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First published in 1925,
Instinct began in a graduate seminar, when the author attempted to apply McDougall's classification of instincts to the classification of criminals. The immediate result was the conviction that McDougall's instincts were habits. This work is the result of the author's investigations on the topic of instinct.
List of contents
1. Introduction – Problem and Method 2. The Controversy Regarding Instinct and Environment 3. The Organic Bases of Action 4. The Nature of Instinct – Analysis and Criticism 5. The Evolution of Neuro-Psychic Traits – Habits 6. The Evolution of Neuro-Psychic Controls – Intelligence and Language 7. Current Usage of the Term Instinct 8. The Classification of Instincts 9. Some Results of Investigation 10. Origins of the Usage of Instinct 11. Heredity and the Instincts 12. Conditional Development and Delayed Instincts 13. A Reductio Ad Absurdum 14. Some False Instincts Exposed – Maternal, Paternal and Parental 15. Some False Instincts Exposed – Play, Fighting, Construction, etc. 16. Some False Instincts Exposed – Analysis of Contents 17. Some Further Misconceptions Concerning the Nature of Instinct 18. The Nature of the Emotions 19. The Emotions and Sentiments 20. Summary and Conclusions. Index.
About the author
Luther Lee Bernard (1881–1951) was an American sociologist and psychologist. He served as the 22nd President of the American Sociological Association. His pioneering work is said by some to have changed the direction of Social Psychology.
Summary
First published in 1925, Instinct began in a graduate seminar, when the author attempted to apply McDougall’s classification of instincts to the classification of criminals. The immediate result was the conviction that McDougall’s instincts were habits. This work is the result of the author’s investigations on the topic of instinct.
