Determinism of Human Behavior Essay - 1176 Words

Determinism of Human Behavior Have you ever wondered why we do the things we do? Why might we get physical when we are angry? Why might we cry when we’re in pain? Why? What motivates us to behave the way we do in the numerous different situations we get ourselves into? Although there are many different answers that people could give us, there are two theories in particular that are highly debated with each other. One argument is that behaviour is determined through free will, known as libertarianism. Free will, by definition, is the notion that we are free to make our own decisions and are thus in control of our behaviour. By this, however, it is not meant that you can behave in a way†¦show more content†¦Kant argues is that if there is no freewill, there cannot be morality. In other words, you can only be penalized for your actions if you are doing them out of your own free will and thus can be held responsible for them. So if someone kills someone else with a motive, that person is undoubtedly punished because of their having a choice to do otherwise. If someone with a mental illness kills someone else however, they may have not been able to do otherwise and therefore may not be held responsibility for their actions[2]. For Kant, it is moral freewill that is the most applicable in our lives today. On some level, the idea that everything we do is being controlled by forces is quite a depressing picture to accept, which is why the Humanistic approach in psychology has rejected this theory and instead also opts for the concept of libertarianism. Humanists such as Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow believe that choice is implemented in people’s behaviour, and the notion that we have no free will in our behaviour is said to be ‘de-humanizing’. This is because humanists tend to look at it from the perspective of ‘Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs’, which centralizes around ‘self-actualization’. Overall, psychologists believing libertar ianism see behaviour as an act based on our character andShow MoreRelatedFree Will Vs. Determinism879 Words   |  4 PagesFree Will vs. Determinism What determines and influences human behavior? Humans have been looking the answer for this question during several eras, thus they developed various theories attempting to explain human behavior. Determinism is the belief that one event is the consequence of a previous action, similar to a chain. According to some philosophers who support determinism, the will of an agent follows physical laws, and every action is explicable and predictable by physical conditions. By thisRead MoreEnvironmental Determinism and Biological Determinism600 Words   |  3 PagesEnvironmental Determinism and Biological Determinism can set restrictions on a person’s behavior. Environmental Determinism is the view that the environment can have a great impact on a person’s behavior. 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