Determinants are factors that determine behavior

Human behavior remains a mystery even for the most experienced psychologists. None of them can predict it accurately enough: a reaction in this or that situation will be determined by many factors. We can be sure of only one thing: human behavior is very complex, that is, structurally complex, and it is explained by a multitude of factors. To understand it even after what has already happened, psychologists use the term "determinants". This means - determining factors.

Fathers and Sons

The most fierce Western discussion about human behavior is briefly called "nature or upbringing." Supporters of the natural theory believe that all the problematic aspects or achievements are recorded in DNA.

Supporters of the educational approach, however, see the repeatability of the environment from generation to generation - and thus the repeatability of behavior among relatives. None of these approaches can be considered completely correct or wrong.

Chemistry of the brain

In modern psychology, there are three types of factors: hereditary, cultural and social. Hereditary factors associated with the peculiarities of the work of the brain are still called "physiological determinants". These are unique features for each individual person, which determine how big the threshold of anxiety is, how much the person is concentrated and conservative or, on the contrary, is distracted and impulsive.

With whom you are led ....

Cultural determinants of behavior are factors such as rituals, traditions and norms. The French feminist and woman, brought up according to the canons of Muslim morality, will behave differently in the same situation (example - adultery of a husband).

Determinants psychological, belonging to the category of cultural, can change under the influence of a changed situation, for example, when a place of residence is changed, traditional peoples begin to imitate the Western way of life.

Soft influences

Social determinants are the impact of a microenvironment on a person. Their difference from cultural - in the greater momentary and daily impact. Academician Pavlov called the result of such influences conditioned reflexes. It is these determinants of behavior that are most easily changed. However, even social adaptations are sometimes given not easily. The more complex the psyche of one or another person, the more difficult it is to change his or her determinants. This is an axiom from the theory of systems.

So what is more important - nature or environment? Even using the method of examining separated twins does not always make it possible to shed light on this problem, since there are few examples of such families, fortunately. It must be remembered that human behavior can not be completely reduced to three types of determinants.

It is much more complicated due to the fact that it is flexible and changeable. It can not be predicted by the "given" model - the "result", at least - complex forms, such as teaching, love, religious practices. "Given" is constantly changing: a person receives new information or from his memory "pops up" previously forgotten information. But what exactly will come to mind to this or that person - it is impossible to predict. Therefore, it is so difficult to deal with forecasts in behaviourism.