Stephen Porges: podcast appearances and interviews

Stephen W. Porges, born in 1945, is an American psychologist and professor of psychiatry at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is also the director of the Kinsey Institute Traumatic Stress Research Consortium at Indiana University Bloomington, where his research focuses on trauma. Porges has previously held academic positions at the University of Illinois Chicago, where he was the director of the Brain-Body Center at the College of Medicine, and at the University of Maryland. Over his career, he has served as president of the Society for Psychophysiological Research and the Federation of Associations in Behavioral & Brain Sciences. Porges is a recipient of a National Institute of Mental Health Research Scientist Development Award. He has authored more than 400 peer-reviewed journal articles across diverse disciplines including anesthesiology, biomedical engineering, critical care medicine, ergonomics, exercise physiology, geriatrics, neurology, neuroscience, obstetrics, pediatrics, psychiatry, psychology, psychometrics, space medicine, and substance abuse. In 1994, he proposed the Polyvagal Theory, a systems-level framework for understanding autonomic regulation. This theory integrates evolutionary biology, neurophysiology, observable behavior, and clinical insights to explore how nervous system states influence behavior in social contexts. The Polyvagal Theory distinguishes two vagal systems with different pathways and functions, challenging prior models based on autonomic balance. It has significantly impacted clinical practice but has also generated controversy regarding its measures, neuroanatomy, evolutionary claims, and interpretations of physiological literature. Porges has responded to such debates, continuing to contribute to the field of psychophysiology.