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instincts

A Dictionary of Sociology | 1998 | 490 words | Copyright

instincts Species-characteristic patterns of behaviour considered innate and pre-determined rather than learned—a product of nature not nurture. What human behaviour, if any, is deemed instinctive varies between authors. Sigmund Freud's formulation of two primary instincts (drives)—life and death (Eros and Thanatos)—is well known. However, sociologists emphasize social learning, and typically eschew the concept. See also NATURE VERSUS NURTURE DEBATE; SOCIOBIOLOGY.

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