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Leo Tolstoy wrote the novels War and Peace together with Anna Karenina and many others. Born into Russian aristocracy he spent much of his childhood and early adulthood in a space of entitlement. Much of this environment was portrayed in War and Peace. Illustrated was the preoccupation of affluent folk, obsessed with being loved and adored and heartbroken when not acknowledged and worse, when abandoned. It was a space characterized by the compensatory reward-seeking behaviours of those deprived of genuine nurture attachment – paradoxically often occurring in the affluent where the nurture role is delegated to an employed individual.

It is said that Tolstoy became so disillusioned with life in this affluent space that he began to question the fundamental meaning and purpose of existence. To save himself from this existential crisis he chose to live among the peasant population where he found true meaning and purpose emanating from the need to work for survival. The novel Anna Karenina is proposed as the product of this experience.

Tolstoy’s description of life in the aristocratic environment portrays similar reward-seeking behaviours as seen today on social media platforms. Desperate for “Likes”, with “Loves” better still, we see a devolution of mankind desperately seeking acknowledgement for their existence. Born into a technological age, suffering nurture deprivation through distracted caregivers using device screens to provide the virtual reality for engagement, this generation is programmed to self-destruct. Unlike Tolstoy, these unfortunate humanoids are devoid of sufficient self-awareness to even recognize that they’re hurtling to a collective existential crisis. But even if they were to develop some awareness, they are ill equipped cognitively and emotionally to remedy the situation. This is borne out of the fact that they were not afforded ample opportunity to engage with life and each other in the natural physical environment and thereby develop self-awareness, interpersonal awareness and awareness and respect for the extended natural environment.

Aggravating this most unfortunate state of affairs is the rapid integration of AI into all aspects of life which further serves to suppress self-awareness as well as fundamental cognitive and emotional function, predisposing to the dumbing down of mankind. To evolve as a species we require a healthy self-awareness, an awareness of the extended environment, curiosity which fuels meaning and purpose and together with self-esteem gives rise to innovation and creativity. But most of all we require sensitivity to ourselves, sensitivity and empathy to others (mankind and all other living things) as well as a sensitivity to the extended natural environment. But alas we are slipping up in all these areas. We are becoming a failed species.

Neurophysiologically, reward is associated with spurts of dopamine secretion. The least sustaining dopamine spurts are associated with compensatory activity such as the “Likes” and “Loves”, “comfort food” and all the binges and addictions – squeezing out those last drops of dopamine so as to sustain some vestige of “feel good”. The absence of “Likes” and “Loves” translates into a whole different story. Plummeting dopamine and serotonin levels underpin a mind state of hopelessness and helplessness spiralling down into a subjective space of perceived irrelevance. Any accompanying component of anxiety is associated with chronically raised adrenaline and cortisol levels. The consequence on body physiology is suppressed immunity and chronic inflammation.

More sustaining levels of dopamine are associated with curiosity that fuels meaning and purpose; the gratification that arises from task engagement and task mastery; a sense of achievement (the highest secretion levels occur in anticipated achievement or in achievement greater than was anticipated). It follows that repeating the full octave of curiosity-meaning&purpose-task engagement&mastery-achievement, both sustains the rewarding levels of dopamine and perpetuates the cycle. Acknowledgement of achievement garnishes the process with an extra dopamine spurt!

The crowning glory of the neurophysiology is that of oxytocin secretion. Oxytocin production is associated with empathy, trust, belief and awe. This collective state of mind is fundamental for effective nurturing in which comprehensive attachment occurs between the primary caregiver (usually the mother), establishing a sensitive, curious and productive human. In the adult human, sensitivity and empathy, trust and belief and moments of awe (appreciation of a perfect sunset, a great work of art, a perfect dish) are associated with increased oxytocin secretion. But it is the effects of increased oxytocin which is so awesome ... it sustains the mind state of empathy trust, belief and awe; it stimulates much higher levels of “feel good” dopamine; it suppresses the fear-anxiety-panic-rage emanating from the amygdala; it suppresses chronic inflammation. So there you have it – our neurobiological heritage of empathy is the universal antidote for the ills arising out of nurture deprivation.

Turning back to our “lost generation” of touch-screen addicts sans IQ and EQ rapidly approaching the AI-created abyss, we ask “Is there hope?”. The answer in the context of biomedical-based medicine is the mantra “where there’s life, there’s hope!”; while the answer in the context of biopsychosocial-based medicine is the mantra “where there’s hope, there’s life!”. In order to save these humanoids we will need to coax them away from their screens and not only equal their level of “Like/Love” dopamine secretion but raise it to a higher level. It will require a re-introduction to themselves and to each other in an authentic natural world and inspiration into engaging with physical tasks and task mastery. The real challenge however will be to instill sensitivity and empathy in humanoids whose minds have been captured into believing that they individually are the centres of the universe.