Determinism is a natural dependence of mental phenomena

Determinism is the necessary and regular dependence of mental phenomena on the factors that generate them. There are several forms of determinism: systemic, feedback, statistical, target, and other sets of circumstances that precede the investigation in time.

The development of forms of determinism is associated with the development of scientific knowledge about the psyche. For a long time it was based on mechanical determinants, which were mental phenomena caused by the operation of technical devices. This view is somewhat limited, but in spite of this fact, it gave rise to such psychological teachings as the study of affect, reflexes, associations, and so on.

The teachings of Darwin

Biological determinism is the behavior of living systems. This form appeared in the middle of the XIX century. And affirmed the view of the psyche as a necessary function for the survival of all living beings. Mechanical determinism represented the psyche as an incidental phenomenon. Biological form believed that this is a necessary component of life.

Psychological determinism

Subsequently, when this component was given an independent causal meaning, determinism arose in psychology. The introduction of the ideas of natural scientific determinism into psychology led to its isolation in a separate area of knowledge, engaged in the study of processes that are subordinated to their own laws.

Thanks to the philosophy of Marxism , a new form of determinism was developed, according to which people's activities are based on their way of life. This contributed to the emergence of methodological prerequisites for the realization of the principle of determinism at the level of the psychosocial organization of human activity.

The concept of determinism

All events occur for any reason. For example, the choice of toys for boys is likely associated with a high content of male hormone in their blood. However, this is not the only reason for this behavior. This definition is called psychological determinism. This implies that the psychological factor is due to some reasons or previous circumstances. But in many situations it can be difficult to determine what caused this or that phenomenon. Although the fact that first happens one incident, and then another, does not mean that the second case was due to the first. That is, "after this" is not synonymous with "due to this".

All the actions and thoughts of a person have a cause. Identifying the causes of our actions and thinking are engaged in psychological experimenters. In most cases, this is a very difficult task, but, nevertheless, this only encourages them to search, just as Galileo once captured the assumption that gravitational force is the cause of equal velocity when balls of different weights fall onto the ground. These studies are based on the postulate that determinism is the discovery of the causes that lie behind every thought and action of a person.