[dietPill]

Do you think a person's behaviour is basically the answer to a long and complex math formula? Where your whole life is being reflected in every single action you make?

And if you do, do you believe that if you knew this formula, you could accurately predict a person's actions in any given situation?


Share your thoughts, I'm interested... and bored... I'm skipping class, ATM

edit// I asked my initial questions based on the assumption that you knew a person's life story from start to finish, and understood their genetic make up. For example, a boy named Ear has a good upbringing and a positive outlook on life. He's more likely to take stress in a healthier manner versus the boy who has been abused his whole life.
Another example, I'm a master procrastinator and am pro at being super lazy. They should name a disease after me (and call it ireneberculous,) just because no one does it like me. I've only taken HS psychology and then see all these techical terms in response to my questions. It's extremely probable that I will choose not sit on my butt all day, googling them up.

lol jk. But we're on Soompi, so please make this as user-friendly as possible. I really appreciate the replies so far and would love to see more.

[rachilde]

No, I think that type of thinking is faulty and the production of Hegelian thought as well as the widespread myth of the fiduciary self. That was pretty much shattered by Lacan's work on the mirror stage. The idea that people have unified selves is not really applicable to anyone. The idea of the unified self--the idea that one body operates as one subject--is an inaccurate and distorted projection of the human mind. We are not unified persons. We do things that appear to have no relation to our 'core personalities:' we are multi-faceted and just because we act crazy ten minutes ago doesn't mean we're actually crazy; just because we act proper and prim one moment doesn't mean that we will for the next; etc. The idea is that many aspects of our personality and behavior are disconnected from each other and there is no unified core to reach back to. As current theories stand, we have no unified self operating behind our bodies. It is only modern society's emphasis on the body that we like to believe we have a unified self to go with a solid body.

The idea of being able to predict human behavior scientifically is also the root of eugenics, which was the predecessor of the Nazi extermination movement. For eugenics, if you were to do something 'socially unacceptable' (have premarital sex, steal, refuse to follow directions, etc.) then you were liable to always be 'socially unacceptable.' As a result, thousands of people were sterilized in the United States against their wishes because they were deemed social undesirables.

[dietPill]

That's very interesting. I appreciate the reply. =D

[한스 ㅋㅋ]

yes it's called Psychology.
but you can't predict every single thing.

[heyitzthatfc]

That's very interesting. I appreciate the reply. =D

The formula would be inaccurate, or incredibly more complex if you count people with mood swings.

[dietPill]

Psychology is the science of mental processes and science is basically anything that can be measured. My questions would be something that is covered in psychology, and yes, precise prediction of any action would be humanly impossible simply because we can never completely fathom what another sees or feels. Miscommunication is inevitable -- only 40 to 60% is usually interpreted correctly from one person to another.

I understand that belief in this statistical concept can lead to bad things (like the Nazi movement that was previously stated,) but IMO, that is only when humans feel adept enough to judge a person's response.

I asked my initial questions based on the assumption that you knew a person's life story from start to finish, and understood their genetic make up. For example, a boy named Ear has a good upbringing and a positive outlook on life. He's more likely to take stress in a healthier manner versus the boy who has been abused his whole life.
Another example, I'm a master procrastinator and am pro at being super lazy. They should name a disease after me (and call it ireneberculous,) just because no one does it like me. I've only taken HS psychology and then see all these techical terms in response to my questions. It's extremely probable that I will choose not sit on my butt all day, googling them up.

lol jk. But we're on Soompi, so please make this as user-friendly as possible. I really appreciate the replies so far and would love to see more.

[Xiphias]

2 words

Social Construction ->explains pretty much every decision we make in each of our own perspectives.

[rachilde]

I asked my initial questions based on the assumption that you knew a person's life story from start to finish, and understood their genetic make up.

But if you knew someone's story from start to finish, how could you possibly know which part of your analysis was the effect of retrograde deductions (like Freud, where you tell him everything about your life and then he comes up with unprovable interpretations after you tell him everything about your life)? Freud is not like physics because in physics, you predict what happens before it happens; where as Freud knows what happens in your past and what is happening in your present and he simply fills in what's going on in between. You can easily attribute any number of behaviors to something in the person's past or genetic makeup; it's all a matter of fibbing really. It might even sound plausible. However, the question is really: just because it sounds plausible, does that mean it's actually true?

And, of course, psychology is all about statistics so there's no real way to prove this or that. But we all know that the easiest way to lie to a large number of people these days is through a statistic that is skewed or misinterpreted in a convincing way.

[dietPill]

^I THINK I know what you're getting at.

I'm not sure if I'm comprehending what you've said, but I can see how the future is very open ended. Like if a person does something, it'll have this much impact on him and will have this much of a chance on influencing his next action, blah blah. So the number of ways we can respond to one thing is practically infinite, but it's a matter of how likely we are to do one thing versus another. I'm so tired, mayn.

I hate Freud. He can go screw his mama.

edit//btw i really enjoy reading your posts =)

[ShadowMax76]

o-0' if you consider the infinite variables.. it's kinda hard to put into a formula...
if you knew all those variables.. it'd be down to chance. because humans aren't computers. and are prone to make the 2nd best choice sometimes.. due to emotions, which can't be measured.

@_@ it kinda sucks to say that.. when i used to think that humans were just complex robots..

still. i think it's possible to predict the general path a person's going.. because of stereotypes/stories.
the human mind is powerful.. as they say.

btw. interesting post + replies .

. continuing with the mathematical approach.. if you map out the options a person has. and their proneness to pick which option... it might help. just add external factors.. which are practically environmental[infinite..right?] x time~prone to error .. -brain dead from trying to act smart-
..sighs..

[NYCgurl]

humans are always changing and so is life.
because of this, the future would inevitably change as well, which wouldn't create a very stable prediction. :/
&yes, humans are complex beings.

[dietPill]

This has been very enlightening. =)

A more spiritual approach: I use Tarot cards from time to time and an apprehension that is often stressed is that the future is not set in stone. Your thinking affects everything you do, and the thing about humans is that our thoughts are not consistent... I wonder if there is such thing as spontaneous thoughts... or our thoughts may just seem random when it's really masked by all these layers of time and did actually originate from an outside stimulus. W/E not the point.
But yeah, it is when thoughts turn into patterns that it affects your actions. In Tarot readings, you can find out the likely outcome of a situation but it changes depending on factors that affect your thoughts, like your mood.