֍ 62 ֍ To Psychology or Not To Psychology

֍ 62 ֍ To Psychology or Not To Psychology

I often find myself in recurring debates about the existence of psychology. “You shouldn’t peg people into holes” is a common reaction. Although there is truth to this statement, it disregards behavioral science. To some, the notion of categorizing people is unfounded. They view eight billion people with a Groundhog Day ability to make decisions.

Human interaction integrates psychology into our subconscious, even when we’re not aware of it. To a high degree of accuracy, we know how our colleagues will behave, the demeanor of our friends, and the reactions of family members. Past behavior predicts future actions. That’s the basis of psychology. Personality dictates behavior, and actions are deterministic. Psychology simplifies this process by grouping humans into a set of personality types. There is certainly overlap between neighbouring personalities, and external factors can tweak behavior, but personalities are set in stone at the end of teenage puberty. After that, behavior changes are governed by personality. When demeanor suddenly changes from the norm, it’s not immediately accepted by others. Unexpected behavior is questioned based on internal or external factors or scrutinized as an outlier. In other words, unpredictable reactions aren’t acknowledged as the new status quo.

Humans are incapable of organizing the world without categorization. Only computers can do that. Ants aren’t treated as 8 quadrillion individuals. Separating mammals into species, breeds, and races helps make sense of our reality. Most people know who is a leader or follower, who’s reliable, and who’s chaotic. Past behavior predicts future actions with relative accuracy. Most people psychoanalyze subconsciously. Only a select few explicitly utilize psychology to understand behavior. Those who say that categorization misrepresents humanity are missing the point. Just because personalities are cognitive thoughts, and not something we can touch, doesn’t make them exempt from categorization.

Personality types help us understand who we are and with whom we’re interacting. From past behavior, we can assess why people make certain decisions. These patterns correlate to specific personalities. Introverts are shy. Extroverts love attention. Narcissists have a pathology of control. Empaths follow compassion. These are conscious implementations of psychology. It’s how forensic psychology works in the police force. For example, a suspect’s past behavior is used to assess their personality. These patterns are then used to understand motive and predict future behavior.

When behavior is misinterpreted, it can lead to stressful interactions. Alice says, “Bob makes me uncomfortable because he acts weird.” Mary says, “Bob isn’t weird. He has Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)“. Mary understands Bob because of his psychology, but Alice finds Bob unsettling because she doesn’t understand him. When someone’s personality is revealed, the mystery of their behavior falls into place.

One hundred percent predictability isn’t possible, but psychology predicts the future more accurately than in its absence. People don’t wake up making random choices. If society operated in this way, it would cause stress and anxiety on a global scale. Personalities dictate actions to a high degree. In relationships, we seek behavioral consistency. When behavior adversely affects a relationship, the affected partner may attempt to change their partner’s behavior or adjust their own to establish relationship harmony. It’s the difference between “I need to fix Bob so that I’m happier in this relationship” versus “I just need to accept Bob for who he is.” Systematically requiring changes to a partner’s behavior is fruitless if there is a personality mismatch.

Many religious institutions find wisdom in philosophy, not psychology. The difference is that philosophy is how the world sees us. Psychology is how we see the world. Or is it the other way around? Regardless, believing in only one side is understanding half the story. Behaviors outside of the written word are treated as a sickness that needs to be cured. Religion denies psychology’s existence because it adversely challenges the written status quo. Behavioral sciences create friction with dogma on many levels. Axioms written in stories from thousands of years ago are treated as laws regardless of their evolutionary obsolescence. For example, 2SLGBTQI+* is seen as an abhorrent perversion. Rather than accepting gender or sexual preferences as freedom of thought, it’s treated as a disease that anyone can catch if they get too close. Faith is sold as the cure. This creates a self-perpetuating paranoia in the community. Laws are enacted to quarantine the contagion through incarceration, expulsion, or death.

People are not computers with a reset button. What we did in the past shapes what we’ll do tomorrow. Our personalities are the foundation of our behavior. The science of psychology just puts a name to it.

*2S = Two-Spirit people, L: Lesbian; G: Gay; B: Bisexual; T: Transgender; Q: Queer; I: Intersex, +: is inclusive of people who identify as part of sexual and gender diverse communities

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psychology, personality types, behavioral science, human behavior, predictability, free will, psychology debate, personality categories, psychology vs religion, Briggs-Myers, subconscious psychology, evolutionary psychology, personality vs behavior, cognitive functions, psychology myths, categorization in psychology, behavioral predictability, religion vs science, LGBTQ2+, 2SLGBTQI+, personality disorders

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