Learned behaviour, instinct and ... ?

[Cleany]

ok ...

someone effectively said that people were a mixture of learned behaviour and instinct. i disagree, surely there must be a 3rd person, or part of the person, that chooses between learned behaviour and instinct.

but im not really sure what i am talking about ..

help anyone?

 

[""]

Perhaps you are thinking of the id, ego, and superego? The superego, would be the part of us that relates to the moral and ethical side of life. That is what Freud called it. Christians believe that there is more than behavior and instinct, but also the spirit lead conscious which is the crux of our decision making. We decipher the right from the wrong there, and we gain instruction from the Heavenly Father, when we know how to listen to that inner core of our being. Non-believers who follow Freudian theories may suggest that these things are learned as well, but Christians and others who believe in God, will often attribute this side of ourselves to Heavenly intervention. We do, of course, have a will, which allows us to decide whether or not to adhere to those things which we know to be true and good, or to go in the other direction.

 

[The-Doctor]

Here's a thought. A group of chimps is placed in a cage with a ladder leading to a bunch of bananas. However when they climb the the ladder they get blasted by a water hose. They eventually learn not to climb the ladder and ignore the bananas. A new chimp without this knowledge is introduced into the group and when they go to climb the ladder they are physically stopped from doing so by the others. New chimps are introduced and the old ones are taken out of the cage. Eventually all the old chimps are gone however none of the new ones will climb the ladder despite having never discovered what happens when they do. They just seem to know that no one climbs the ladder. Another question how do birds know to keep silent when it gets dark to avoid predators...no one taught them they just know.

 

[Nymphalidae]

ok ...

someone effectively said that people were a mixture of learned behaviour and instinct. i disagree, surely there must be a 3rd person, or part of the person, that chooses between learned behaviour and instinct.

but im not really sure what i am talking about ..

help anyone?

And nothing. We learn how to behave in society. It is the nurture that lets us suppress the nature.

 

[Arnold_Philips]

I would't say that it's choosing between the two, but having to balance them.