Post by rollerk on Sept 15, 2017 17:30:27 GMT
I believe that ALL psychological phenomena are biological and chemical in nature and are explainable by biology and chemistry.
The brain is the control centre of everything we do, think, and feel. Without biological processes and chemical reactions there would be no action, thought, or feeling. There could not be. To say that psychological phenomena are NOT biological and chemical in nature is to associate an innate spirituality to psychological phenomena.
Every action, thought, and feeling has it's own distinctive neural pathway, a physical pathway, in the brain. The more frequently we access this neural pathway, the more defined and deep-seated it becomes. This is how habits are formed. Breaking a habit is not a spiritual endeavour. We must reroute the physical pathway in our brain and direct it to a more positive practice. Now, because we have built this neural pathway so deeply, it is easiest to revert back to this habit. It is only when the new, more positive neural pathway has become equally or more defined and deep-seated that we will more willingly practice the positive habit rather than the negative habit. As neural pathways are permanent, however, the negative practice will always be there to slip back into the habit.
Addictions, mental illnesses, and even values and beliefs are all biological and chemical reactions in the body and brain.
The only way that psychological phenomenon could NOT be completely biological and chemical is if we assigned an innate spirituality to them. Beliefs, for example, could be influenced by God. God could imbue every individual with the belief in a higher power, a desire that there is something greater than themselves at work. This spiritual influence could not be explained by biology of chemistry. The action, thoughts, and feelings that result from this influence, however, are still biological and chemical. As I stated, you cannot do, think, or feel without these two sciences at work.
Spirituality and science are not exclusive to one another. It is important to remember, however, that we are biological and chemical creatures existing in a biological and chemical world where even spiritual experiences (perhaps yet another psychological phenomenon?) can be reduced to biology and chemistry.
The brain is the control centre of everything we do, think, and feel. Without biological processes and chemical reactions there would be no action, thought, or feeling. There could not be. To say that psychological phenomena are NOT biological and chemical in nature is to associate an innate spirituality to psychological phenomena.
Every action, thought, and feeling has it's own distinctive neural pathway, a physical pathway, in the brain. The more frequently we access this neural pathway, the more defined and deep-seated it becomes. This is how habits are formed. Breaking a habit is not a spiritual endeavour. We must reroute the physical pathway in our brain and direct it to a more positive practice. Now, because we have built this neural pathway so deeply, it is easiest to revert back to this habit. It is only when the new, more positive neural pathway has become equally or more defined and deep-seated that we will more willingly practice the positive habit rather than the negative habit. As neural pathways are permanent, however, the negative practice will always be there to slip back into the habit.
Addictions, mental illnesses, and even values and beliefs are all biological and chemical reactions in the body and brain.
The only way that psychological phenomenon could NOT be completely biological and chemical is if we assigned an innate spirituality to them. Beliefs, for example, could be influenced by God. God could imbue every individual with the belief in a higher power, a desire that there is something greater than themselves at work. This spiritual influence could not be explained by biology of chemistry. The action, thoughts, and feelings that result from this influence, however, are still biological and chemical. As I stated, you cannot do, think, or feel without these two sciences at work.
Spirituality and science are not exclusive to one another. It is important to remember, however, that we are biological and chemical creatures existing in a biological and chemical world where even spiritual experiences (perhaps yet another psychological phenomenon?) can be reduced to biology and chemistry.