Psychology Facts

▼ Instinct ▼

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》instinct, an inborn impulse or motivation to action typically performed in response to specific external stimuli. Today instinct is generally described as a stereotyped, apparently unlearned, genetically determined behaviour pattern. instinct.

》According to the instinct theory of motivation, all organisms are born with innate biological tendencies that help them survive. This theory suggests that instincts drive all behaviors. So, what exactly is instinct?

》Instinct is recognized as a behavior that is:
Innate. It doesn't require prior knowledge or learning.

Pre-programmed. It's present at birth. However, there are some interesting exceptions: birds do not learn to fly — their instincts for flying are activated once they become physically mature enough.

Genetically coded.
Shared. It's present in all members of the species.

Fixed in the short term. For individuals of the current generation, instincts are rigid and fixed.

Long-term adaptability.
Across generations, instincts have the potential to adapt to environmental demands.

Survival-oriented.
Ultimately, our instincts exist to increase our chances of survival.

》Intuition and instinct are related concepts, but they have some important differences. Both instincts and intuition operate below the level of consciousness. In other words, if you were asked to explain an instinctive behavior or an intuition, you would have a hard time. However, instinct refers to behavior, whereas intuition refers to a feeling.

》The instinct theory suggests that motivation is primarily biologically based. We engage in certain behaviors because they aid in survival.

》In addition to instinct theory, there are other theories that have been proposed to help explain motivation. These include:

Arousal theory of motivation, which claims that people behave in certain ways to either increase or decrease their arousal

Drive theory of motivation, in which people are "driven" to behave in certain ways to reduce the internal tension caused by unmet needs

Expectancy theory, which claims that our motivation will increase with the perceived desirability of an expected reward

Humanistic theory of motivation, which claims that behaviors are the result of a desire for self-actualization

Incentive theory of motivation, in which we make choices to maximize pleasure and minimize pain

》People have an instinctive fear of snakes. We are afraid of snakes because humans evolved alongside these creatures, many of which are dangerous.

》Some human instincts include:

Fear

Anxiety

Anger and Frustration

Depression

Loneliness

Boredom

Guilt

Symptoms

Shyness

Sociability