Darwin and Evolution

The core premise of evolution is that organisms change over time and that life can be transferred from one form to another. As a result, anytime someone thinks of evolution, the name Charles Darwin must come to mind. The paper will investigate Darwin's theory of evolution. The theory is also known as Darwinism, as detailed in the book "On the Origin of Species." He thought that everything in life is connected. According to Darwin's hypothesis, all existing species evolved at some point, and hence every living creature can trace its genealogy back to a common ancestor. Darwinism also described the mechanism that helped organisms experienced evolution is process described as natural selection. This is an important part of the inherited traits, which are essential for the survival of the organisms including their reproduction. The process of natural selection is more about adaptive mutations, and it can be transmitted from one offspring to the next. It gives the organism a chance for better adaptation to the extent of having more offspring. Thus, evolution is all about the survival of the fittest.















Evolution of Psychology

The book ‘Origin of Species’ states that Darwinism has two major claims. First, he claimed that all existing beings on the planet stem out of an ancestor in the ancient times (Darwin, 2017). Darwin resolved that every breathing creature: flora, fauna, and bloke over every phase in history, emerged from a primeval single-celled creature (Darwin, 2017). He envisioned how a one-celled organism increasingly developed and transmuted across several progenies to different and further complicated beings. Secondly, he talked about organic progressions, which he believed was the manner in which the creatures advanced and reproduced over some generations. He named the means by which organisms could progressively advance natural selection and maintained that such a process could produce new organisms altogether. The characteristics of the organisms differed from one another. The variations in the traits are the factors that influenced which species will survive and which ones would not.

From the layman’s point of view, it is quite difficult to account for how all the living things- plants and animals, including man- on earth emerged from a primordial cell. Nonetheless, Darwin uses the principles of nature to expound on the matter. First, is the law of inheritance whereby there is a high likelihood of offspring to resemble their parents. A lion will beget a cub that will take the exact form of its parent and the same is true in all the other species. The principle of variation is the second one. It is factual that offspring will take the exact form of their parent or progenitor, but that does not imply that the offspring will look the same with their progenitor or even themselves (Crawford, 1989). There will be variations. For instance, In the case of the lion’s cubs, the cubs will have different forms. Others will have stronger jaws and claws than others. The variations in the species may be an improvement, which will enable such a species to survive and adapt to the changing environment and pass the adaptations to its offspring. The reverse, which is a debility in the variations, will not enable the species to adapt to the changing environment, hence the perishing of such species. Thirdly, is the rule of overproduction. Population increases with time, and as more species produce, the limited land is not able to accommodate them. This results in the struggle for life whereby every species want to survive on the limited resources and some species are not able to attain maturity because of that. The fourth one is natural selection or the struggle for the fittest which denotes that when a species adapts a favorable character trait that has a slight deviation from the common traits of its ilk, then that species will endure. The adaptions are passed to the next generation and the generations to follow until they become dominant in the species. Species unable succumb to the forces of nature (Hodge, 1874).

Adaptation can be defined as the attributes that enable individual species to recognize their instant aims that they should possess in order to prevail and reproduce effectively (Dunbar, 1982). Species are said to have adapted only if their body form, physiological activities as well as the behaviorism impact on the capability of their survival and breeding as they compete with other species of their kind. Natural selection according to Darwin does not only mean that species will be advancing, but it also takes into consideration the fact that all adaptations as they emerge are useful to every species in their composite relationship with life. Advancement of species in natural selection does not just entail the anatomical composition of a species; it also comprises of surmises and intelligence (Dunbar, 1982). Species are also capable of transmitting the varying intuitions from one generation to another. Darwin observes that the conduct of species is most probably deviations from the operational structures that meditated it. Consequently, one can deduce that advancement in individuals no longer occurs through natural selection. Progressed behavioral alterations do not stimulate our conduct, inferring that changes in behavior that transpired in our ancestors no longer affect contemporary behavior patterns.

Psychology can be defined as the scientific research of an individual’s behavior. It is originally a word emanating from two words in Greek. That is psyche denoting the soul and logos, inferring the study of the term. Boring (1966) noted that the words were first used in the sixteenth century when psyche referred to the human mind soul different from one’s body structure. The theory of evolution as stated by Darwin has contributed to the advancement of psychology greatly. First, it extends the understanding of psychology on the foundation of comportment. As an example, most scholars and scientists have credited human and animal behavior to factors such as the anatomy and environmental impulse. Some ecological reasons such as climate, the source of food and pressure from the predators are perceived to be the major causes of the advancement and change in behavior in most species. Darwinism also provides an important perspective used in the study of mental functions. In that case, a gradual change in the outlook established a conjecture that creatures usually advance to develop the aptness of their genomic relations. Therefore, responsiveness is just away facilitating various actions of reconciliation. These actions can also alternate from being an act of selfness to an absolute blame and exploitation of a given group of species, with the aim of benefiting others who belong to the same group. For that reason, empathy can consider as one of the ways of satisfying the needs of another person as it is in contrast with violence. Also, the probability of having individual a compassionate individual being involved in the act of violence is very minimal. In this particular case, the female species are usually more sympathetic than their male counterparts. Naturally, compassionate individuals are afraid of hostile conditions and human beings as well. Compassion as a trait is very important, and individuals who possess the quality are automatically members of the genomic relation defining the familial population.

Moreover, the study of psychology was started more than 130 years ago by a German professor known as Mr. Wilhelm Wundt. He also had a laboratory at Leipzig University in 1879 for performing psychological research. In that case, Wilhelm was able to teach the public about the difference between psychology and philosophy from the scientific point of view. Wilhelm Wundt also went ahead to establish a journal that was dedicated to delivering research on psychology. Also, Stanley Hall who was a friend to Mr. Wilhelm set up one of the earliest psychological laboratories at the University of Johns Hopkins. He also introduced a pioneer academic journal for promoting the study of psychology. Stanley was also one of the scholars who initiated the formation of APA (American Psychological Association) in 1892. This institution is committed to the positive progression of psychology across the world. Even the first opinions about psychology included functionalism and structuralism. Functionalism predicts that psychology can be examined from consciousness and not makeup. On the other hand, structuralism considers the study of consciousness as one of the fundamental components of psychology function (Weiten, 2010). In 1890, William James published an influential book known as the Principles of Psychology. The book talk about the work of Darwin on the natural selection in the heart of the inborn features has the procreant advantage of inheriting the posterity. Passing the notion of the people, James illustrated that consciousness is one of the critical attributes of human beings.

Owing to his enormous experience in treating mental conditions such as apprehensions, irrational disorders, and fascinations, Sigmund Freud designed psychoanalysis, which illustrates that unconscious consists of longings, thoughts, and reminiscences. These conditions are also influenced by the behavior of a person. The theory of psychoanalysis also justifies rational disorders, inspiration, and character, which are the major determinant of behavior. Freud also illustrated that most of the psychological struggles are influenced by the person’s disturbance, which occurs during the unconscious stage. The theory later gains acknowledgment at the University of Clark in 1909.

In 1913, another scholar known as John Watson came up with the theory of behaviorism. The theory was founded on the basis that the principle of psychology is supposed to be used in examining only noticeable behavior. John Watson, a strong critic of the Freud’s theory. According to John, scientific processes can be controlled through verifiability. Behaviors are learned from the environment to which a person belongs. There is nothing like inheritable behaviors as illustrated by the natural selection. Similarly, Carl Rogers promoted the psychological approach known as humanistic through the book known as Client-Centered Therapy in 1951. Carl illustrated that individuals cannot be the hostage of their ecological occurrence or innate inheritance (Tooby, 2005). The humanistic approach is more about the optimistic angle describing human personality. It evaluates various distinctive traits of human beings such as the ability and liberty to be creative and ensure self-establishment (Tooby, 2005). Another scholar also did a publication about how self-awareness controls the behavior of human behavior. Abraham Maslow did the publication in 1954, and according to him, human beings are better than animals because animals do not have self-awareness.

Based on the above-discussed history, research on psychology has grown to the next level. In that case, psychology cannot be classified as a branch of pure science (Tooby, 2005). It is an area that requires practically proven theories for one to be recognized as a professional in the field of psychology. It can also be divided into various branches such as clinical psychology, which is about assessment and analysis of various psychological ailments. Another branch is counseling psychology, which is similar to clinical psychology because of the various activities involved. For that reason, educational psychology is about teaching people on how to solve school-related challenges. The final type of psychology is the industrial psychology, which is more about the motivation of the employees to improve their morale while they are in the workplace.

X, Y, and Z Theories

Douglas McGregor advocated X and Y theories in the 1960s whereas William Ouchi proposed theory Y in 1981. The theories are related to Maslow’s theory of the hierarchy of needs which is also a motivation theory. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs expounds on the thought that human needs are the motivators at the workplace (Scott, 2015). The needs are physiological, safety, belonging, esteem as well as self-actualization. The needs are fulfilled in that order from the most basic to the highest, and no necessity should go before the other. Theory X defines the conduct of the workforce in the organization. It states that employees are passive, not creative, do not like responsibility and they just like to be supervised. The workers are only inspired to do their job by physical payments like money, intimidations to career security and warnings of castigation. Theory X states that employees can overburden supervisors and managers because they are required create some authoritarian management. This approach will ensure that all of the workers are closely supervised as they perform their daily activities. However, according to Mcgregor, employees, which belong to X type are the minority. Still, companies as one of the elements of authoritarian management approach must employ mass production.

Theory Y implies that employees are motivated to deliver their best at work. Some are driven by personal interests. In that case, they are target-oriented, self-discipline, self-directed and can help companies achieve their long-term goals. This kind of employees will take the responsibility of looking for duties at their place of work. Therefore, they like workplaces that promotes creativity, ingenuity, and imaginations for solving problems within an organization. In simple terms, theory Y is commonly used for the participatory form of management, where there is an assumption that the personnel groups are creative in their on the way.

Theory Z endorses a balance of all the opposite features of the Y model and the contemporary Japanese supervision precepts, which places a huge amount of freedom and faith in the workers and supposes that employees are trustworthy and they are more concerned about the success of the firm. Theory Z also exudes confidence in the employees to be able to carry out their tasks whereas theory X and Y majorly focus on supervision from a manager’s point of view.

In conclusion, it is not accurate to contend that psychology has varied as a result of the three theories (x, y, and z). Various methodologies of management might have prompted how individuals conduct themselves at work. Nevertheless, it is an individual’s will to behave in a certain way, implying that the person's personality largely influences one's actions or how one grew up. As much as a person is working in an enabling environment where creativity and ambitiousness can be molded, it is still possible to find the same person avoiding responsibilities and tasks assigned to him. Such behaviors are as a result of a person’s selfless, the environment around him or childhood experiences while growing up. Therefore, it is not right to entirely assume that one’s behavior is as a result of a single cause. It might turn out to be true but yet not complete. The various reasons responsible for behavior include, but are not limited to ecological reasons, genetic composition as well as cultural and religious foundations of a person.









References

Boring, E. G. (1966). A Note on the Origin of the Word Psychology. Journal of the History of the behavioral sciences. (Vol 2 Issue 2). Pg. 167

Crawford, C.B. (1989). Theory of evolution: of what value to psychology? Journal of Comparative Psychology (Vol. 103, No. 1). Pg. 4-22

Darwin, C. (2017). The Origin of Species.

Dunbar, R. I. M. (1982). Adaptation, fitness and the evolutionary tautology. In King's College Sociobiology Group (Eds.), Current problems in Sociobiology (pg. 9-29). Cambridge, United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press.

Hodge, C., (1874) Darwinism. New York: H.O. Houghton and Company. March/April issue.

Scott, E. B. (2015) Management Theory: X, Y, Z and Maslow Western Banker Magazine

Tooby, J., & Cosmides L. (2005). The Handbook of Evolutionary Psychology. David M. Buss (Ed.). Pg.5-67

Weiten, W. (2010). Psychology: Themes and Variations. Wadsworth