Gantt and Slife (2015) asked whether or not evolution provides a good explanation for psychological concepts; and the answer is “no”. Greek philosophers first introduced the question as to why organisms adapt to environments during the 7th Century BC (Shtulman, 2006). However, it was Darwin, who formulated the very first theory of evolution (via natural selection) in 1859, leading to confoundment and controversy through present day. Michael Ghiselin inaugurated the term evolutionary psychology in 1973; and Barkow, Cosmides and Tooby universalized starting in 1992. Evolutionary psychology maintains that the mind (and traits) have been determined by evolutionary forces in order to facilitate survival and “copying” (reproduction). Supporters of evolutionary psychology continue to weigh in, asserting that traits are best answered by the theory of natural selection. In opposition, …show more content…
The term nihilism refers to an abject dismissal of any and all religious and moral ideals. Nihilists accept that life is mostly meaningless and without purpose. Philosophers have long been fascinated with morality and its moral judgment underpinnings (Krellenstein, 2017). It has not been this way, however, with the evolutionary psychologists. Evolutionary psychology, instead, expressly sees nobility and morality as evolutionary-rooted “game advantages” for people, who are simply trying to survive. Nevertheless, evolutionary psychologists have not, so far, been able to effectively explain morality’s mechanisms (and origins) (Krellenstein, 2017). Thus, if one accepts evolution as a sufficient explanation for psychological concepts, one must also accept that morality is not inherent and merely an adopted collective survival skill. It seems equally obvious that evolutionary psychology should be compelled to divorce itself from religion and spirituality
Although unusual for his time, Darwin’s idea that nature obeys no moral laws gradually grew more and more prominent as further discoveries were made supporting an evolutionary history of the earth. This objective view of nature, Gould notes, resolves any cognitive dissonance created by a religious perspective— if nature is not constrained by human or even divine morals, it is unsurprising that humans are able to find evil in its ways. No longer blinded by faith that everything in nature exists for a godly purpose, Gould claims that an individual who looks at nature objectively can learn from its successes and
Ara Norenzayan asserts that religion is not necessarily a basis for morality. Norenzayan is a psychology professor at the University of British Columbia, giving him the credentials to discuss humans’ moral compass and its origins. However, his judgements on religion are not completely justified as he is not a religion expert. This said, Norenzayan argues that “foraging societies that give… clues… of ancestral human conditions” show they do not have religions with a basis in morality. He also gives an account of a psychological study by Henrich that uses 15 pastoral and horticultural societies that showed “greater prosocial behavior” most prominently when experiencing “economic exchange with strangers” and not just a religion.
` Evolution of hope ome say humans are impeccable. But they are obviously oblivious to the eternal extent of evil. Some rely on the magnanimity of the mortal. But they remain impervious to the ruthlessness of the individual. Some humans will not stop to think about the injustice of exploiting the weaknesses of the innocent.
My thoughts on Moral Tribes Rupam Mahmood Moral Tribes is a great book to understand our moral landscape and calamities. The facts given here regarding the evolutionary biology of morality are quite inspiring and illuminating. However, it would take a leap of faith to arrive at the same conclusions regarding our moral solution as the author did. Let me first briefly mention some of the key messages of this book.
The value of values becomes their emptiness. Where rationality and reason have clearly failed, the nihilist embraces irrationality and freedom from logic. The will now has an opportunity to assert its strength and power to deny all authority and deny goals and faith– to deny the constraints of existence. Nietzsche describes this state as both destructive and
For example, if someone came up to me in a dark parking garage, I would begin to walk faster, away from the stranger, instead of preparing to fight. Although, even when we aren’t preparing ourselves mentally to fight, our bodies (specifically our sympathetic nervous symptoms) are preparing our bodies to deal with threats. On the other hand, some people may think of natural selection in assault situations. The assailant may be seen as a stronger being, while the victim is seen as weaker and less fit for the environment. No matter how one may look at the situation, Darwin’s theories will always be
Evolution is understood to have played a huge role in our physical and social behaviour, so it would seem logical that similar evolutionary forces influenced our evaluative
This article proves that morality and religion may have some influence over each other however I don’t think morality is solely dependent on religion. It also proves that from a psychological perspective, the relationship between religion and morality is very limited and varied into today’s society. Psychological models of morality
Introduction Nihilism means nothing which is derived from the Latin word ‘nihil’ which means everything are useless and waste, there is no point of existence, all values are baseless. The meaning of nihilism first posed by Friedrich Nietzsche in his The Will to Power, according to him it means that “the highest values devaluate themselves”. This term is more linked with postmodern age where there is no use of moral, disbelief take the space of faith and it also presumed that God is dead. However the philosophy on nihilism is evident from classical Greece to Enlightenment Europe. Nihilism is presented into various forms like existential nihilism which means there is no meaning, objective and purpose of life.
Throughout the reading in our textbook and other sources, there is much evidence that supports and refutes the newest major theory, Evolutionary Psychology. Two main pieces of supporting evidence would be natural selection and sexual selection. Alongside those, there is also evidence that negates this theory: no universal human behavior and the modern environment may alter our biology. To begin, Charles Darwin (1809-1882) first showed that all current species evolved from other life-forms through “survival of the fittest”, or natural selection (Rathus). Individuals with certain mental or physical characteristics that enable them to survive and reproduce are more likely to pass these certain characteristics on to the next generation (Himmelheber).
Questions of morality are abstract and extremely touchy. They are subject to enduring debates regarding its origins, nature, and limits, with no possibility of a consensus. Although the theories on morality often pursue diverse angles, among the most interesting ones that have come up in recent times revolve around the question whether human beings are born with an innate moral sense. Some scholars hold the view that humans are born with an inherent sense of morality while others believe the opposite that humans are not born with an innate moral sense holds true. By using Steven Pinker’s
Jazmine, Great forum post this week on your assigned yes perspective in regards to evolutionary psychology (EP). Although, I personally don’t rely on just one theory, after reading your post I gained a better understanding of EP, and was intrigued to conduct more research. It has been argued that evolutionary psychology may provide a metatheory for psychology and the other social sciences, however, evolutionary psychology is considered to be an overarching theory whose principles can be applied to all fields in the social sciences (Ploeger, 2010). Our assigned text has even stated as you mentioned that “Evolution is a good explanation for psychological concepts for the simple fact that it “provides the best meta-theory for explaining and understanding human psychology” (Gantt &
Both self-preservation, and species perpetuation having a connection to the biological responses within all humans appears to validate that biology not only plays a bigger role that expected within this flawed study, but also play a bigger role in society than we tend to
Thesis Statement: Origin of Morality Outline A.Universal Ethics 1.Karl Barth, The Command of God 2.Thomas Aquinas, The Natural Law 3.Thomas Hobbes, Natural Law and Natural Right 4.Immanuel Kant, The Categorical Imperative B.Morality and Practical Reason 1.Practical Reason a.Practical Reason and Practical Reasons C.Evolution of Morality 1.What makes Moral Creatures Moral 2.Explaining the Nature of Moral Judgments F. Answering Questions 1. What is the origin of Morality: Religion or Philosophy? 2. What does religion say about morality?
In today’s world we examine the importance but also overlook the emotional dimension of nihilism and introduce how individuals utilize means to avert nihilism. Nihilism has beliefs that life is meaningless and has no intrinsic meaning or values. However, to find one’s real motive of life are increasing among individuals in today’s world as they find ways of averting nihilism which doesn’t involve believing in the supernatural. There are two different forms of nihilism and they are passive and active. The passive nihilist is the individual whom when confronted with nihilism sees it as a sign to stop the search for the meaning.