Human Nature, Philosophy, and Psychology
What could possibly be meant by the term “human nature,” and
why is it important for psychology? This might seem a naïve question
because, after all, isn’t psychology the study of behavior and of
mental processes? And if so, isn’t that all about human nature, or even
about what it means to be human? But ideas about human nature are
as much in the realm of philosophy as in psychology, and probably, in
fact, more a concern of the former than the latter.
A couple of centuries ago the two disciplines – philosophy and
psychology – were not separated at all; it was not until the nineteen
hundreds that the two began to be perceived as separate areas of
inquiry. But if one looks closely at the different perspectives we find
in psychology – psychoanalysis, behaviorism, cognitive psychology,
humanistic psychology, and evolutionary psychology, for example –
one begins to find underlying assumptions concerning human nature
which are often unstated. These can be subtle and may be implicit
rather than explicitly stated. So it can be enlightening to see which
ideas or personal biases about the nature of human beings underlie
each of the major perspectives. Are people basically good and moral,