Human Nature and Conduct by Part 2, The Place of Impulse In Conduct-John Dewey.
Part 2 describes Dewey's concept of IMPULSES. They encompass the interaction of one's self with the environment. When the environment encounters problems with one's HABITS, Impulses are the motivating, innate forces which prompt one to modify habits and/or modify the environment. "Nature vs Nurture" explanations of someone's personality are deceptive and fallacious. This stems from the human inclination to CLASSIFY things - practically everything! Innate behaviors are a collection of habits which one's culture has solidified as Customs. Most education is not learning but rather training of one's habits to harmonize with local customs. Human nature is plastic, malleable. Customs are, almost by definition, rigid. And, because one's environment is always changing, customs and its supporting habits are continually being tested. Nations disintegrate when their customs grow inflexible.
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Public-domain recording courtesy of LibriVox (librivox.org).
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