Erdemli Bireyin İnşası ve Özgecilik: Psikolojik Bir Değerlendirme

Abstract

Virtue is a pattern of an individual's emotions and behaviors; It can be defined as feeling, desiring, and taking action when necessary. Virtue is being able to respond with a rational and conscientious judgment rather than a habit that is practiced without thinking. Contrary to the "Kantian" and "Consequentialists" who focus on the rightness or wrongness of actions in the context of moral philosophy, "Virtue Theorists" focus on character and are concerned with the life of the individual as a whole. The main question for virtue theorists is “How should I live?” is the question, and the answer that should be given should be “Trying to have the virtues”. In Islamic culture, great importance is given to the building of the virtuous individual and society; in fact, this is the main purpose of the religion of Islam. In many studies conducted in psychology and its branch, the Psychology of Religion literature, it has been concluded that being virtuous is an important factor in the development and self-realization process of the individual. Altruism, which means living for someone else as a result of a natural goodness, preferring others to oneself, is considered one of the greatest virtues by some. In contrast, it can be seen as a state of psychological imbalance by others. As a result, altruism can sometimes be considered as a healthy mood and sometimes as a neurotic behavior in terms of sociopsychology. True altruists (sincere altruists) are those who can sacrifice themselves for others in times of danger and do so without any expectation. Participating in wars and becoming a martyr because of the love of homeland and religion can be shown as an example of a truly sincere and healthy behavior. There are also some forms of behavior that are actually neurotic behavior or a morbid condition but manifest under the guise of altruism. Hidden selfishness can sometimes be perceived as altruism. The intention to focus on one's own interest lies behind the action that seems like altruism in order to ensure the continuation of worldly interests and/or to gain status. This study is a qualitative study. The data were analyzed in the context of people's understanding of virtue in general and altruism in particular. It has been concluded that the main thing in the construction of the virtuous individual and, therefore, the virtuous society is to have consistency of discourse and action. The aim is to remind people or scientists, raise awareness, and offer a different perspective to the client and the counselor, especially in the psychotherapy process.