On Monday afternoon, 14 September 2026, Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa was\nstill seated in his role as Minister of Finance, leading a joint meeting\nwith the DPD RI, Bappenas, and Bank Indonesia at the DPD Building,\nSenayan, to discuss the 2027 State Budget Draft and the Financial Note.\nIn the middle of his presentation, the meeting chair suddenly\ninterrupted: there was a phone call Purbaya needed to check. The meeting\nwas briefly adjourned.<\/p>\n
Purbaya took the call, saying briefly, \u201cYes, get ready. I am still at\nthe DPD, Sir,\u201d then bowed several times before leaving the building. He\nlater confirmed that the caller was State Secretary Minister Prasetyo\nHadi. By that evening, the public learned that the position of Finance\nMinister had changed from Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa to Suahasil Nazara.<\/p>\n
What caused this moment to spread widely was not just who ascended\nand who fell, but the manner in which it happened: a minister being\ninformed of his own dismissal via telephone, in the midst of a state\nmeeting (a point noted by public perception, including harsh comments\nfrom Professor Jimly Asshiddiqie). Some observers highlighted this as a\nportrait of how even major news can sometimes arrive in a very brief and\nimpersonal manner within circles of power.<\/p>\n
Interestingly, during his tenure, Purbable was known for a\ncommunication style far from formal\u2014blunt, often openly commenting on\nother ministries, and even criticised by various parties because his\npattern of speech was seen as creating openings for those who dislike\nthe government. Ironically, in his final moments as minister, he\ndemonstrated a highly controlled reaction: he did not interrupt the\nmeeting dramatically, nor did he throw harsh statements at the waiting\njournalists; he simply bowed politely and left.<\/p>\n
These two phases\u2014a speaking style that has frequently \u201cexploded\u201d\nopenly over the past year, versus a personal crisis handled with\ncomposure\u2014serve as a good illustration for a larger question: where does\na public official\u2019s communication style actually originate? Is it purely\ncharacter, or is there a brain mechanism that determines when someone\nerupts and when they restrain themselves?<\/p>\n
The Prefrontal Cortex: The Hard-Working \u201cBrake\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n The part of the brain most active when an official speaks in public\nis the prefrontal cortex\u2014the area at the front of the brain responsible\nfor executive functions: filtering words, weighing consequences, and\ninhibiting the impulse to respond spontaneously. This is the \u201cbrake\u201d\nthat makes an official pause for a fraction of a second before answering\na sensitive question.<\/p>\n This is not new in neuroscience; the role of the prefrontal cortex in\nemotion regulation and social decision-making is well-established in\nliterature. What is more interesting to discuss is that the capacity of\nthis \u201cbrake\u201d is not constant. It weakens during fatigue, under time\npressure, or when facing questions that attack perceived threats\u2014such as\nreputation, position, or personal security.<\/p>\n The Amygdala and Changing Speech Patterns Under\nPressure<\/strong><\/p>\n This explains why officials who appear calm on a daily basis can\nsuddenly sound defensive or even counter-attack when cornered. The\namygdala\u2014the brain\u2019s threat detection centre\u2014can \u201chijack\u201d some control\nwhen an individual feels cornered, making responses faster but less\nfiltered by the prefrontal cortex. The popular term for this is\n\u201camygdala hijack,\u201d a concept long circulating in popular psychology,\nthough the exact neurobiological mechanisms are still being researched\nand should not be understood as a single, definitive explanation for\nevery public emotional outburst.<\/p>\n Press conferences that corner an official, intense media scrutiny, or\na barrage of accusatory questions\u2014all of these are conditions that\ntheoretically increase the load on this threat detection system. The\nresult, as we see, is a \u201ccommunication blunder\u201d: uncontrolled sentences,\na rising tone, or an awkward silence.<\/p>\n Reading the Room, Not Just Speaking<\/strong><\/p>\n There is also another dimension: the ability to read social\nsituations and adjust one\u2019s speaking style to the audience. Some\nofficials are able to speak differently in front of factory workers\ncompared to an international forum, without losing the authenticity of\ntheir message. This capacity involves brain networks that support social\ncognition\u2014the ability to understand the perspectives and emotional\nstates of others.<\/p>\n It must be emphasised here: the popular claim that such empathetic\nability is \u201ccontrolled by mirror neurons\u201d is often exaggerated in\npopular media. Mirror neuron systems do exist and are studied in the\ncontext of imitating movements and understanding the actions of others,\nbut linking them directly to a \u201cleader\u2019s ability to empathise\u201d is a\nsimplification not fully supported by strong scientific evidence. It is\nsafer to say that the ability to read a social space involves complex\nbrain networks, and the variation between individuals is indeed real,\nregardless of the underlying molecular mechanisms.<\/p>\n Not Fate, But a Trainable Habit<\/strong><\/p>\n The most important point to convey to the public, and to officials\nthemselves, is that these brain response patterns are not something\nfixed and unchangeable. The human brain possesses neuroplasticity\u2014the\nability to form new patterns through repetition and conscious practice.\nAn official who consistently practices pausing before answering,\npractices self-calming techniques before appearing in public, or is\nguided by a good communications coach, is essentially training the\n\u201cmuscle\u201d of self-control in their prefrontal cortex.<\/p>\n This also means: a poor communication style in an official is not an\nexcuse to be simply forgiven as \u201cjust their character,\u201d but it is also\nnot a permanent label that cannot change. There is room for\nimprovement\u2014as long as there is will and consistent practice, rather\nthan mere instructions from a PR team to \u201cbe more careful with\nwords.\u201d<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/how-the-brain-regulates-a-public-officials-communication-style-1789869196",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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