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Overview

Human behavior is influenced by both brain chemistry and the society we live in. When people behave aggressively or with empathy, different parts of the brain are activated. Understanding how these behaviors come about can help us understand what it means to exist and function in a society.

Have you ever been in a situation where you asked yourself, “Why did I just do that?” or said something inappropriate? Well, human behavior is influenced by several factors. Some of these influences come from our environment and others are chemical processes in the brain that happen before we act. It turns out that behavior is unique to each individual but also dependent on society and culture.

In this article, we will explore the factors that determine human behavior. We’ll also learn about liberal and conservative brain chemistry; wheat and patent applications; and racism.

Big Idea #1: To understand human behavior, we must look at the brain, culture and history.

Everything happens for a reason, and we can understand why people do what they do by looking at their biology. We inherited the parts of our brains that control our most basic instincts from our ancestors, and those same parts are responsible for making us afraid of death. This fear might lead someone to pull the trigger in order to avoid death.

But before a person dies, the brain has been processing sensory information from its environment. In a war zone, for example, sensory awareness of danger makes it more likely that someone will act aggressively.

However, the human brain’s response isn’t random. It is deeply intertwined with society and culture. Years before we act out a behavior, we will have grown up in societies that determine our behaviors. Different societies condition us to behave differently; therefore, if we were exposed to violence earlier on in life, we are more likely to be violent as adults.

If we go back thousands of years, we’ll see how geography and ecology have affected human behavior. In short, if we want to understand the origins of human behavior, we need to take an interdisciplinary approach.

Big Idea #2: There are two parts of the brain that control aggression. One part controls whether or not it’s acted upon.

When aggression is about to occur, the brain must make several decisions. The amygdala and frontal cortex are critical in these processes. The amygdala is located in the largest part of the brain, which is associated with aggressive behavior and fear due to its activity when people see images that stimulate anger or fear.

There’s also a historical case where this link was made. Charles Whitman, who murdered his wife and mother before carrying out mass shootings at the University of Texas in 1966, was autopsied.

Whitman left a note by his wife’s body in which he said he couldn’t identify a specific reason for the act.

The man had a tumor pressing against his amygdala. He’d even complained of violent impulses to his doctor before the murders, and it’s believed that the pressure on his amygdala caused neurological changes leading to sudden violence.

Meanwhile, the frontal cortex is responsible for regulating emotions and controlling impulsiveness. A famous case study called Phineas Gage shows this. In 1848, a railroad construction worker had an iron rod pierce his skull and damage his frontal cortex.

He was amazingly lucky to survive, but he became a completely different person. He began swearing and being impatient. This is because the frontal cortex is critical in determining appropriate behavior and restraining aggression.