The Laws of Human Nature

Abstract

A profound transition is taking place in the science of psychology at the present time. For over a hundred years the basic assumptions of psychology have remained practically unchanged in spite of the fact that the adequacy of these assumptions has been questioned many times. The reason for this lack of progress can be found in an obsolete philosophical heritage from which psychology has been unable to free itself until recent times. Briefly, this heritage is the assumption that physical laws are mechanical and mental laws are non-mechanical. This meant that it was impossible to ascertain the true laws of mind in their relation to body functions. The theoretical difficulties that have stood in the way have disappeared in the evolution of an entirely new set of concepts that fit both the operation of the body and of the mind. These concepts are organismic in character and harbor no mechanistic or vitalistic implications. The assumption is made that the laws of nature are universal laws whether employed by the physicist or the psychologist, and these laws are the laws of *dynamics broadly interpreted from an organismic standpoint.