LeDoux describes how the brain employs both parallel plasticity, which is learning occurring in diverse brain systems, and convergence zones, which are regions where information from diverse systems can be integrated. This combination explains how the self can possess a unity in diversity.
Thinking of the self as a complex neural system takes us far from common sense, and further departures are required. A full theory of the self remains to be developed, drawing not only on neuroscience but also on social psychology, which discusses such topics as self-regulation, self- esteem, and cultural variations in self-concepts. In Chapter 5, I will argue that full understanding of emotions and other aspects of the self requires attention to mechanisms that operate at four different levels, including the molecular, psychological, and social as well as the neural. The discussion of moral responsibility in Chapter 9 will treat persons as inherently part of their social worlds,requiring attention to social relations as well as neural mechanisms. Claiming that minds are brains is compatible with the social character of persons and the self.