Knowledge Tree
physiological regulation
Also known as: physiological self-regulation, physiological control
Facts (29)
Sources
Homeostasis and Health: From Balance to Change | Biological Theory link.springer.com Oct 14, 2025 17 facts
claimPhilosophical research by Bich and Bechtel (2022a, 2022b) and Menatti et al. (2022) emphasizes physiological control and adaptivity as sources of change in living organisms.
claimBechtel and Bich (2025) argue that Claude Bernard and Walter Cannon did not employ the notions of feedback and setpoint, but instead held a broader vision of physiological regulation.
perspectiveBechtel and Bich (2025) argue that Claude Bernard and Walter Cannon did not use the concepts of feedback and setpoint, but instead held a broader vision of physiological regulation.
claimWilliam Bechtel and Bich identify three core topics in the debate over homeostasis: (1) setpoints are variable and adjustable rather than fixed; (2) physiological regulation involves anticipating future variation rather than just responding to it; and (3) the notion of a setpoint is inaccurate for describing biological systems.
perspectiveIn 1961, Adolph argued that not all physiological regulation is concerned with maintaining constancy, noting that some regulatory processes depart from homeostasis while still contributing to the survival of the organism.
claimThe 'settling point' theory posits that values maintained within a range are not the specific target of physiological regulation, but rather the result of the coordinated operation of different controllers.
referenceBechtel and Bich proposed an interpretation of physiological regulation that views the value of variables as the results of the interplay of different regulatory mechanisms, rather than as the targets or goals of those mechanisms.
claimPhysiology literature has discussed the limits and scope of the cybernetic interpretation of homeostasis for decades, with some proposals, such as those by Hagen (2021), emphasizing dimensions of physiological control that involve radical changes in physiological regimes beyond simple stability and error correction.
claimKeeping a variable stable is not the ultimate goal of physiological regulation, although it may occur in some cases.
claimClaude Bernard and Walter Cannon's original vision of physiological regulation was centered on maintaining conditions that allow organs and tissues to function, enabling organisms to carry out activities necessary for their existence.
referenceRamsay and Woods (2014) clarify the distinct roles of homeostasis and allostasis in physiological regulation.
perspectiveBechtel and Bich (2024) advocate for a perspective on physiological regulation that focuses on the whole organism rather than single feedback mechanisms, by recovering the core of the original vision of homeostasis.
claimThe view of health based on adaptivity and change operationalizes health by identifying multiple mechanisms involved in physiological regulation, rather than relying on classical accounts of health as well-being and the absence of disease.
perspectivePhysiological regulation focuses on the capacity of a system to change how it operates—including modifying core variable values—to perform life functions coherently with conditions, rather than restoring a 'normal value' after a perturbation.
claimPhysiological control research, as noted by Hagen (2021), has proposed dimensions of control that imply more radical changes in physiological regimes than simple stability and error correction.
claimPhilosophical research on regulatory control and adaptivity emphasizes that physiological control functions as a source of change in living organisms.
claimThe negative feedback model of physiological regulation overlooks factors such as inflammatory conditions, metabolic conditions, and glucose variability, as the latter is often hidden by average value measurements.
Homeostasis: The Underappreciated and Far Too Often ... - Frontiers frontiersin.org 2 facts
claimHomeostasis is the result of complex interaction and competition between multiple negative and positive feedback systems and provides the basis for physiological regulation.
claimClaude Bernard and Walter Cannon are considered the two primary figures in modern physiological regulation, having described regulations in terms of the constancy of the internal environment and homeostasis, respectively.
Physiology, Homeostasis - StatPearls - NCBI Bookshelf ncbi.nlm.nih.gov May 1, 2023 2 facts
referenceRamsay DS and Woods SC authored 'Clarifying the roles of homeostasis and allostasis in physiological regulation' in Psychol Rev in April 2014.
claimDavid S. Ramsay and Stephen C. Woods clarify the roles of homeostasis and allostasis in physiological regulation in a 2014 article published in Psychological Review.
Generalized Anxiety Disorder | Counseling Nexus manifold.counseling.org 1 fact
procedureAssessment strategies for anxiety disorders should evaluate emotional, behavioral, and physiological self-regulation while considering medical history, family dynamics, developmental milestones, trauma, lifestyle, and neurological risks to collaboratively develop an effective treatment plan.
The New Field of Network Physiology: Building the Human ... frontiersin.org 1 fact
claimNetwork physiology aims to uncover dynamical characteristics of brain-organ and organ-organ networks to identify new signatures of physiologic control and establish associations between network structure and organism-level physiologic states.
Homeostasis vs. Allostasis: Why Your Body Needs More Than Stability trueself.health Jan 5, 2026 1 fact
perspectiveThe objective of physiological regulation is not to eliminate stress or achieve perfect stability, but to build the capacity to move fluidly between states of effort and ease, activation and recovery, and thinking and flow.
AI Sessions #9: The Case Against AI Consciousness (with Anil Seth) conspicuouscognition.com Feb 17, 2026 1 fact
claimEmotional experiences are characterized primarily by valence (whether things are going well or badly) rather than by physical properties like shape, location, or speed, because the brain prioritizes physiological regulation and survival.
Homeostasis or Allostasis? - Beauty, Neuroscience & Architecture neuro-architectology.com 1 fact
referenceClaude Bernard authored 'Lectures on the phenomena common to animals and plants', which is a foundational reference for physiological regulation.
Feedback Mechanisms | Overview & Research Examples - Perlego perlego.com 1 fact
claimThe comparator in a physiological control system acts as a center of nervous integration that receives signals from receptors, other control systems, and higher nervous centers to compare the desired state of the system with the actual state.
Allostasis revisited: A perception, variation, and risk framework frontiersin.org Sep 28, 2022 1 fact
claimPerception and higher cognitive functions are involved in physiological regulation alongside direct physiological metrics.
Homeostatic medicine: a strategy for exploring health and disease link.springer.com Sep 26, 2022 1 fact
claimPhysiological regulation can be unconscious or regulated by subjective consciousness.