The Emotions and Behavior

Hume pointed out that throughout human history, humans have had the same passions (emotions) and that these passions have motivated similar behaviors:

It is universally acknowledged, that there is a great uniformity among the actions of men, in all nations and ages, and that human nature remains still the same, in its principles and operations. The same motives always produce the same actions: The same events follow from the same causes. Ambition, avarice, self-love, vanity, friendship, generosity, public spirit; these passions, mixed in various degrees, and distributed through society, have been, from the beginning of the world, and still are, the source of all the actions and enter- prises, which have ever been observed among mankind. (Steinberg, 1977.)

Hume noted that even though all humans pos- sess the same passions, they do not do so in the same degree and, because different individuals pos- sess different patterns of passions, they will respond differently to situations. The pattern of passions that a person possesses determines his or her character, and it is character that determines behavior. It is a person’s character that allows for his or her consistent interactions with people. It is through individual experience that certain impressions and ideas become associated with certain emotions. It is the passions elicited by these impressions and ideas, however, that will determine one’s behavior. This is another application of the laws of association, only in this case the associations are between various experiences and the passions and between passions and behavior. In general, we can say that individuals will seek experiences associated with pleasure and avoid experiences associated with pain.