Human Nature Dynamics

Human Nature Dynamics Affect On Committed Relationships

What’s human nature? And what does it have to do with Committed Relationships failing? Websites such as dictionary.net and Wikipedia define human nature similarly. Both define it as a concept that denotes the fundamental dispositions and characteristics—including ways of thinking, feeling, and acting—that humans are said to have naturally. Ever paid attention to children and how their distinct personalities create organic behavior? Not that they display behavior that no other child has or will ever display. But they display behavior that’s organic in the sense that no one taught or influenced them to behave a certain way. For instance, some kids bite or slap without ever being taught or modeled to do so.

Recently, I watched a YouTube clip of a nine-month-old attempting to climb a toy ladder. Her parents worried that she’d fall and hurt herself. So, they kept trying to assist her. But every time they did, she would get frustrated with them and cry because she wanted to do it all by herself. And, as soon as they released her, she’d go back to the ladder, grab the nearest rung, and start climbing. Finally, they let her climb as she pleased with dad standing close by for quick support in case she fell. As they cheered her on, she got so excited. Amazingly, she climbed to the top without any help from her parents. And when she did, she was happier than a bare-chested pamper wearing toddler playing in the guest bathroom toilet bowl. Her parents didn’t teach her to climb the ladder. She had a natural inclination to do so. This is part of her individual human nature. Not every child her age will be so bold or have such an inclination. That wouldn’t be a part of their individual human nature. And that’s just it. A nine-month-old climbing a ladder is a feat that’s within the realm for human babies to achieve. But, when they do it on their own without ever being influenced or taught, it’s a part of their individual human nature. The definition of human nature is not about that common thing everybody does, although, it can be. It’s more about something being in the realm of what humans do naturally and without outside influence from their environment, culture, or upbringing. This is because every person is different. If what they’re doing is unscripted, uninfluenced, and not provoked by way of parental, cultural, or environmental modeling, then, it’s organic human nature.

Human behavior is said to be the way humans act and interact and is based on and influenced by several factors, such as genetics, culture, individual values, and attitudes. Fact is, all human behavior is a product of human nature. Because, although the things one learns by way of culture, parental, and environmental modeling isn’t organically human nature induced, indirectly, they are human nature influenced. They are because all learned human behavior originated from someone’s individual organic human nature instincts and traits. And as that behavior caught on socially, it became practiced behavior. And this practiced behavior produces what we call culture. So, in this way, all human behavior has its roots in human nature. Someone could argue that if someone mimics walking like a duck, it isn’t organic human nature influenced behavior because the duck originated the walk. But the instinct to mimic the duck would be human nature. And if that person was the first to ever walk like a duck and others modeled his or her behavior, indirectly their behavior would be human nature influenced, too. The trope “Monkey See Money Do” is very good evidence of human's natural instinct to mimic other human behavior.

Before moving on, let’s take a second to summarize the human nature definition. First, it’s the innate inclinations humans have that motivate them to be, move, and do. Second, these inclinations produce behaviors that are personal to the individual. However, when these individual behaviors become socially acceptable and mimicked, they produce culture and environment. And even culturally learned behaviors have their roots in human nature.

Now, let’s talk about what influences our human nature. What makes a nine-month-old courageous, insistent, and persistent about climbing a ladder before her age suggests she’s even strong enough to support herself, let alone have the confidence to do so? What makes a person latch a hold to some, all, or none of the culture modeled before them? I believe there are a couple answers to these questions. The first is, our hormones, genes, and genetic traits. Every human has hormones and chemical processes at work in their physical body. The fact that these hormones naturally occur inside us makes them part of our human nature. Without scientific involvement, these hormones and genes aren’t subject to outside influences. And since they occur naturally and without influence, that makes them a part of our human nature.

However, as they function within our bodies, they promote certain behaviors. For instance, when an adolescent reaches puberty, he or she will be bombarded with a host of hormones that will motivate him or her to act sexually. This process is a human nature process and the resultant actions this process invokes produce human behavior. This proves that human nature is a root input into human behavior. But our individual human nature isn’t the only root input into our human behavior. Several other inputs contribute to this behavior, too. As mentioned earlier, things such as culture, parental, and environmental role modeling, coercion, and peer pressure are also inputs. These other inputs have influence on our human behavior.

But even though these things profoundly contribute to our human behavior, I believe that there’s another human nature aspect that contributes to our human behavior, too. For instance, what do we say about a guy whose sex hormones is raging inside him causing his physical body to beg for release. And when he could take advantage of a girl who had too much to drink, he overrides these very strong physical urges and does the right thing? He makes sure she gets home safe and untouched. But doing so means he’s displaying a behavior that violates the behavior his human nature is promoting by way of his raging hormones. How is he able to do that? Some will say he’s been taught to be respectful through cultural, parental, or environmental modeling and that’s how he's able. But, what about others whose upbringing should’ve prevented them from doing wrong? Yet, they did the opposite. Or what about a baby that isn’t taught or modeled to do so, but naturally shares their favorite toy with another to console him or her? I believe both scenarios reveal another influence on our human nature. And this influence is one many call the soul. We'll talk about the soul and its influence on Human Nature in Part II of this blog, which should post tomorrow.

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