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| "Human Dignity is Inviolable" (2016) by Case Maclaim in Manchester, UK |
According to Soni, what ultimately inspired the workers to take action was Ted Quant's rousing speech about dignity and honor (136).
Do you think most people you know are motivated by abstract concepts like "dignity" and "honor"? Or do they respond to more tangible goals? Put another way, do you think most people you know are more idealistic or are they practical minded? What experiences are likely to make a person incline one way or the other?
If students are told that their "honor" is at stake when they are deciding whether to complete an assignment without cheating, are they likely to take that seriously? Or are most students more likely to do whatever they think they can get away with without getting caught? What percentage of students cheat when they can get away with it?
Only answer this question after you've read part three, chapter five and all the preceding chapters. If you answer this question or any subsequent questions without reading--not just skimming--the preceding chapters, that's cheating.
The psychology behind human motivation is very complex. There are many causes to motivation, all the way from the relief of getting rid of that nagging feeling of thirst in your mouth, to receiving validation and attention from others by achieving something difficult. Motivation, thus, plays a central role in all of our lives. People respond differently to the various forms of motivation one might encounter. While one person might be more motivated by tangible and “practical” goals like money and other material possessions, others might be more motivated by abstract goals like achieving dignity, honor, or following one’s values. I would assert, however, that the former (tangible goals) is a greater motivator for most people. That is because tangible goals tend to be quicker to achieve and provide more instant gratification. Idealistic goals like achieving honor for your family or living a life of dignity require much more long term commitment in many cases because achieving that goal is not as simple to recognize. Tangible goals are easy to check off a list because the nature of this type of goal generally only has two states of completion: completed or not completed. On the other hand, abstract goals require deep introspection because these goals may have many complex states of completion. This causes people to generally be less motivated by these types of goals.
ReplyDeleteThere are, however, variables that may give someone more motivation. Having strong and clear beliefs about why one must pursue these abstract goals, like in the case of the immigrants wanting to finally do right by their families, is an example of this. Additionally, certain traits like a high level of self-awareness can be a catalyst for this type of motivation for multiple reasons, including keeping accountability, reminding oneself why the goal is important to them, and allowing people to choose the right goals for their own values.
The answer as to whether students would complete their assignment more honestly if they were told their “honor” was at stake, depends on the aforementioned traits and characteristics and, additionally, what kind of assignment is presented, among other factors. The percentage of students that cheat when there is a low chance of repercussions is high in my experience. But it again depends. For example, if a student is able to more easily understand why the assignment is important, then they would be more likely to not cheat.
As a kid, I went to a youth church service with my childhood best friend. There was something that the youth pastor said that has always stuck with me. The pastor explained that when we are born we start our life with the sin of selfishness because we come into this world screaming and crying when we want something, while not considering who we are affecting. When he first said it, I immediately felt like it was wrong to say. How could you call babies, supposedly the most innocent beings in our society, “sinful"? With that I have to say, I don’t completely see eye to eye with him, however, I do think he was right about one thing. When we come into this world all we can think about is survival and tangible goals, Which shows it is in our biological nature to be more concerned with tangible goals than ideals, because tangible items help us survive. However, due to the human brain's desire to grow and think outside of its biological box, most people develop more ideal-based mindsets as they age.
ReplyDeleteWhile most people tend to grow and develop more of an ideal-based mindset, many factors can prevent a person from developing these ideals. For instance, If a person struggles throughout their adolescence they may always be stuck in the mindset of survival and be more focused on tangible goals later in their life. On the flip side of that coin, A person who has a secure adolescence may be more likely to develop better and stronger ideals. However, another factor to consider is whether or not people will stick to their mindset.
A person might have a generally idealistic mindset when something is important to them, but will they stay that way when something is not important? The hypothetical question about whether or not a student would cheat on an assignment, even though they know their honor is at stake, would depend on whether or not the assignment was important to that student. If it is important then I believe the student will stick to their ideal of honor, however, if it is not then I think they will take their chances to cheat. In the case of the student compromising their ideals to get an easy A, I still believe that the individual is idealistic because people aren’t so simple. A person can be very idealistic at one point in time and be completely practical in another.
Honor is a very interesting thing to consider on its own. Honor is really a score you get based on how well you abide by your societies set of moral rules. Integrity is the threshold at which you do what is considered an honorable task. But say that you live in a society that does not place any value on honor. Without the validation of society, honor no longer has the effect that drives people to achieve it. Or say that your society has so many different standards for honor that it becomes more of an abstract concept and no longer holds personal weight. I believe that is where American society is at. Many people just go about their business, doing whatever makes sense or seems easiest to them without considering the moral implications. If an American cheats on an assignment, someone will scold them. If they don't, somebody will call them stupid. So why adhere to some antiquated system, when you can just do whatever is best for you in the moment by your own standards.
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