Functioning of human psychism and its possible dysfunctions

The operation of any system, whether mechanical, biological or psychological, implies the possibility of malfunctions. All behaviour is based on a psychic process. It is therefore ultimately the very functioning of the human psyche that must be scrutinized and, in particular, its possible dysfunctions.

It can be expected that behaviour that compromises natural balances will result in unnatural psychological functioning. This even if we are a priori convinced to be perfectly normal. Such a conviction is not certain, it is quite naive and egocised: all the fools think they are normal…

The root causes of the current impasse, ecological, social, economic and even medical, are probably hidden in certain psychological states or tendencies whose science has not yet perceived pathological character or enlightened origins.

For example, ecologists readily attribute the overexploitation of the planet to human greed. But is this greed intrinsically part of human nature, or is it not generated by certain frustrations, of which it is a matter of defining nature? We also accuse egocentrism, but where does the boundary between a selfcentrism useful for the survival of the individual pass, and an egocentrism that makes him indifferent to the destruction of the environment on which his survival or that of his descendants depends?

Pessimists will say that nothing will ever change man’s nature. It is precisely a question of determining what is nature and what is drifting in psychic functioning. Once it is known that a trend does not belong to our deep nature, but is the result of various conditioning or trauma, it becomes easier to leave it. Easier also to understand and forgive the behavior of others. And easier to understand why man as he is, and not as he should be, causes so much damage around him.

Work on the board for human ecogenetics…