This gets at the core question of are humans naturally good or evil? And if humans are capable of evil, then does their capacity for evil mean that violence will always, naturally be present in our world? I can honestly say I hope that is not the case. As a Psychology major I have often studied serial killer’s brain imaging scans as well as studies on the media’s impact on violence in individuals. Through looking at the studies done with MRI scans on killers, I’ve seen that there is a genetic predisposition to being violent due to abnormalties in a specific region of the brain. So while some studies project that about 2% of the population are “natural killers” (genetically predisposed to killing), other studies such as the effect of violent TV and video games on the presence of violent acts carried out by children has shown me that the way we act out is a reflection of our violent society. I believe there is definitely interplay between the biological and social aspects of how we act out in violence. I think that due to the war-driven society that we live in, violence is going to be inevitable until there is a major paradigm shift in our culture.
The part of Danika’s response that struck me the most is that 2% of the population is genetically predisposed to violence. The possibility of being predisposed to violence makes me wonder that if the region of the brain that is responsible for violence is stimulated, can the region grow and strengthen, thereby allowing the individual to accept and commit more violence, or does the region stay the same throughout the individual’s life? If this region has the ability to grow, it makes me think that being born into a culture filled with violence can alter our brain to make us more susceptible to reacting violently in difficult situations. Danika also points out that studies have shown that kids reenact what they see, so if violence is a regular part of their lives in entertainment and the news, they reproduce violence in their own lives. Is the violence that the children are producing a result of the “violent” region of the brain growing, or is it simply human nature to copy what we see? War has become so engrained in our world and society that we have become immune to its effects and often do not fully comprehend and digest what effects the violence has on the targeted people’s lives. Because our brains are being constantly stimulated by violence, is it possible for our brains to biologically change to accept violence as a natural part of life? The simple fact that some people are predisposed to violence due to an abnormality in their brains has opened up many questions and possibilities that I am interested in exploring.
The interplay of biological and social aspects of how we act is something I believe is being overlooked in both foreign and domestic policy, and it is interesting to read about natural instinct as an empirical science rather than political speculation. This would be even more interesting if applied on an international level, especially for global hegemony.