My inquiry question is, are humans naturally selfish. To help answer this question these are the things is will be researching!
What is human nature
To answer my big question “are humans naturally selfish” I think it is important to research and understand what exactly the concept of “human nature” is and if “human nature” is really something that exists.
Is it our upbringing / society that makes us inherently selfish
I will be researching if our upbringings and society is the reason humans are selfish. I think it would be interesting to look into how our society and capitalism might make us selfish, as opposed to selfishness being ingrained into our brains since birth.
Is selfishness ingrained into us
As opposed to selfishness being a result of how society, or we were raised I will be researching if it is ingrained into our minds from birth / if it is in our DNA as humans to be selfish.
5 sources that might be useful to address the question.
https://hbr.org/1989/05/how-selfish-are-people-really
https://theconversation.com/selfish-or-selfless-human-nature-means-youre-both-155528
https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/human-nature/
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/are-people-naturally-inclined-to-cooperate-or-be-selfish/
how this question will have implications to other individuals and/or my community?
This question could help other people if they were curious about the same thing I was, if humans are naturally inclined to be selfish. Selfishness is everywhere and I think it could be important to know where it stems from , and maybe how we can learn to be less selfish.
Hi Sammie,
your post is so informational and detailed, and I loved reading it! I personally think some people are born selfish, while others become selfish over time, maybe from a certain experience in the past. I think it would be so cool if you actually took a closer look at different people’s DNA, and compared someone who is very selfish and someone who might not be so selfish. One more thing you can explore is the thought that maybe someone who was born selfish can change for the better and begin to feel selfless. I also love the links you added to your post because they can really hope you and guide you when doing research.
Looking forward to reading your future posts!
Julie
Hey Sammie,
I had never thought of this question before and I think that it is a very intriguing perspective to research. It is a form of the question of nurture over nature that has been around for long time and is still debated. Researching whether selfishness has a direct correlation with our DNA is a great choice. So many people, if not everyone is at least a bit selfish and I am looking forward to reading whether this is engrained or taught. Personally, I believe it is more likely that humans are taught this behaviour, even if it is not meant to be. Then again, this is simply my opinion and I await to see your factual research. You seem to already have a good base of informational websites to look through, but I thought I would offer a few more sources to help.
https://sofoarchon.com/selfish/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5917043/
https://thedecisionlab.com/insights/society/are-we-innately-selfish-what-the-science-has-to-say/
Good luck with all your all your research.
Chantal M.
Hello Sammie,
I think your question will be very much related to nature vs. nurture. As you said in your post you think people can either become selfish or are born that way. Environmental factors like home life and upbringing could affect a person’s behavior as they grow up. So I think it is worth looking into the nature vs. nurture theory to see if it can explain selfishness. My suggestion would be to combine two of your rounds and instead for the third one you could ask if it can be changed if it was genetic or environmental. It would be interesting to see and would be a nice conclusion to your project!
Here are some links that might help
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1369847817306812
https://www.nature.com/articles/2281218a0
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/ele.13734
Good luck
-Shieva
Hey Sammie! I think this is such an interesting and important thing to learn about! I feel like this topic can really get people thinking about themselves and other people around them. I loved your big question if humans are naturally selfish. I really do wonder if our society now of days has anything to do with it. I cant wait to follow you along to answer your question!
I found this 14 min video that might help you!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wFmYnXxqdj0
-Syd
Hey sammie Lyon!!
I loved reading your order of research rounds to find an answer for your main inquiry question. I also think that selfishness among humans is something we need to acknowledge, I’ve even seen little children being happy and joyful, then that’s when selfishness grows and appears mostly towards adults who are becoming more and more visible. I believe us humans are naturally born with it, but I have not yet found complete answers and informations. Therefore, I am willing to assist you on finding logical responses.
-Tiffany<3
this is so interesting, cant wait to learn more!!!
Hey, Sammie! Glad to read your research so far. I have never really asked myself this question, but I know that there is a human’s part that has always been impregnated in we about being selfish. A great example of it, is this environmental issue we are living, besides the covid-19 pandemic, causing the greenhouse effect and the global warming, since there are people who do not care enough to recycle or at least to avoid contaminating green areas of the planet. There is so much to do about it, and it is not only for us but also for future generations. Great question and can have a further analysis in current topics.
Hope these can be useful:
https://science.time.com/2013/10/21/why-we-dont-care-about-saving-our-grandchildren-from-climate-change/
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/are-humans-inherently-selfish_n_58b4544ee4b0780bac2bccf0
Good luck!
–Andrea.