Human Psychological Characteristics versus Animal Characteristics

Arnulf Kolstad

Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway; Hangzhou Normal University (HNU), Hangzhou, China.

DOI: 10.4236/psych.2013.45069                

Abstract

The role of biology in psychology changes from animals to humans. Biology determines animal behaviour in natural environments. For humans the biological forces changes to an energizing function. They recede in the background and the higher psychological functions govern consciousness and behavior. Humans do not have to obey the instincts or reflexes, but have the option to do what they decide to do after reflecting on the alternatives. No other species have this ability to the same degree. The difference between Homo sapiens and other species in this regard is not only a distinction in degree it is a distinction in principle. To understand development of language in its relation to thought, consciousness and volatile behavior is essential.

Keywords

Biology; Culture; Lower Psychological Functions; Higher Psychological Functions; Cultural Tools; Language; Thought

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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