Why Our Brains Resist Change: A Neuroscience Perspective

Why do smart, capable people resist change—even when it’s good for them or their organization?

Even when change is necessary or beneficial, people often resist it. Neuroscience helps explain why. Our brains are wired to keep us safe, efficient, and socially connected—all of which can be threatened by change. Understanding how the brain interprets change gives leaders and change managers practical insight into why resistance happens—and how to help people through it. 

Below are four key brain structures that influence how people respond to change and why resistance is a natural, predictable response rather than simple “pushback.”

1. Amygdala: Change Equals Danger

The amygdala, a small almond-shaped structure in the limbic system, acts as the brain’s alarm system. It scans constantly for potential threats and activates the “fight, flight, or freeze” response when uncertainty or danger is perceived. 

When change occurs—especially unexpected or poorly explained change—the amygdala interprets it as a potential threat. Even positive change can activate this response because it introduces novelty, ambiguity, and potential loss of control. 

Research shows that the amygdala is highly sensitive to unpredictability and social threat. When activated, it floods the body with stress hormones and suppresses the prefrontal cortex—the rational, decision-making part of the brain—making it harder to learn, plan, or collaborate until the sense of threat subsides. 

Change insight: 
Until people feel safe and informed, their brains remain in protection mode, not learning or adaptation mode. Leaders who communicate clearly, demonstrate empathy, and create psychological safety can help quiet the amygdala and open space for engagement. 

2. Entorhinal Cortex: The Brain’s GPS

The entorhinal cortex, located near the hippocampus, acts as the brain’s internal GPS. It builds mental maps that help us navigate both physical environments and social spaces. These “maps” tell us where we fit—our place on a team, how to get things done, and who to go to for support. 

When change happens—like a reorganization or new reporting structure—those maps are suddenly outdated. The brain experiences disorientation, like being lost in a new city. Research shows that grid and place cells in the entorhinal cortex help us form and recall spatial and relational maps. More recent studies suggest that these same neural patterns support our navigation of social hierarchies and abstract concepts. 

Change insight: 
When organizations restructure, employees’ mental “maps” of how things work—socially and operationally—are erased. Providing clear new structures, connections, and opportunities to rebuild those maps reduces confusion and accelerates reorientation. 

3. Basal Ganglia: Habits Under Pressure

The basal ganglia are deep brain structures that automate repeated behaviors, allowing us to function efficiently without conscious thought. These habit loops are powerful: they conserve mental energy by turning repeated actions into routines. 

When change demands new behaviors, those ingrained habits are disrupted. The brain must expend additional energy to unlearn the old and practice the new. Studies show that the dorsal striatum (part of the basal ganglia) plays a central role in shifting behavior from goal-directed (conscious) to habitual (automatic) modes. Until that new habit is firmly established, productivity and confidence dip—often mistaken as resistance rather than a normal phase of neurological adaptation. 

Change insight: 
Help people through the habit-formation process by allowing time for practice, repetition, and reinforcement. Small wins, consistent routines, and positive feedback accelerate the brain’s transition to new automatic behaviors. 

4. Habenula: The Fear of Failure

The habenula, a small but powerful structure near the thalamus, plays a critical role in processing failure, disappointment, and punishment. It acts as the brain’s “avoidance” center, signaling when an expected reward doesn’t happen or when something goes wrong. 

The lateral habenula inhibits dopamine release—the brain’s feel-good neurotransmitter—whenever an outcome is worse than expected. This response protects us from repeating mistakes but also dampens motivation to try new things. During organizational change, when people fear looking incompetent or making errors, habenula activity can heighten anxiety and avoidance behavior. 

Change insight: 
Create safe spaces for experimentation and learning. Encourage small, low-risk trials and celebrate effort as well as outcomes. When the habenula’s fear of failure is replaced by the dopamine of progress, motivation returns. 

Bringing It All Together: Leading Change with the Brain in Mind 

Understanding these brain systems helps us see that resistance to change isn’t a character flaw—it’s a neurological reality. 

Brain Region	Core Function	Change Trigger	Resulting Behavior
Amygdala	Detects threat	Uncertainty	Fight, flight, freeze
Entorhinal Cortex	Maps relationships and context	Reorganization	Disorientation
Basal Ganglia	Automates habits	New processes	Reduced productivity
Habenula	Processes failure	Fear of mistakes	Avoidance or disengagement

Effective change leadership means managing not just communication and process, but also neuroscience: helping people feel safe, reorient, practice new habits, and experience early success. 

When we address the brain’s natural resistance patterns, we move from compliance to commitment—and from fear to focus. 

The LaMarsh Global Perspective: Leading Change with the Brain in Mind 

At LaMarsh Global, we’ve always believed that effective change leadership is both an art and a science. The neuroscience behind resistance reinforces what our Managed Change™ methodology has taught for decades: people don’t resist change because they’re difficult—they resist because their brains are working exactly as designed. 

When we recognize these biological realities, we shift from pushing people through change to guiding them through it. That’s why every LaMarsh Global program—from our Managed Change™ Workshop to our Masters of Managed Change certification—helps practitioners apply brain-based insights to real-world challenges. 

Participants learn how to: 

• Recognize neurological triggers of fear and uncertainty. 

• Design communication and reinforcement strategies that calm the threat response. 

• Rebuild organizational “maps” that restore clarity and confidence. 

• Strengthen habits and reinforce success through structured reinforcement. 

When leaders understand how the brain navigates change, they create the conditions for people to move from fear to focus—and from compliance to commitment. 

👉 Join our next Masters of Managed Change™ Program to learn how neuroscience, psychology, and practical tools combine to make change measurable, sustainable, and human-centered. 

Learn more at www.lamarsh.com/learning. 

References 

• Ashby, F. G., Turner, B. O., & Horvitz, J. C. (2010). Cortical and basal ganglia contributions to habit learning and automaticity. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 14(5), 208–215. 

• Baker, P. M., et al. (2016). The lateral habenula circuits underlying the association of negative motivational value with actions. Nature Neuroscience, 19, 1443–1453. 

• Hafting, T., Fyhn, M., Molden, S., Moser, M.-B., & Moser, E. I. (2005). Microstructure of a spatial map in the entorhinal cortex. Nature, 436, 801–806. 

• Matsumoto, M., & Hikosaka, O. (2007). Lateral habenula as a source of negative reward signals in dopamine neurons. Nature, 447(7148), 1111–1115. 

• Park, S. A., Miller, D. S., Nili, H., Ranganath, C., & Boorman, E. D. (2021). Map making: constructing, combining, and navigating abstract cognitive maps. Neuron, 109(10), 1682–1695. 

• Rodrigues, S. M., LeDoux, J. E., & Sapolsky, R. M. (2009). The influence of stress hormones on fear circuitry. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 10(6), 423–433. 

• Schafer, M., & Schiller, D. (2018). Navigating social space. Neuron, 100(2), 476–489. 

• Somerville, L. H., Whalen, P. J., & Kelley, W. M. (2013). Human amygdala responses to facial expressions of emotion in a working memory task. Cognitive, Affective & Behavioral Neuroscience, 13(2), 233–243. 

• Tavares, R. M., et al. (2015). A map for social navigation in the human brain. Neuron, 87(1), 231–243. 

• Yin, H. H., & Knowlton, B. J. (2006). The role of the basal ganglia in habit formation. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 7(6), 464–476.