Understanding Human Behavior: Psychology, Biology, Philosophy
Psychology: Exploring the Mind
1. The Psychic Life
Psychology studies individual behavior and responses to reality. Human behavior has both an internal, unobservable dimension (mental life) and an external, observable one (behavioral).
1.1 Nature of the Mind
The term “mind” refers to mental processes and states. The mind provides continuity and identity. Key properties of mental phenomena include:
- Intentionality: Our beliefs, memories, and desires always refer to something; they have content.
- Intimacy: Mental phenomena are directly accessible only to the subject experiencing them, not to others.
1.2 Conscious and Unconscious
Consciousness is the awareness of what happens, including self-awareness. However, some mental phenomena remain hidden, even from ourselves. Psychoanalysis, developed by Freud, is both a therapy and a theory of the human mind. It emphasizes the unconscious mind and defense mechanisms like:
- Repression: Keeping dangerous mental contents hidden.
- Sublimation: Channeling unacceptable desires into socially accepted behaviors.
1.3 Mental States and Processes
Affective states involve emotions and feelings:
- Feelings: Stable, subjective states like love, friendship, or hate.
- Emotions: Intense feelings with physiological reactions.
- Passions: Overly intense, uncontrolled emotions.
2. Biological Bases of the Human Psyche
The mind is linked to nerve connections between neurons. Some reject equating mind and brain.
2.1 The Nervous System
The nervous system is a complex biological mechanism that allows us to interact with our environment. It processes stimuli and produces responses.
- Axon: Transmits impulses to other neurons.
- Dendrites: Receive impulses from other neurons.
- Neuronal Center: Site of metabolic reactions.
The Central Nervous System
- Brain: The main organ, responsible for language, thinking, balance (cerebellum), and physiological functions (brain stem).
- Spinal Cord: Controls reflexes.
2.2 The Brain
Weighs approximately 1200g and has two hemispheres.
- Neocortex (cerebral cortex): Processes information, reasoning; divided into four lobes (frontal, temporal, parietal, occipital).
- Mesocortex (limbic system): Affective functions.
- Paleocortex: Basic functions like sleep and appetite.
Endocrine System
Glands and tissues secrete hormones, controlled by the nervous system, maintaining chemical balance.
3. Philosophical Conceptions of the Human Being
3.1 Dualism
Postulates two distinct realities: body and mind.
- Platonic Dualism: Body (mortal prison) and soul (immortal).
- Cartesian Dualism: Body (extended substance) and soul (thinking substance).
Dualism emphasizes the mind and brain as separate entities.
3.2 Monism
The human being is a unitary entity. There is no separate mind.
- Spiritualistic Monism: The body (brain) is not independent of the spirit (mind).
- Materialistic Monism: The human being is purely physical; the mind is a physical phenomenon.
- Behaviorism: Responses to environmental stimuli.
- Physicalist Reductionism: Mental states are neurophysiological brain states.
Monism struggles to explain thought from purely physical processes.
3.3 Beyond Dualism and Monism
- Functionalism: Mental phenomena are defined by their role, not their substance.
- Emergentism: Combines aspects of monism and dualism.
- Personalism: The human being is both spiritual and corporeal.
4. Human Behavior
Behavior is how we react to internal and external stimuli.
4.1 Inherited vs. Learned Behavior
Behavior can be observed and analyzed. It can be instinctive (genetically determined) or learned (influenced by cultural and social factors).
4.2 Motivation
Motives give meaning to behavior and drive actions. They are often unobservable.
- Primary Motives: Biological, innate, physiological needs (shared with animals).
- Secondary Motives: Social and cultural, learned through education (specific to humans).
Demotivation leads to unwillingness or inaction.
4.3 Essential Traits of Human Behavior
- Maladjustment: Humans lack natural weapons compared to other species and have a strong link to the environment.
- Plasticity: Humans are highly adaptable and malleable throughout their lives (capacity for learning).
- Insatisfaction: Humans constantly seek new challenges even after achieving goals.