake Exercise (Dana, 2020, pp. 159-163). This exercise helps individuals understand and engage with the vagal brake, which regulates heart rate and supports flexible responses to daily challenges. Dana describes it as follows: "The vagal brake allows you to feel more sympathetic nervous system energy while keeping your ventral vagal system online and in charge. As the vagal brake begins to release, the mobilizing energy of the sympathetic nervous system that is in the background begins to move into the foreground" (Dana, 2020, p. 160).
The exercise involves creating a personal image or metaphor for the vagal brake (e.g., a dimmer switch or bicycle brakes) and practicing engaging, relaxing, and re-engaging this brake through visualization and breath work. Both of these exercises aim to increase awareness of autonomic states and provide tools for self-regulation, which could be valuable in work and leadership contexts for managing stress and promoting resilience.
Exploratory Study of Polyvagal Theory and Underlying Stress and Trauma That Influence Major Leadership Approaches
VanderPal and Brazie (2022) investigated the relationships between polyvagal theory, stress, trauma, and their influences on transactional, transformational, and servant leadership theory. The report deployed a qualitative analysis, literature review, and thematic analysis of research variables across twenty-seven research papers. The key research questions asked:
Does the response of Polyvagal Theory and the Sympathetic Nervous System affect transactional, transformational, and servant leadership models?
What is the mediating role of stress, trauma, IQ, and EQ on leadership theory?
Do rational and nonrational decision-making approaches affect leadership outcomes?
The following section provides an overview of transactional, transformational, and servant leadership theory. It then describes key findings related to Polyvagal Theory and Leadership, Stress and Leadership, Trauma and Leadership, Intelligence Quotient (IQ) and Emotional Quotient (EQ), and Rational and Nonrational Decision-Making. The final section reviews VanerPal and Brazie’s conclusions and implications for further research.
Overview of Transactional, Transformational, and Servant Leadership theories
Transactional Leadership. This leadership theory is distinguished by its reliance on exchange processes to elicit and sustain desired subordinate behaviors. Transactional leaders deploy managerial rather than visionary tactics to modulate employee behavior. They utilize well-articulated roles, responsibilities, and task requirements to structure work processes and instill order in the workforce. Transactional leadership also features a contingent-based employee management system, where leaders consistently evaluate their subordinates' work performance to identify deviations and inconsistencies (VanderPal & Brazie, 2022; Aga, 2016; Hoxha, 2019).
Transactional leadership can inspire work motivation and organizational commitment by reinforcing transformational leadership behaviors. Transactional leaders are remarkably effective in managing work processes (VanderPal & Brazie, 2022), requiring strict protocol adherence. They are also imperative in work environments where deviations from established standards and protocols can elicit severe adverse outcomes. However, transactional leadership has received considerable criticism from scholars. Some authors have claimed that transactional leadership models disparage followers' higher-level needs, such as self-actualization and esteem, and are vital predictors of job dissatisfaction in organizational contexts (Aga, 2016; Hoxha, 2019; Xenikou, 2017).
Transformational Leadership. This leadership theory harnesses intrinsic motivation to direct subordinate behavior. It features a strong visionary component, with transformational leaders rallying their subordinates around a well-articulated vision (Khan et al., 2020). Additionally, transformational leaders devote considerable effort to sustaining subordinates' attention to organizational goals (VanderPal & Brazi, 2022). Subordinates' attention is guided by communicating each subordinate's unique contribution to organizational outcomes and linking work processes to organizational goals (Jensen & Bro, 2017).
Research has linked transformational leadership to favorable organizational outcomes. Transformational leaders can improve organizational performance by fostering innovation and creativity and inspiring employee commitment to organizational priorities. Transformational leadership enhances workforce competence and resilience (Jensen & Bro, 2017). Transformational leaders proactively monitor employee performance, create opportunities for skill improvement and knowledge acquisition, and cultivate knowledge-sharing intentions within the workforce (VanderPal & Brazi, 2022). However, critics argue that this model emphasizes leaders' influence on individual subordinates and relegates group-level processes. Transformational leadership theorists often overlook transformational leaders' interactions with broader organizational functions (Khan et al., 2020; Chen et al., 2018).
Servant Leadership. This leadership theory is focuses on contributing to the welfare of employees and customers. Servant leaders prioritize creating a corporate environment that promotes personal and professional growth and development. This leadership approach offers compelling rewards to organizations that prioritize the staff's welfare. The servant leadership style assumes that employees are self-serving and opportunistic, so the leader uses trust and shared decisions to meet the staff's interests (Winston & Fields, 2015).
The servant leadership style supports professional development and stimulates productivity by combining multiple disciplinary competencies. It underscores teamwork, ethical behaviors, and shared decision-making in the organizational setting. These leaders use empathy, listening skills, and personal commitment to shape the moral characteristics of their followers and the surrounding community. However, the main weakness of the servant leadership approach lies in the need for more clarity about its operational applications. There is little consensus about the definitions and mechanisms of servant leadership in real-life organizational contexts (Winston & Fields, 2015; Specchia et al., 2021).
Key Findings
Polyvagal Theory and Leadership. VanderPal and Brazie (2022) found no direct correlation between polyvagal theory and the three leadership styles. Rationality and nonrationality where are identified as the primary cognitive decision-making mechanisms, and the study notes: "Although most leadership decisions are made using rational neurocognitive choices, non-rational responses are equally essential in driving leaders' choices" (VanderPal & Brazie, 2022, p. 205).
Stress and Leadership. Transactional leadership is associated with increased stress due to the focus on rewards and punishments (Yao et al., 2014). However, research findings also illustrate that the transactional leadership approach can increase motivation and organizational commitment and reinforce transformational leadership behavior (Zenikou, 2017), enhancing worker's job satisfaction. Also, transactional leadership may allow leaders to address negative mental behaviors because followers are actively monitored, and corrective action can be recommended based on the worker’s behavior (Ertureten et al., 2013). Transformational leadership is linked to reduced stress by focusing on intrinsic motivation (Rowold & Schlotz, 2009). Servant leadership emphasizes emotional healing (Baldomir & Hood, 2016), potentially reducing stress. The authors state: "The transactional, transformational, and servant leadership approaches should be used in different organizational circumstances." (VanderPal & Brazie, 2022, p. 220) depending on organizational objectives.
Trauma and Leadership. VanderPal and Brazie (2022) state that reliable studies demonstrate that exposure to trauma carries both positive and negative implications on leadership models. Negative: reduced leadership performance and organizational outcomes, intrusive memories, avoidance of trauma-related stimuli, mood changes, variations in arousal, and other negative cognitive alterations (Kramer & Allen, 2018). Positive: potential for posttraumatic growth in five dimensions, including greater appreciation of life, warmer attitude towards intimate relationships with others, a stronger sense of personal strength, spiritual growth, and recognition of new possibilities for one’s future (Kramer & Allen, 2018). Kramer and Allen (2018) found that "many leaders who experience trauma are often demoralized, while others lose their ability to lead" while “many trauma survivors use their experiences to support other survivors and prevent similar events from recurring,” as cited in (VanderPal & Brazie, 2022, p. 214). Emotional healing is an essential component of servant leadership that is critical in mitigating emotional and psychological trauma (Baldomir & Hood, 2016).
Intelligence Quotient (IQ) and Emotional Quotient (EQ). IQ and EQ are integral to the transformational, transactional, and servant leadership styles (VanderPal & Brazie, 2022, p. 221). Transactional leadership was found to be more oriented towards IQ (Batool, 2013). Transformational leadership balances IQ and EQ (Kumar, 2014), and Servant leadership emphasizes EQ, mainly due to its focus on emotional healing (Baldomir & Hood, 2016).
Rational and Nonrational Decision-Making. VanderPal & Brazie (2022) found that transactional leadership prioritizes logical decision-making, transformational leadership balances rational and nonrational approaches, and Servant leadership incorporates both, emphasizing moral and ethical considerations. Calabretta et al. (2017) define rationality as an analytic, systematic, rule-based, and explicit mechanism for decision-making (as cited in VanderPal & Brazie, 2022, p. 214).
Conclusions. Considering the growing complexity of modern organizations, leaders should acknowledge that no 'one-size-fits-all' leadership approach exists for decision-making (VanderPal & Brazie, 2022, p. 225). Transformational and servant leadership styles are more effective in addressing stress and trauma. VanderPal and Brazie (2022) highlight the need to combine intelligence quotient and emotional intelligence in decision-making by focusing on specific competencies. The principal competencies in IQ are critical analysis and judgment, strategic thinking, and vision and imagination; the critical competencies in EQ are self-awareness, motivation, emotional resilience, sensitivity, influence, intuitiveness, and conscientiousness (Müller & Turner, 2009).
Implications for Future Research. VanderPal and Brazie (2022) acknowledge that the deciding factor for most leadership approaches is to pursue corporate profit and that this traditional view of leadership has been the cause of significant stress, trauma, and detrimental emotions in the workplace. Further exploration of the balance between rational and nonrational decision-making in leadership and studies on applying these findings in various organizational contexts is essential. More investigation is needed on the link between polyvagal theory and leadership styles. VanderPal and Brazie (2024) state that resilience helps employees adapt to fluctuations, accept reality, and find meaning in hardship. Resilience is also a crucial psychological resource that allows people to adapt to change and withstand life and work challenges (Djourova et al., 2020). This is the resilience leaders, workers, and companies will need to adapt and grow in a changing environment.
Integrating Polyvagal Theory With Agile Project Management
This paper by VanderPal and Brazie (2024) explores the integration of Polyvagal Theory (PVT) with Agile Project Management (APM), aiming to bridge the gap between neuroscience and project management practices. APM is characterized by iterative and incremental processes that aim to replace upfront planning with incremental planning (Arefazar et al., 2019). The rationale for integration is recognizing the human component of this incremental planning process's high-stress, social, and psychological challenges, which demands a nuanced understanding of human responses. VanderPal and Brazie (2024) state that stress in the project management environment can significantly impact decision-making and leadership. Jepson et al. (2017) note that project managers with varied personalities perceive risk and other project factors differently. By understanding the neurophysiological responses to stress and social interactions, as explained by PVT, managers and leaders can be trained to navigate high-pressure environments (VanderPal & Brazie, 2024). PVT provides a comprehensive framework for developing understanding and managing stress physiologically (VanderPal & Brazie, 2024, p. 50).
Key Findings
Stress Impact on Project Management. Stress significantly affects project outcomes, decision-making, and leadership effectiveness. Bowen et al. (2020) argue that occupational stress is strongly associated with reduced employee performance. Research reveals that although external factors can trigger stress within a worker, the most likely cause of stress is work-related problems (Patching & Best, 2014). Ahmad et al. (2022) state that leadership is considered the most vital soft skill for project managers because it allows an individual to avoid consistent project failures and deal with uncertainty in their respective environments. Harms et al.(2016) support this argument. PVT offers insights into how different stress levels influence the autonomic nervous system and individual behaviors (as cited in VanderPal & Brazie, 2024, p. 46).
Emotional & Psychological Safety in Agile Environments. Agarwal and Anantatmula (2023) state that psychological safety is critical for open communication, risk-taking, and innovation. Khan et al. (2020) illustrate the importance of psychological safety, showing how inclusive team leadership enhances it and fosters project success. VanderPol and Brazie (2024) point to PVT and its link to the neurobiological evolution of play. Play is linked to the neural mechanisms that allow mammals to switch between embodied states of mobilization and fight or flight and states of socialization and connection where learning collaboration can occur (Porges, 2022). PVT provides a roadmap for creating environments where team members feel secure and valued.
Leadership in Agile Environments. Leadership in agile environments demands adaptability and a deep sensitivity to team members’ emotional and psychological states. PVT can guide leaders in understanding these states and adapting their leadership style accordingly (VanderPol & Brazie, 2024, p. 50). Implementing regular team-building activities and stress management workshops can help regulate autonomic responses. By understanding and applying the principles of PVT, leaders can create a work culture that enhances team well-being and effectiveness, which is particularly crucial in fast-paced and high-stress agile environments (VanderPal & Brazie, 2024, p. 50).
Social Communication. Social communication plays a fundamental role in the human ability to coregulate interactions, making it a valuable aspect of social engagement systems and project management (VanderPal & Brazie, 2024, p. 49). This happens at the micro level from interaction to interaction. PVT explains how physiological states influence emotions and mood, affecting team dynamics. Changes in facial expressions, voice tone, breathing patterns, and posture are not just expressions of our state but also actively modify our physiology, primarily by influencing the myelinated vagus nerve's function, which connects to the heart (VanderPal & Brazie, 2024, p. 49). This intellectual and embodied understanding of the body-brain connection is what PVT theory provides to the APM leader and team.
Implications and Future Directions
VanderPal and Brazie (2024) showed how integrating PVT and APM represents a paradigm shift in project management, emphasizing human elements and well-being alongside project goals. This approach can lead to more effective communication, collaboration, and stress management in agile teams. Future research could explore Practical applications of PVT principles in various aspects of organizational behavior, develop refined strategies and tools for enhancing agile project management practices, and develop embodied awareness and leadership training to assist managers and teams in collaborating and communicating effectively in high-stress environments.
Navigating Embodied Self-Awareness States to Produce Work-Enhancing Adaptive Stress Responses
Kristina Banfield (2024) examined ten managers' experiences navigating embodied self-awareness states to produce performance-enhancing adaptive stress responses during work performance. Embodied self-awareness is a particular way of paying attention (Blake, 2022) involving a felt-sense way of knowing one’s experience through sensation and
movement rather than a descriptive way of knowing through language and ideas.
Embodied self-awareness is also described as the present moment experiencing sensations
that arise from within the body (Fogel, 2020). Fogel (2020) created a taxonomy of three particular states of embodied self-awareness: dysregulated or DESA, restorative or RESA, and modulated or MESA. Based on his conceptualization, each state is a unique phenomenological experience associated with differential physical, mental, and emotional outcomes. The research focuses on three ESA states: dysregulated (DESA), modulated (MESA), and restorative (RESA). This study is significant because most research on approaches to enter restorative (RESA) states focused on modalities like yoga or meditation that are not directly applicable to the office, team, or organizational leadership context's environment (time, location, frequency). In the study, Banfield (2024) aims to illuminate how to move from DESA to MESA to heighten performance and productivity. Furthermore, embodied awareness promotes the potential for eustress, the outcome of perceiving a stressor as a growth-oriented challenge (Howard, 2016), and embodied self-awareness cultivates the needed skills and capacities for cultivating the life and leadership skills that foster excellence and deepen satisfaction in life and demonstrating leadership (Blake, 2022).
Research Questions & Methodology
To what extent have participants experienced the states of dysregulated, modulated, and restorative embodied self-awareness?
What triggered each state, and how did they navigate among the states?
How did each state affect them and their performance?
The study by Banfield (2024) used a qualitative research design using interviews with a sample of 10 senior managers and leaders. Interviews were performed to gather experience, perception, and interpretation from participants. The participants met five selection criteria: employed full-time, had at least one year of full-time work experience, had a job title of senior manager or higher, had at least three direct reports, and at least three direct reports have formal job titles that include manager or higher. Data analysis and collection were performed using interviews. Each interview comprised of 12 interview questions. The first five were warm-up questions designed to familiarize the researcher. The core questions asked the participants to recall a specific situation where they experienced an embodied self-awareness state, first MESA, followed by DESA, and ending with RESA. For each situation/state, they described the situation, what prompted the experience, how it affected their performance, and how they moved out of that state. The interviews concluded by asking the participants how much time they spend in each state at work, how much time they would like to spend, and what they would need to balance DESA, MESA, and RESA states at work. All interviews were closed by asking the participants to share anything they would like to offer related to their experiences navigating stress at work (Banfield, 2024, p. 30).
Key Findings
Dysregulated Embodied Self-Awareness (DESA). Participants described DESA experiences as emotional overwhelm and ruminative thinking (n = 9) (Blake, 2022; Fogel, 2020), mental and physical depletion (n = 7) (Howard, 2016), losing mental focus and motivation for work (n = 6), and disconnection with the self (n = 4) (Fogel, 2020). Triggers for DESA included interpersonal dynamics and stressors, significant project or organizational changes, being under-resourced, and leadership issues and changes. The impact of DESA included low work performance and strained relationships (Banfield, 2024, pp. 33-40).
DESA Participant Example Statement. "My stress response was horrible right in the moment. I like to joke around; I try to bring a lighthearted element into the workplace so people feel they can be themselves at work—all the positive stuff, right. But on this job, it was like the antithesis of me. I was cranky and irritated. I was short with everyone." (Banfield, 2024, p. 39)
Modulated Embodied Self-Awareness (MESA). Participants described MESA experiences as stimulating and novel work (n = 10), collaboration and productive interaction (n = 9), enjoyment and confidence (n = 6). Triggers for MESA included a climate for collaboration, autonomy and accountability, and receiving a high-stakes, challenging task. The impact of MESA included Mobilizing thought and action, being more effective individually and collectively, and feeling more positive and calm.
MESA Participant Example Statement. "It felt like their research like when you read about the flow state by Csikszentmihalyi. It gives me the release of endorphins it's the opening right the serotonin and the dopamine flow your learning center though but it gives you sort of that ability or gives me the energy to stay with something longer." (Banfield, 2024, p. 44)
Restorative Embodied Self-Awareness (RESA). Participants described RESA experiences as self-awareness, self-expression (n = 7), and Relaxation (n = 2). Triggers for RESA included maintaining a proactive but tolerant focus on productivity, healthy connection and collaboration, and fun and positivity. The impact of RESA included enhanced work performance, peacefulness, and optimism, improved connection to self and others, and a more appropriate response to work-related stressors.
RESA Participant Example Statement. "Work performance wise, it's positively impactful, I think optimal. I haven't been stressed, so that's been wonderful. And it feels better. And I feel that I have more energy to devote to other tasks, I can I have more capacity to think about other things and to hold space for others in a in a more meaningful way when I'm not like, burning the brainpower on worried about that." (p. 51)
Conclusions and Recommendations
Kristina Banfield (2024) found that when participants could catch themselves in a DESA state, they noticed they were not performing at their best. When reporting later, they described this experience in positive ways. This finding mirrors what Fogel (2020) noted that RESA states could be achieved when individuals could notice and regulate DESA states using present-moment awareness, evoking phrases and imagery that encourage presence, calm, and parasympathetic system activation (sighing, yawning, breathing). Banfield provided recommendations for senior managers, organizations, coaches, and wellbeing program providers. For senior managers, Banfield recommends review project and role expectations, supporting safe spaces for teams, and creating individual practices for embodied self-awareness. For organizations, Banfield suggests cultivating a multiplier mindset (Wiseman, 2017), creating structures for autonomy and empowerment, and striving for transparency. For coaches and wellbeing program providers: Address work-life conflict through adaptable frameworks, mirror positive narratives, and focus training on developing embodied awareness.
Limitations and Future Research
Banfield (2024) suggests that limitations include reliance on self-reported data, small sample size, and using interviews as the sole data source. Future research suggests examining personal characteristics that influence movement from DESA to growth, investigating how to build small episodes of RESA into MESA states, and further defining workplace RESA. Banfield calls for determining what RESA is within the workplace. Participants reported that true RESA, concerning deep relaxation and restoration, does not fit at work. Banfield suggests exploring with future research how RESA states can be adapted to the work environment.
Discussion
Integrating Polyvagal Theory (PVT) into leadership and management practices offers significant potential for enhancing workplace performance and well-being by promoting practices that increase embodied awareness. Understanding the autonomic states described by PVT leaders can better navigate modern organizations' complex social and emotional landscapes (VanderPal & Brazie, 2002). This understanding is crucial in high-stress environments such as agile project management, where maintaining psychological safety is paramount (VanderPal & Brazie, 2024). PVT principles can help leaders create environments that promote feelings of safety and social engagement, which are essential for optimal team performance, innovation, and resilience.
Exploration of embodied self-awareness states DESA, MESA, and RESA provide valuable insights into how leaders can optimize their performance and that of their teams. Banfield's (2024) study demonstrates that leaders who recognize and effectively navigate these states are better equipped to handle workplace stressors and maintain high performance. Blake (2022) found that embodied self-awareness (ESA) builds interpersonal competencies, including empathy, connectedness, and conflict management. These reports' findings point to the power of embodied awareness to transcend leadership theory and to integrate situated knowledges (Haraway, 1988) into ways of being that align well-being with the performance of individuals, teams, and companies.
Balancing intellectual (IQ) and emotional intelligence (EQ) in leadership becomes more practical and less theoretical when viewed through the lens of PVT and ESA. Research suggests that transformational and servant leadership styles, which emphasize EQ, are more effective in addressing stress and trauma in the workplace (VanderPal & Brazie, 2022). Leaders who are trained to be aware of the embodied states will be better at interpreting and responding to emotional cues in themselves and others, giving them greater access to their intellectual (IQ), emotional (EQ), rational, and nonrational decision-making capabilities rather than intellectually trying to pick the best theoretical approach to leadership (VanderPal & Brazie, 2024).
Despite promising implications, implementing ESA and PVT-based approaches in the workplace poses challenges, potentially requiring shifts in organizational culture and leadership development programs. Current research limitations include small sample sizes and reliance on self-reported data (Banfield, 2024). Future research should address these limitations through larger-scale, longitudinal studies incorporating objective measures of physiological states using wearable technology to track heart rate variability and monitor biomarkers for stress alongside subjective reports.
Banfield's (2024) research into navigating and developing awareness of embodied states represents a convergence of neurobiology, somatic psychology, and leadership science. Her study of ten senior managers and leaders experiencing dysregulated (DESA), modulated (MESA), and restorative (RESA) embodied self-awareness states provides insights into how leaders can optimize their stress responses for enhanced work performance. This research is particularly significant as it illuminates how to move from dysregulated to modulated states to heighten performance and productivity in workplace settings, addressing a gap in existing literature that primarily focuses on restorative practices like yoga or meditation (Banfield, 2024). The findings suggest that cultivating embodied awareness can promote eustress the perception of stressors as growth-oriented challenges, which is crucial for effective leadership (Banfield, 2024; Howard, 2016). Banfield's work underscores the potential for integrating embodied awareness practices into leadership development, revolutionizing how leaders manage stress and optimize performance in high-pressure environments. Future research could explore the use of wearable technology to track stress data in real-time, combined with training in adaptive stress responses, potentially yielding simultaneous improvements in performance, well-being, and leadership effectiveness.
Particular attention should be paid to researching and training individuals and teams to create and expand micro-moments of ventral vagal openness, known by Dana (2020) as glimmers and by Fogel as brief moments of RESA during DESA states. Banfield (2024) noted this opportunity for research in their findings. It makes sense for busy workers, leaders, and teams to focus on ways to create the most significant impact with the least amount of work. Research-leading habit experts like BJ Fogg, PhD, head of the Stanford University Human Behavior Design Lab and author of The Tiny Habit Method (2021), support this behavior modification strategy.
Conclusion
This literature review has explored the potential of integrating Polyvagal Theory (PVT) and embodied self-awareness (ESA) practices with leadership and management practices, particularly in the context of agile project management and embodied self-awareness. Key findings suggest that understanding autonomic nervous system states can significantly impact a leader's ability to manage stress, make decisions, and foster positive team dynamics (VanderPal & Brazie, 2024; Banfield, 2024).
The practical implications are substantial for leaders, organizations, and management. Incorporating PVT principles into leadership development programs can equip leaders with tools to manage their stress responses better and create psychologically safe team environments. This approach aligns with the growing recognition of emotional intelligence's importance in leadership (VanderPal & Brazie, 2022) and offers a physiological basis for enhancing these skills.
As we look to the future, integrating neuroscience with leadership theory by focusing on embodied awareness research and training represents a significant step forward in our understanding of effective leadership strategy. The application of PVT in management contexts has the potential to revolutionize leadership development, team dynamics, and organizational design. Organizations may enhance innovation, collaboration, and overall performance by fostering environments that support optimal autonomic functioning, creating the critical eustress response (Howard, 2016) while promoting employee well-being.
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