The article is interesting, informative and relevant. As the author writes in the introduction:
The term "instinct", like many other scientific terms - for example, "stress" or "ecology" - has long been in wide use, but its original meaning has undergone significant changes. Moreover, in everyday life they are so different from those accepted in the scientific community that sometimes scientists are recommended to introduce new terms to denote this or that concept. Such proposals are argued, for example, by the fact that the distorted meaning of the term “ecology” has taken root in the mass consciousness, and it is easier to propose a new term than to change the existing state of affairs. However, it should be noted that scientific terms and definitions have been honed over years and even centuries, and their correct understanding, coupled with appropriate use, is the key to the formation of an adequate picture of the world and way of thinking in people.
One cannot but agree that it is important to think about, understand and be aware of what familiar terms mean. However, it seems to me that the conclusion turned out to be too categorical.
So, based on the definition and structure of instinct, which we have just examined, we can now assume that humans, a creature whose development is much higher than cats, have no instincts in the classical sense.
[Although, to tell the truth, a person still has one single instinct, which was discovered by Irenius Eibl-Eibesfeldt, a student of K. Lorenz. When we meet a person we like, we not only smile and part our lips, but our eyebrows also involuntarily raise. This movement, which lasts 1/6 of a second, was recorded by Eibl-Eibesfeldt on film in people of different races. He conducted most of his research in the wild corners of the planet, among tribes that do not know not only television, but also radio, and have rare and superficial contacts with their neighbors. Thus, eyebrow raising could not have been shaped by imitation learning. The main argument was the behavior of children blind from birth. The voice of a person they like also raises their eyebrows, and for the same 150 milliseconds.]
If expressions like “instinct of self-preservation” are incorrect, what then is the “automatic” withdrawal of a hand from a hot stove or fire? A person has an innate need for self-preservation, but not an instinct, since there is no corresponding FKD - an innate program of motor activity that would satisfy this need. Having been pricked or burned, we withdraw our hand - but this is not an instinct, but just a reflex (unconditioned) to painful stimulation. In general, we have a lot of protective unconditioned reflexes, for example, the blink reflex, coughing, sneezing, vomiting. But these are the simplest standard reflexes. All other threats to the integrity of the body cause only those reactions that we acquire during the learning process.
“Maternal instinct”, “sexual instinct” and other similar expressions - they are all incorrect when applied to a person. And not only in relation to humans, but also to all highly organized animals. We have corresponding needs (Ptrb), but there is neither an innate program for their satisfaction, nor a key incentive (KS), nor a fixed set of actions (FCD).
Have you forgotten the Instinct formula yet, dear reader?
I = Ptrb + KS + FKD.
Thus, humans do not have instincts in the strict sense, and this is what makes our behavior plastic. However, the absence of rigid innate programs does not negate the fact that we are biosocial beings; and there are purely biological factors that determine many aspects of our behavior.
The fact is that the question of the presence of instincts in higher animals is a question of terminology, agreement. From the same series are questions about at what level of development a creature can be considered alive, whether viruses can be considered alive, at what level of development animals have consciousness, etc. In all these matters the differences are not qualitative, but quantitative.
The article says that a person does not have instincts because there is no innate and fixed set of actions.
What does fixed mean? Even the most primitive set of actions has some flexibility, convention, and variability. For example, the so-called appendage stage can be very diverse and include other instinctive subprograms. The chick can overcome obstacles in different ways when moving towards its mother. If the chick, say, is turned sideways or upside down and fixed, it adapts to feeding in this position. If during feeding there is a threat of attack, feeding will be temporarily interrupted, but why continue, etc.
In most cases, this refers to the motor component of the instinctive act itself, when a newborn baby performs its first consummatory acts very unstably and unclearly. Apparently, this is due to the incomplete process of formation of neural ensembles of the brain, which are normally responsible for this innate act. Therefore, the very first movements of an animal when carrying out an instinctive act are “immature”, “uncertain”, and only after several trials and errors do they acquire all their purely species-typical features.
Of course, in different animals the ratio of innate and acquired is different, but both components are always present.
So the difference is only in the complexity of behavioral programs, so a clear boundary cannot be drawn. And if you look at intelligence from the point of view of cybernetics as a tool for achieving goals, then the boundary becomes completely blurred.
Human life and activity are subject to certain instincts. For its existence, nature forces us to be in constant search of food, clothing and other material goods. In society, people try to assert themselves and gain recognition from other people. To continue one's family line, a person needs to establish relationships with members of the opposite sex, get married and have children. There are many factors on which our whole life directly depends. They can be described as three basic instincts.
What has nature given you?
It is instincts that provide a person with the main advantage in life, playing the role of a powerful impulse to achieve their goals. With their help, you can motivate yourself to succeed in any activity. When a person does not control himself, he is driven by instincts. This process is quite simple and often very effective. The fact is that when actions and desires are conscious, you can resist manipulation, resort to similar techniques yourself, and achieve results with great success. There are three main (basic) instincts:
- The desire for self-preservation and survival.
- Sexual instinct (procreation).
- Leadership instinct.
Human instincts give rise to needs:
- material well-being; need for security;
- searching for a sexual partner;
- child care;
- the need to influence others.
Humans also have other natural instincts: maternal, the instinct of defending one’s territory, the instinct of following, when we unwittingly repeat what others are doing. Unlike animals, we can control our instincts with our mind and spirit. It is also worth noting that animals survive only due to instincts, while humans are obliged to their knowledge.
In detailsThe instinct of self-preservation in humans is based on fears for our health and well-being, forcing us to be careful and show responsibility. He can be considered superior to the rest.
The desire to continue one's family and the desire for power are based on the survival instinct.
Sexual instinct is nothing more than the need to leave behind offspring, which also indicates a desire for self-preservation.
In the matter of power, it can be noted that a person needs it for greater security. If a person thinks intelligently and acts consciously, then any of his phobias loses power. Anyone who understands the causes of fears can easily eliminate them. Those who are afraid of this die the fastest, because they are driven by an inferior instinct of self-preservation. Blinded by the desire to rule, people often “lose their minds,” which also leads to unpleasant consequences. It should also be noted how many stupid things are committed because of problems with the opposite sex. All these worries and fears 
unconscious and need to be gotten rid of.
The herd instinct in people is due to psychological necessity. Many people associate a crowd with power. Strength means protection. And again, it turns out that the basis of this instinct is fear for one’s life and the desire for self-preservation. Weak-willed people who do not want to take responsibility and who are unable to overcome their fears follow the crowd where there is a “leader”. The latter, in turn, hones the skill of manipulation.
Don't let your fears control you. Control your instincts and take control of your life.
Instincts are confused with reflexes (conditioned and unconditioned) and innate needs. The last two concepts are applicable to humans, but instincts are not:
Here's a recent question about animals:
Or, for example, a review article:
I will quote about the most popular one, about the instinct of self-preservation:
So what happens? Are expressions like “instinct of self-preservation” incorrect? What then can we call the “automatic” withdrawal of a hand from a hot stove or fire?! Yes, absolutely right, a person has an innate NEED for self-preservation. But we cannot call this an instinct, since we do not have the corresponding FKD, that is, an innate program of motor activity that would satisfy this need. Having been pricked or burned, we withdraw our hand - but this is NOT an INSTINCT, but just a REFLEX (unconditioned) TO PAINFUL IRRITATION. In general, we have a lot of protective unconditioned reflexes, for example, the blink reflex, coughing, sneezing, vomiting. But these are the simplest standard reflexes. All other threats to the integrity of the body cause only such reactions that we acquire during the learning process.
Here's a good example. Reproduction is a stronger theme than avoiding death. If you have multiplied, then your life is no longer important, selection pressure is weaker here.
Doubts arise simply by remembering all sorts of childfree people and simply the many people who are unable to find a partner. Is this instinct in humans? Or is it just an innate need without a fixed set of actions that ensures success for any male guppy fish*?
*Danced, shook his fins in a special way, welcome to mate if the other did not drive him away. But the other one will definitely dance too, without dance there is no love. The female simply will not “read” him as a male.
And what we see in the great apes:
The Harlows raised 55 monkeys without their mothers. When they became sexually mature, only one monkey showed interest in a sexual partner. Among 90 other monkeys raised with the help of a dummy, only 4 became parents, but they also treated their babies very poorly. Some of them spent all their time sitting in one place, in complete indifference to others. Others took strange positions or wriggled unnaturally. The lack of maternal care left an imprint on them for life.
The evolution of instincts among vertebrates is a gradual weakening of their formative influence and replacement by elements of experience. With the progressive development of an animal's individuality, instinct is replaced by stereotypes where the reaction should be rigid and tough, by learning and intelligence where and when a flexible response to the situation is necessary. Stereotypical and ritual forms of behavior are conservative and rigid, “intellectual” forms are flexible and easy to improve, but both are developed by the social environment - the first within the framework of ratiomorphic processes, the second through the creation of situation concepts.
This is called culture.
Also see comments to Lisa Nesser's answer.
[Although, to tell the truth, a person still has one single instinct, which was discovered by Irenius Eibl-Eibesfeldt, a student of K. Lorenz. When we meet a person we like, we not only smile and part our lips, but our eyebrows also involuntarily raise. This movement, which lasts 1/6 of a second, was recorded by Eibl-Eibesfeldt on film in people of different races. He conducted most of his research in the wild corners of the planet, among tribes that do not know not only television, but also radio, and have rare and superficial contacts with their neighbors. Thus, eyebrow raising could not have been shaped by imitation learning. The main argument was the behavior of children blind from birth. The voice of a person they like also raises their eyebrows, and for the same 150 milliseconds.]
INSTINCT
INSTINCT
Lit.: Darwin Ch., Instinct, 2nd edition. ed., St. Petersburg, 1896; Morgan L., Habits and Instinct, trans. from English, St. Petersburg, 1899; Ziegler G. E., Instinct. The concept of instinct before and now, trans. from German, P., 1914; Wagner V. [A.], Biological foundations of comparative psychology, vol. 1–2, St. Petersburg–M., 1910–13; him, What is instinct, St. Petersburg–M., [b. G.]; Borovsky V.M., Mental activity of animals, M.–L., 1936; Vasiliev G. A., Physiological analysis of some forms of nestling behavior, in: Abstracts of works on the establishment of the Department of Biological Sciences of the USSR Academy of Sciences for 1941–43, M.–L., 1945; Gubin A.F., Honey bees and pollination of red clover, M., 1947; Promptov A.N., On conditioned reflex components in the instinctive activity of birds, "Physiological Journal of the USSR", 1946, v. 32, No. 1; by him, Essays on the problem of biological adaptation of the behavior of passerine birds, M.–L., 1956; Quiet N. A., Ontogenesis of monkey behavior. Formation of clinging and grasping reflexes in monkeys, in: Tr. Sukhumi Biological. station Acad. Medical Sciences of the USSR, vol. 1, M., 1949; Mashkovtsev A. A., The significance for biology of I. P. Pavlov’s teaching on higher nervous activity, “Usp. Modern Biology”, 1949, v. 28, no. 4; Pavlov I.P., Twenty years of experience in the objective study of higher nervous activity (behavior) of animals, Complete. collection op., 2nd ed., vol. 3, book. 1–2, M.–L., 1951; Frolov Yu. P., From instinct to reason, M., 1952; Slonim A.D., Ecological in physiology and the study of instinctive activity of animals, in: Proceedings of the meeting on psychology (July 1–6, 1955), M., 1957; Ladygina-Kots N. N., Development of the psyche in the process of evolution of organisms, M., 1958; Malyshev S.I., Hymenoptera, their origin and, M., 1959; Krushinsky L., Instinct, BME, 2nd ed., vol. 11.
N. Ladygina-Kots. Moscow.
Philosophical Encyclopedia. In 5 volumes - M.: Soviet Encyclopedia. Edited by F. V. Konstantinov. 1960-1970 .
INSTINCT
INSTINCT (lat. instinctus - urge) - adaptive behavior to the environment, which is based on innate reflexes. Each species of living beings has its own instincts, which are determined by the complexity of its anatomical and morphological structures and, first of all, the nervous system. Instinct reflects the useful experience of previous generations, implemented in the form of behavioral reactions. The ability to improve instinctive actions is inherited. Instinctive behavior does not arise on its own - first of all, a corresponding biological attraction or (motivation) must arise, as a result of which the activity of the endocrine glands increases, the composition of the blood changes, the temperature rises or falls, etc. After this, a search phase begins, which can continue for quite a long time - until a trigger stimulus is found in the form of an external signal (the appearance of an individual of the opposite sex, smell, color, etc.). Only in this case an instinctive motor reaction is triggered.
Instinctive behavior is characterized by stereotyping, expediency and automatism, but makes sense only if external conditions remain unchanged. It is here that the main difference between instinctive activity and conscious activity lies: since in the first case there is no co
conscious anticipation of the results of activity, insofar as it becomes meaningless when external conditions change. However, this lack of instinctive activity is somewhat mitigated by its plasticity. In the course of life, instincts can be weakened or strengthened, which makes it possible to rebuild instinctive behavior by developing conditioned reflexes or changing environmental conditions.
The main types of instincts include the instincts of nutrition, self-preservation, reproduction, orientation and communication with their own kind. Certain instincts can also be observed when one of them is sacrificed to another. For example, the instinct of self-preservation may be suppressed by stronger parental or sexual instincts.
For the first time, “instinct” in the sense of desire or motivation was used by the Stoic Chrysippus (3rd century BC) to characterize the behavior of birds and other animals. But the real study of instinct began only in the 18th century. thanks to the works of French materialists and natural scientists. Some of them considered instinct to be a reduction (degeneration) of the mind; others, on the contrary, are its embryo (Le Roy). La Mettrie argued that all living organisms have a “purely mechanical property” to “act in the best way for self-preservation.” Lamarck believed that instinct comes from inherited habits that arose as a result of satisfying vital needs. According to Darwin, instinct is a species adaptive behavior that is formed due to the inheritance of acquired properties and natural selection, which preserved varieties of simpler instincts that arose accidentally, but were useful for the species. I. Pavlov considered instinct as a complex reflex through which the interaction of organisms with the environment is carried out.
The philosophical concept of instinct was developed by Bergson, who saw instinct as one of two “sleeves” into which superconsciousness diverges, penetrating into matter. Unlike intelligence, instinct is a standard, machine-like animal with its own subject, conditioned by the very structure of the organism, and therefore does not need learning, memory or self-awareness. According to Vl. S. Solovyov, instinct is “the ability and desire for such actions that are combined with irrelevance and lead to useful results” (Encyclopedic Dictionary of Brockhaus and Efron, article “Instinct”). “In the animal world, instinct is the only way of internal presence and action of the general (genus) in the individual and the whole in the parts...”. Human instincts “cease to be a dark spontaneous attraction, are enlightened by Consciousness and are spiritualized by a higher ideal content” (ibid.). Thus, the instinct of self-preservation turns into “preservation of human dignity,” the sexual instinct into marital instinct, etc. Solovyov noted that since instinct requires “inner sensation and aspiration,” it makes no sense to use this term in relation to plants.
The life activity of the lowest organized creatures is completely determined by instinct, but with evolutionary development their role decreases, since they are replaced by more complex conditioned reflex activity based on individual experience. Human activity is determined by conscious motives, so instincts play a subordinate role here. However, when the control of the cerebral cortex over the underlying subcortical structures (sleep, intoxication, affects, etc.) is weakened, instincts can break out.
O. V. Suvorov
New Philosophical Encyclopedia: In 4 vols. M.: Thought. Edited by V. S. Stepin. 2001 .
Synonyms:
Antonyms:
See what "INSTINCT" is in other dictionaries:
- (Latin instinctus, from instinguere to encourage). The natural impulse in animals is to seek what is beneficial for themselves and avoid what is harmful; self-preservation as an unconscious, involuntary urge, instinct. Dictionary of foreign words included in Russian... ... Dictionary of foreign words of the Russian language
The term “instinct,” like many other scientific terms—for example, “stress” or “ecology”—has long been in widespread use, but its original meaning has undergone significant changes. Moreover, in everyday life they are so different from those accepted in the scientific community that sometimes scientists are recommended to introduce new terms to denote this or that concept. Such proposals are argued, for example, by the fact that the distorted meaning of the term “ecology” has taken root in the mass consciousness, and it is easier to propose a new term than to change the existing state of affairs. However, it should be noted that scientific terms and definitions have been honed over years and even centuries, and their correct understanding, coupled with appropriate use, is the key to developing an adequate picture of the world and way of thinking in people.
A little history
The history of this word is ancient. It seems that the term “instinct” (Latin instinctus, ancient Greek ὁρμή) appeared among Stoic philosophers, and was first used by the Stoic Chrysippus (3rd century BC) to designate aspiration or motivation as a characteristic of the behavior of birds and other animals. e.). The term was understood by the Stoics as an innate desire that directs the animal towards factors favorable to it and away from unfavorable ones. In the future, the theme of instincts did not receive any development until the 19th century, when Lamarck gave the term the first “scientific” definition: “Animal instinct is an inclination that attracts, caused by sensations on the basis of needs that arise due to their needs and compels them to perform actions without any participation of thought.” , without any participation of the will.” Subsequently, such prominent scientists as V.A. studied instincts. Wagner, A.D. Slonim, I.P. Pavlov, G.E. Ziegler, K. Lorenz, N. Tinbergen.
Basically, all definitions of this term boil down to the fact that it is “something” that is hereditarily fixed; does not require additional training; the same for all individuals of a given species, that is, species-typical; optimally corresponds to the organization of the animal and its physiology.
One of the definitions of the scientific concept “instinct” is “a set of innate needs and innate programs for their satisfaction, consisting of a trigger signal and an action program.” Let’s analyze all these components sequentially element by element and create a “formula” of instinct for simplicity. Konrad Lorenz, one of the most famous ethologists, called the program of action a “fixed complex of action” - FCD. Thus, from the standpoint of ethology, it turns out that:
Instinct = Innate needs + Innate program of action.
From the classical positions of ethology, the innate program of actions includes a key stimulus, common to all representatives of a given species, which will always cause the same fixed set of actions (FCS). Therefore, the formula takes the following form:
Instinct = Innate needs + key stimulus + fixed set of actions.
We will talk about innate needs a little later, but first we will focus on the key stimulus and FCD.
Key incentive
The key stimulus (KS) is a truly innate trigger mechanism and ensures the binding of a specific instinctive act to a strictly specific stimulus situation. The expediency of this mechanism is due to the fact that specific behavior must be carried out in a situation that is adequate from a biological point of view.
A stimulus is key only if it manifests itself without fail in all representatives of the species, even if they grew up in isolation from their fellow tribesmen and conspecifics (co-species), that is, it is species-typical.
A wide variety of signals can act as a key stimulus:
– chemical (sexual attractants acting through the olfactory pathways);
– acoustic (strictly fixed screams or “songs”);
– tactile (specific touches to certain parts of the body);
– visual (species-specific elements of color and markings, species-specific morphological characteristics - crests, ridges, growths, general body contours and sizes, internal beak coloring);
- species-specific body movements and poses - poses of intimidation, submission, rituals of greeting and courtship.
Presenting an animal with any key stimulus entails its specific innate reaction. Examples of such a key stimulus include the brightly colored open beak of a chick, which triggers feeding behavior in the parents, or the red belly of a male stickleback during mating behavior.
Studies of the threespined stickleback, a classic subject of laboratory research, have shown that during the mating season, the abdomen of the male stickleback turns bright red. By demonstrating it, he, on the one hand, scares away rival males from the nest, and on the other hand, on the contrary, attracts a female. Even models created in the laboratory that vaguely resembled another male provoked an attack by the male guarding his territory when he saw a “red belly.” Moreover, in the case of the closest possible proximity to the image of another male, but without a red belly, he remained indifferent.
For herring gull chicks, the key stimulus is a red spot on the yellow beak of the parents; the sight of it “switches on” the begging response: the chick pecks at this spot, and the parent regurgitates food into its mouth.
The key stimulus triggers a fixed set of actions, which, in turn, is not a monolithic act, but can be divided into two phases: appetitive behavior and consummatory behavior.
Fixed set of actions = appetitive behavior (AP) + consummatory behavior (CP).
Appetite behavior (English “appetitive behavior” from the Latin “appetitus” - “aspiration”, “desire”) - searching for and approaching an object to satisfy a need. Consummatory behavior (from the English “consummate” - “to bring to an end”, “to complete”) - directly satisfying a need (killing prey, copulation). The division of instinctive behavior was first introduced by Wallace Craig.
So, now we can transform the initial instinct formula I = Ptrb + KS + FKD into the following form:
I = Ptrb + KS + AP + CP.
If we operate with the biological term “instinct,” then it is important to remember that all stages of instinct are innate, not determined by learning. And since we began our conversation by defining the difference in the perception of the concept of “instinct” among ethologists and people not experienced in biology, it would be appropriate to clarify here that the more complex the organization of an animal, the smaller the proportion of innate components in its behavior and the less rigid these components programmed.
Studying the mechanisms and structure of the course of instinctive acts, researchers have long discovered that appetitive behavior, on the one hand, is typical for each specific species, on the other hand, in many highly organized species it turned out to be variable and adapted to changing environmental conditions. The same can be said about the consummatory stage: in both birds and mammals, a series of consummatory, final acts, in the strict sense, are not given in their entirety from birth, but also contain some element of individual practice.
In most cases, this refers to the motor component of the instinctive act itself, when a newborn baby performs its first consummatory acts very unstably and unclearly. Apparently, this is due to the incomplete process of formation of neural ensembles of the brain, which are normally responsible for this innate act. Therefore, the very first movements of an animal when carrying out an instinctive act are “immature”, “uncertain”, and only after several trials and errors do they acquire all their purely species-typical features.
Let us consider the stages of instinct in a number of animals using the example of copulation and hunting behavior.
1. Copulation behavior
Mantises
Ptrb - reproductive;
KS♀—change in hormone secretion, KS♂—female pheromones;
AP - search for a sexual partner, copulation;
CP - tearing off the male's head.
Cats
Ptrb - reproductive;
KS♀—endogenous change in hormone secretion, KS♂—female pheromones;
AP - search for a sexual partner;
KP - copulation in cats, compared to mantises, is variable in relation to the courtship behavior of males. The positions of sexual partners are also variable.
Dogs
If a dog puppy is raised in isolation from his peers, then later, when he reaches sexual maturity, this dog will not be able to normally carry out the act of mating with a bitch: he, as expected, will jump on her from behind, attach himself, and even make attempts to perform frictions. But these will be just attempts, since even the insertion of the penis (imission, intromission, introitus) into the bitch’s vagina may not happen. The coordination of the instinctive movements of such a dog will be so unpracticed that during the movements of the pelvis he simply will not hit the target. And the role of the presence of peers for the normal sexual development of a puppy turns out to be important in the sense that it is in numerous games with them that its motor mechanisms and their coordination are honed, some of which must subsequently be involved in the implementation of the sexual instinct. In other words, if in the early period of formation of the nervous system the body is not subjected to the necessary stimulation, then its development can be severely inhibited. Thus, both an innate need and a key stimulus can be found in dogs, but the manifestation of FCD is very dependent on individual experience.
Primates
In them, copulation is organized even more complexly, and this process is no longer completely innate behavior. Monkeys raised in isolation (without maternal care) are not able to do this on their own; moreover, the females will categorically resist the males’ attempts to mate.
2. Hunting behavior
The hunting “instinct” of cats and dogs also does not have a clearly determined program, since the consummatory act of killing prey is the result of learning.
Mother cheetah trains puppies.
Appetite stage.
Consummatory stage.
Thus, it is not so much the specific motor acts of instinct that are innate, but rather their general template, within the framework of which the movements themselves develop. Wagner also mentioned some subtle individuality in the manifestation of instinct in different individuals, and therefore, in the end, he preferred to talk not about strictly fixed innate stereotypes of action, but rather about species-specific patterns of instinctive behavior. Thus, the manifestation of a particular instinct in different individuals of the same species may have subtle differences, but at the same time it is clearly defined in the entire species as a whole and can serve as a clear distinguishing feature in relation to other species.
Now we are ready to talk about innate needs and answer the question about the existence of instincts in humans.
Finally!
Innate Needs
Needs are the basis of all behavior, they are the ones. are a stimulus for behavioral activity in humans and animals. Needs are divided into vital (“life”), social and ideal.
Vitals include not only the need for self-preservation, which can be divided into the need for food, to avoid pain, etc. The needs for sensory input (irritation of the senses), emotions, receiving information and receiving pleasure are vital for us.
Social needs include all those needs in the process of satisfying which we establish communication with other people. Here, communication must be considered in a broad sense: it is not only direct acts of interaction (face-to-face conversation or correspondence on social networks), but also indirect motives for various actions. For example, a person can wash the dishes alone, but do this not because there are no clean dishes, but in order to please his wife.
There are a lot of social needs, but the main one is the need for social self-identification, that is, the need to feel like a member of a community. All our behavior and emotional experiences are built on the basis of identification with a certain group: family, people, work collective, a group within this collective.
Self-identification underlies “higher” forms of behavior. For example, the need for religion is determined by the need to belong to a limited community, which differs from others in a number of external characteristics - these differences are provided by ritual.
What do we need besides self-identification? In dominance and submission, in friendships and aggression, in self-esteem, altruism and selfishness, and so on. It should be emphasized that behavior is always aimed at satisfying several needs simultaneously. For example, why might students attend classes? Often - to get an education and have a well-paid job. But acquiring knowledge and practical skills is far from the main need that they satisfy when they come to their university. The only situation in which a person’s behavior is determined by a single need is when he is in a hurry to go to the toilet. But by and large, even so, it satisfies the social need for privacy while evacuating the contents of the bladder and intestines!
Knowledge of the innate behavioral characteristics helps the average person, first of all, to observe safety measures when communicating with animals. For example, you should not look at a dog on the street: a direct look is an expression of aggressive intentions. But human behavior is subject to the same laws. In general, the language of our body movements is very expressive, and a careful look can tell a lot about the intentions of the interlocutor, his attitude towards us and even his inner world.
Each person, like each animal, is born with his own individual spectrum of innate needs, expressed in different ways and to varying degrees - which is why one of the differences between ethology and other behavioral sciences is the thesis about the innate diversity of people. By the way, yes, ethology also studies human behavior, namely, the innate component of his behavior.
So do humans have instincts?
So, based on the definition and structure of instinct, which we have just examined, we can now assume that humans, a creature whose development is much higher than cats, have no instincts in the classical sense.
[Although, to tell the truth, a person still has one single instinct, which was discovered by Irenius Eibl-Eibesfeldt, a student of K. Lorenz. When we meet a person we like, we not only smile and part our lips, but our eyebrows also involuntarily raise. This movement, which lasts 1/6 of a second, was recorded by Eibl-Eibesfeldt on film in people of different races. He conducted most of his research in the wild corners of the planet, among tribes that do not know not only television, but also radio, and have rare and superficial contacts with their neighbors. Thus, eyebrow raising could not have been shaped by imitation learning. The main argument was the behavior of children blind from birth. The voice of a person they like also raises their eyebrows, and for the same 150 milliseconds.]
If expressions like “instinct of self-preservation” are incorrect, what then is the “automatic” withdrawal of a hand from a hot stove or fire? A person has an innate need for self-preservation, but not an instinct, since there is no corresponding FKD - an innate program of motor activity that would satisfy this need. Having been pricked or burned, we withdraw our hand - but this is not an instinct, but just a reflex (unconditioned) to painful stimulation. In general, we have a lot of protective unconditioned reflexes, for example, the blink reflex, coughing, sneezing, vomiting. But these are the simplest standard reflexes. All other threats to the integrity of the body cause only those reactions that we acquire during the learning process.
“Maternal instinct”, “sexual instinct” and other similar expressions are all incorrect when applied to humans. And not only in relation to humans, but also to all highly organized animals. We have corresponding needs, but there is no innate program for their satisfaction, no key incentive, no FKD.
Have you forgotten the Instinct formula yet, dear reader?
I = Ptrb + KS + FKD.
Thus, humans do not have instincts in the strict sense, and this is what makes our behavior plastic. However, the absence of rigid innate programs does not negate the fact that we are biosocial beings; and there are purely biological factors that determine many aspects of our behavior.
I thank Elena Dontsova for her help with preparing the text and Nikolai Mitrukhin for the illustrations for the work.
Literature
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