Based on this article it is very possible that our brains are responsible for our actions, good and bad. One assertion states that often most of human behaviors are based on the different state that the brain is in. It makes sense to me that our emotions would be associated with brain impulses and connected to our thought processes. In performing an experiment based on this idea, researchers tested whether people would associate criminal activity with violent ideas in the brain, or psychological factors. Results showed that most people would more easily believe that the individual’s violent streak was as a result of a the brain, and thus, caused by it. In many criminal rulings, people have to take into account the mental state and sanity of the accused, because often the person is mentally unstable. I believe that a majority of these criminals do have brains that “make them to do it” so to speak, and that acting out or behaving out of line is often affected by what our brains dictate to us. Other views believe that the individual did intend to cause harm to others, as a result of the psychological trauma that he went through in his childhood. Although this may be valid in some cases, I would be more susceptible to believing a brain-characterized action than one based on a psychological experience.
This is a very interesting article. It seems to almost present the view that we, as humans, may not be in any control of our actions at all-that we are made to do every single decision we make based on the states of the brain. I guess it would be hard, even impossible to truly find out if this is true, for if we are indeed made to ineluctably follow our brains, than any research opposed to that view could not be valid. I feel as though I am in charge of my own decisions, so until there is some very concrete proof regarding the brain's control over us, I will continue to believe that I have control over my self.
After reading i feel like yes our brain does give send us impulses to do things that are wrong but we make the decision ourselves to either listen or not to listen to whatever our brain is saying. Even though adolescence brains aren't fully developed they still know right from wrong its like excuses teenagers from lying because our brain hasn't matured enough for us to tell the truth. It would be really incredible if scientist could figure out exactly what causes us to do these bad things and if it is indeed our brain making us but until its proven i have reasonable doubt.
Reading this article made me realize there is some discussion on this topic. I've always assumed that you make your own decisions based on what your brain tells you to do. After reading this article, I do understand that the brain tells one what to do but we can change that mentality and do the right thing if what our brain is telling us is wrong. I feel like this debate is like the nature vs nurture debate. It is related because either you make the decision whether it is what your brain is telling you to do or not (nature) or you just follow exactly what your brain tells you to do (nurture). I think that we can make our own decisions and go against what our brain tells us. Sometimes we all do things we know are bad but we do them anyway. This is proof of our brain telling us not to do something, but we do it anyway.
This is something that I have thought about a lot. I watch many crime investigation shows and this topic comes up very frequently. I think in certain situations people's "brains" did make them do things. When there is a chemical imbalance in the brain or a person hears voices telling them to kill, I find it very hard to find the criminal completely at fault. Although in this instances where the mentally ill are at fault I believe that a sentencing to a mental rehabilitation facility is necessary. Even though these people are not entirely at fault they are not entirely blameless either. There are countless more people with these ailments that can live there lives free of crime. Personally in this situation I don't think there are any absolutes. It's all relative to the situation
The fact that the frontal lobes, responsible for self-control, may not be fully developed in young adults is a very important discovery. I strongly support the decision that adolescents should not be subject to the death penalty because our actions might not be completely our fault when we are younger. Also, because of possible chemical imbalances, we should not always be held accountable for our actions. Something that somebody does as a fifteen year old should not necessarily determine his or her future. We do need to be responsible for our actions and take control of them; however, this might be harder for some people than others because of the factors mentioned above.
After reading this article, it seemed obvious that biological causes of behavior cannot be separated from intentions. After all, the mind is invariably bound to the brain because it cannot exist without it. Intentions and chemical imbalances alike are biological causes of behavior. I agree with the author that certain facts cannot be disregarded when trying to assign a punishment for a crime. The age of a minor or an extreme mental illness should be taken into consideration when deciding a punishment. However, one should also be cautious not to excuse everything based on biology and circumstance. Statistics and tendencies of other individuals with the same condition should be examined to determine whether that factor really caused the individual to perform a behavior that they would have otherwise not done. Overall, I think that it is important to keep this issue in mind so that we can treat people fairly and still carry out justice.
I think this article is very interesting and it is something that could be a really interesting discovery, but I think that it would be very hard to find out what exactly triggers someone's action. I look at it as half and half. I think that yes, your brain does play a big role in your actions but then you do have self-control to actually make yourself do the action and listen to your brain. So, therefore, you have the option to listen to your brain or to ignore it. So, I think that knowing the difference between right and wrong comes into play with what your brain is telling you. When it comes to the controversy about adolescents being subject to death penalty, I think that it is fair that they are not because their frontal lobes are still developing and their self-control may not be as strong.
In all honesty I don't really have a strong opinion on this subject because the topic is very hazy, it could go either way and be very well supported. Somehow I feel that the cause of someones actions may be a combination of a genetic human rule and motivated wishes. Personally i wish the article had given a real life example because It's hard to understand exactly what it is saying. Although I think I understand. Somehow people are not always responsible for their actions but their brain is. I think this could be applied to most every decision, I mean when do you really know that your brain did it or you did? I simply don't know which is more reasonable yet because it is YOUR brain wouldn't that make it apart of YOU and therefore, yourself?
This is definitely an interesting topic, but at the same time very hard to wrap your head around. It is interesting that they say the brain is making the decision for you, although I know when I am standing in line at the campus shop deciding between chips or gummy worms, I believe that is me making my own personal decision and not my brain. I do understand that our brain may make stupid decisions when we are younger, due to the frontal lobe not being fully developed, but I still believe that it comes down to ourselves making the decisions, and that we need to be aware that we are not fully developed.
Based on the research discussed in this article I conclude that the brain is most likely solely responsible for our actions. All around the brain is a mystery and it is hard for scientists to study how the brain affects human decisions. Such as violent strikes as researched in this article. Also each situation can vary based on genetics and on personal background. In conclusion the brain is responsible for your actions but what your brain decides is based on your opinions and your personal experiences.
The article said things in kind of a confusing way. Im not even entirely sure what its facts are. I mostly got out of it that, that the people acting violently say that they are making some of the decisions but other people think that it is just their past. But what the article was saying is that the psychological states of the participant are also biological because ones biology feeds into their psychology. I dont feel like this is a completely valid argument for every person because there are probably some people who decide to act violently.
I found this article very interesting. It is a very controversial subject, whether the phycological or biological component of the brain is to blame for our behaviors. What I got out of it was that there is no clear cut answer, it is a ever changing balance. I think that our chemical makeup, genetics, and experiences are contributions to our actions, but ultimately our behavior is whether we choose to act or resist our biological impulses.
I think this topic is very interesting and could go either way. You could say that a persons background affects the way they make decisions but it will always be biological. The brain is responsible for our actions but this topic is hard to pinpoint exactly what affects it. I think it depends on the situation and also I think that either way, the person should have self control even if they are immature. One thing to take into consideration is the maturity level. If you are looking at a case of a child that committed a crime, you might think that it was because they are too immature to know whats right. In these types of situations, i think that the child still has to have self control and that the mind is solely what triggers your actions.
The author of the article is right: my brain is responsible for every single thing I ever have done and ever will do in my whole entire life. It's a little ridiculous to say that it's not; without my brain I wouldn't be able to do anything. That being said, in my opinion it's also a little ridiculous to think that nurture doesn't have anything to do with it at all. They way we are raised is crucial to who we become later in life. For example, the way that a child is shown love in the first few years of his life is the way that he will show love to other people for the rest of his life. It is my opinion that nature and nurture are equally important when it comes to people making decisions. However, it is also my opinion that nowadays when people who are perfectly capable of making good decisions make bad ones, they have so many scapegoats; mental illness, childhood trauma, etc. Just own up to the fact that you made a bad decision and move on.
The discovery that our frontal lobes are not fully developed is an extremely important discovery. Because we are now aware that young adults frontal lobes are not fully developed I support the decision that young adults should not have to be put on the death penalty because our frontal lobes are not fully developed. If these lobes aren't fully developed then we are not completely aware of our actions and therefore they are not our fault. Our brain plays a major role in these actions. The brain controls almost everything, but at the same time there should be some self control and knowing right from wrong. I think it is important to keep these issues in mind when determining whether an adolescent should be subject to the death penalty.
i agree with the article that the brain controls what i do but at the same time there is also free will. If every criminal pleaded that they were messed up in the head based on this article those people could receive a lesser sentence than they deserve. This is not fair and on top of everything people can choose to do things their brain may be telling them not to do. This does not in anyway excuse them from their crimes and they should be punished.
I strongly agree with the article in the sense that our brains ultimately decide every decision we make, however the way we think, and many of our choices are results of external stimulus. For example, the Colorado Movie Theatre shooter had suffered harsh bullying, and lack of parental involvement in addition to his natural chemical imbalances. In his case, I do not believe that he would have committed a mass murder if he had had a better upbringing. Granted, he was clearly a mentally unstable to begin with, but many people are psychologically troubled and are not violent. What tipped his scale so that he became violent? A side note, I do not believe that capital punishment is ever okay, and that everybody has a right to life, even if it is in jail.
After reading this article I do not really have an exact opinion. I feel like it could go either way. It partially depends on your brain, however; there can be conscious/intentional behavior that is not blamed only on the brain. As far as crime punishment goes, I agree with the law that was about the adolescents not being sentenced to a death penalty because they are not fully developed.
Before reading this article, I believed that our brains did not "make us do it". After reading this article, I still believe that our brain did not make us do it. Although I believe that our brains did not make us do it, I believe the findings in this article are interesting. For instance, the discovery that our frontal lobes aren't completely developed as adolescents is significant. However, as the article stated, we didn't need science to tell us that adolescents struggle with self-control. I too believe that our brains are responsible for behavior, but human experiences can alter our behavior. It is important to note that everyone experiences everything differently, however, we all seem to have a general sense of right and wrong and can choose whether or not to act on our belief of right and wrong. People can be mean and cruel, which proves that people are fully aware of their behaviors. Mean people have intentions to hurt others, as do criminals. Although I believe that our brains did not make us do it, it is a difficult stance to take since no one is ever really sure how much of an effect human experiences can have on one's behaviors.
I think that our brain being underdeveloped is definitely a reason why adolescents make the choices that they do. You show a lot more self control as you get older. I think that it is true that we are not fully mature to make certain decisions but I think that it isn't right that they think that you can make the right decisions in war at age 18 but you cant make the right decision while having an alcoholic beverage until 21. I agree with the fact that the death penalty for juveniles is unconstitutional because I think that a lot of times as a teenager or child you make mistakes that you later realize weren't the right decision.
The article was very interesting regarding the responsibility of our brains and decisions. I think it it very possible that some decisions we make are based off of an unconscious part of our brain that we might not have compete control over. Although there are some studies on the idea of our brains "making" us do stuff, I think it is a hard case to prove. Also, as an adolescent it is easier to relate to the idea of acting off of impulses and not completely rationalizing decisions and actions. Therefore I agree with the idea of adolescents receiving less harsh punishments for crimes then adults.
I agree with the fact that as young adults our brain isn't fully developed and that can cause us to make decisions that are not the best. I think that it partially plays into the fact that our brain isn't fully developed but also to the fact we are still young and we still have a lot to learn. I think it is interesting that our decisions could be made from an unconscious part of the brain and that more studies should be done to test this theory. Overall this article was very interesting.
I think an adolescent should not be held totally responsible for actions that he or she may make because their brain IS still developing. However, I think when people get to a certain age they need to start recognizing that some actions were their fault and not just blame it on their brain. I understand that our brain does make us make some decisions but you can't go through life just blaming everything you do on your subconscious mind, you have to take responsibility for your own actions.
I think that because young adults brains have not fully developed they have less control of the decisions that they make. However most young adults know what morally correct and should be punished for their crimes. Even if their brain is more likely to make them commit their crimes they still need to be punished like anyone else.
I found this article very interesting, how it says that adolescents shouldnt be held responsible for their actions because their brains are not fully developed. but I still think they should be held responsible for their actions even though their brains are not fully developed they still know what they are doing and should be help responsible.
I believe that because young adults brains are not fully developed we make more mistakes and learn from these mistakes. The idea that your brain is making your decisions is an interesting one because it test the idea that people control their minds. I believe that all mentally stable people do have the power to control what they are doing. I also believe that people should be punished for their actions even if they claim not to have control of their actions.
I think that this article does point out an important point: teenagers mess up. These kids are getting off the hook with the law because "their brain isn't developed" which in turn made them do whatever the bad thing was. I don't believe that people should even consider this as an excuse to let a kid off from breaking the law. The kid was still thinking wasn't he? I believe that regardless weather our brains are developed fully or not breaking the law is still breaking the law, there shouldn't be an excuse.
I think that young adults brains aren't fully developed yet, but thats no excuse for doing bad things like breaking the law. Even if your brain isn't fully developed, by the time you are a young adult you should have a good idea of basic moral and ethical codes that you should know to not break.
I think that the article definitely makes a strong argument, the brain does control us, but technically we control our brain (the brain controls itself, but your brain is part of us). So in adolescence you could definitely not be able to be responsible for some of your actions because you are not in full awareness of your brain is telling you.
Our brains are responsible for all of our actions, including the good and bad. After reading this article I believe that our brain does control our conscious and unconscious drives. In the experiment described, they tested those who had committed acts of violence and what could have possibly caused them to make those decisions. During the experiment they tested some who experienced rough childhoods and others who had deformities in the brain. As a result of the experiment they concluded that the majority of people would assume that a criminals (violent) past was a result of the brain, which caused the person to make poor decisions. I agree with the author about how teenagers and mentally ill peoples actions should be taken into consideration when brought to court. In addition to that I think that it is fair for minors to not receive the death penalty because of how little their frontal lobes are developed (compared to an adult) Also another point mentioned was about how as a society, we should think about what we will do and the amount of impact it has rather than what our brain tells us.
It makes sense what was said in the article, after all the brain is considered the most advanced computer there is, all be it and organic one, still a type of computer with electrical impulses and signals running through it. If something gets messed with in our brain that can change the way the signals are sent and how our brain works, thus changing the way we are. it's kind of like the Phineas Gage case with the spike through his head, only a bit more severe, and changing him more drastically.
I think that this argument could go either way in different cases... Yes, teenagers/young adults brain's are not completely developed, which could cause them to make mistakes, but this is still something that they should be punished for. When someone entirely blames their actions on their brain being underdeveloped you know that that would be just an excuse because their brain is developed enough already in order to make their own decisions and decide their own actions.
Interesting article. Yes, adults are more mature and are older but this could be because of experiences that have developed them over time. You could argue that the brain is more developed at an older age or that experiences have taught it to be more mature. Also there are many kids that are very mature. A child's age should not determine whether they are mature or not. I know many adults that act like kids. It all comes down to the individual person and Im not sure this is a study you can generalize.
I think the writer of this article is going against the biological approach. Maybe we should not just leave everything to scientific explanations because not every source is straightforward and simple. It makes me think that maybe I behave in ways that I am unaware of at the time and I question myself on normal behavior. Maybe the environment in which I grew up in had a bigger effect on my behavior than I could have imagined. However, I agree with the article and believe that we do know what we are doing MOST of the time and are fully aware of it. This I think should not be an excuse for adolescents because our brains might be immature, but we can still determine what is right from what is wrong.
Chandler Cook- Personally, i think that each one of us have full control over actions we make. Even though through research it has been proven that the brain controls most actions, we are still in complete control. If adolescents cannot be punished because their brain is not fully developed than can we praise them for accomplishments or successes? Maybe i'm wrong but its just a thought.
I agree that the brain isn’t fully developed as a teenager which causes us to make some poor decisions. I think we still have a part in the decisions we make, its not just all the brain. I think that teenagers acting out has a lot to do with what happened to them in the past. The article did confuse me a little though.
Before reading the article I always believed that people had main control over there actions. However now I think that we have less control then we think. Something as simple as a imbalance of chemicals can make you go crazy and shoot up a movie theater. Also as an adolescent you don't think of yourself as someone who has little control over there actions. However our frontal not being fully developed it makes sense that younger people generally make worse decisions because we cant control it. -Alex Johnson
I think that the assertions made in the article are completely valid. Everything action relates back to the brain, but there are some that are more directly influenced than others. For example, when it talks about 1% of people with a brain malfunction committing violence, it makes sense that the violence can be completely blamed on the brain problem in every case. If 100% of people with a brain malfunction committed violence, it would be much more likely that they were directly related. I think that the statements about charging adolescents is spot on. I agree that, due to brain development, adolescents cannot be judged or punished so harshly when they still have time to mature and improve their behaviors. But that being said, one could argue that everyone has room to grow and mature and fix themselves, so it could be seen either way. -Hannah Bell
I believe that our brains are involved in every act we commit. People who have brain disorders are not aware of the effects of the actions they commit because they are unconscious of it. I also believe that people who are of a younger age do not understand the effects of their actions because their brains are not fully developed. Although this does not give young people an excuse to make bad decisions, I definitely believe it is something we need to be aware of.
I found this article very intriguing. I personally agree as a young adult our brains are not fully developed just yet, while we're young we make mistakes and learn from them. Of course as young adults get older our brains develop and even mature, most of the time because of learning from the mistakes we make while we're young. The example of the Colorado Movie Shooting I believe he would have never committed that mass murder if he had a better childhood, his past was what led him to be the way he is today. We're always held responsible for our actions even if our brain unconsciously makes those decisions.
I agree with the article. Yes you can attribute attitudes and reactions to different situations to biology, but I also think there are aspects of a persons childhood that affect the way they react. Children mature as they get older and there are situations that many young teenagers and children alike have not experienced. They we react to certain situations will cause other things to happen. In the case of the colorado movie shooting, the shooters past of bullying did attribute to him shooting people in a movie theatre.
I think that this is very interesting, however, like the article says, we cannot use this as an excuse for our actions. It's interesting to see the direction in which the science is evolving. I never thought that something like this was even possible. I'm a firm believer that will power is the strongest aspect of the brain. Of course, this doesn't always apply, but if you don't want to kill someone, then you probably wont. However, cases spring up in which people kill victims because they had a brain dysfunction. These victims of their own brains should still be help accountable for their actions, but they should be treated, not thrown in jail. If we ever do manage to prove that your brain does force you to commit certain heinous actions, then maybe we will be able to better society and clear out some jails. But until then, we must always be aware and responsible for our actions.
I agree that our brain does dictate some of our actions and that impulses are automatic, but I don't think that can justify doing harm to someone. As humans, we are able to think about our actions before we do them. We can weigh the consequences and decide if it is moral or not. I don't think that every action we do is caused by our brain chemistry, but I think since it affects our emotions, which relates to how we act, then it might be related. Savannah Harris
I feel like you do have control over your actions if we are talking about killing but there are some times when you just cannot control yourself even though you really want to be able to. I feel like if you kill someone they shouldn't claim you not guilty because you can't help it. You can help it and if you are crazy then you are crazy but you still killed someone so you shouldn't get off for it cause you will most likely go do it again. -Lizzie Wilmer
I don't believe that someones biology can justify their actions. Though our brain does control majority of our actions and reactions (for example reflex) our "will power" or "free will" is stronger. I think its our moral choices that separates us from the rest of the animals, our ability to choose not to kill someone. People who have brain dysfunctions are still making doing the action and must pay for their crime. Perhaps they shouldn't go to jail but rather a mental institution where they can get help and be able to understand what they have done.
Based on this article it is very possible that our brains are responsible for our actions, good and bad. One assertion states that often most of human behaviors are based on the different state that the brain is in. It makes sense to me that our emotions would be associated with brain impulses and connected to our thought processes. In performing an experiment based on this idea, researchers tested whether people would associate criminal activity with violent ideas in the brain, or psychological factors. Results showed that most people would more easily believe that the individual’s violent streak was as a result of a the brain, and thus, caused by it. In many criminal rulings, people have to take into account the mental state and sanity of the accused, because often the person is mentally unstable. I believe that a majority of these criminals do have brains that “make them to do it” so to speak, and that acting out or behaving out of line is often affected by what our brains dictate to us. Other views believe that the individual did intend to cause harm to others, as a result of the psychological trauma that he went through in his childhood. Although this may be valid in some cases, I would be more susceptible to believing a brain-characterized action than one based on a psychological experience.
ReplyDeleteThis is a very interesting article. It seems to almost present the view that we, as humans, may not be in any control of our actions at all-that we are made to do every single decision we make based on the states of the brain. I guess it would be hard, even impossible to truly find out if this is true, for if we are indeed made to ineluctably follow our brains, than any research opposed to that view could not be valid. I feel as though I am in charge of my own decisions, so until there is some very concrete proof regarding the brain's control over us, I will continue to believe that I have control over my self.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading i feel like yes our brain does give send us impulses to do things that are wrong but we make the decision ourselves to either listen or not to listen to whatever our brain is saying. Even though adolescence brains aren't fully developed they still know right from wrong its like excuses teenagers from lying because our brain hasn't matured enough for us to tell the truth. It would be really incredible if scientist could figure out exactly what causes us to do these bad things and if it is indeed our brain making us but until its proven i have reasonable doubt.
ReplyDeleteReading this article made me realize there is some discussion on this topic. I've always assumed that you make your own decisions based on what your brain tells you to do. After reading this article, I do understand that the brain tells one what to do but we can change that mentality and do the right thing if what our brain is telling us is wrong. I feel like this debate is like the nature vs nurture debate. It is related because either you make the decision whether it is what your brain is telling you to do or not (nature) or you just follow exactly what your brain tells you to do (nurture). I think that we can make our own decisions and go against what our brain tells us. Sometimes we all do things we know are bad but we do them anyway. This is proof of our brain telling us not to do something, but we do it anyway.
ReplyDeleteThis is something that I have thought about a lot. I watch many crime investigation shows and this topic comes up very frequently. I think in certain situations people's "brains" did make them do things. When there is a chemical imbalance in the brain or a person hears voices telling them to kill, I find it very hard to find the criminal completely at fault. Although in this instances where the mentally ill are at fault I believe that a sentencing to a mental rehabilitation facility is necessary. Even though these people are not entirely at fault they are not entirely blameless either. There are countless more people with these ailments that can live there lives free of crime. Personally in this situation I don't think there are any absolutes. It's all relative to the situation
ReplyDeleteThe fact that the frontal lobes, responsible for self-control, may not be fully developed in young adults is a very important discovery. I strongly support the decision that adolescents should not be subject to the death penalty because our actions might not be completely our fault when we are younger. Also, because of possible chemical imbalances, we should not always be held accountable for our actions. Something that somebody does as a fifteen year old should not necessarily determine his or her future. We do need to be responsible for our actions and take control of them; however, this might be harder for some people than others because of the factors mentioned above.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading this article, it seemed obvious that biological causes of behavior cannot be separated from intentions. After all, the mind is invariably bound to the brain because it cannot exist without it. Intentions and chemical imbalances alike are biological causes of behavior. I agree with the author that certain facts cannot be disregarded when trying to assign a punishment for a crime. The age of a minor or an extreme mental illness should be taken into consideration when deciding a punishment. However, one should also be cautious not to excuse everything based on biology and circumstance. Statistics and tendencies of other individuals with the same condition should be examined to determine whether that factor really caused the individual to perform a behavior that they would have otherwise not done. Overall, I think that it is important to keep this issue in mind so that we can treat people fairly and still carry out justice.
ReplyDeleteI think this article is very interesting and it is something that could be a really interesting discovery, but I think that it would be very hard to find out what exactly triggers someone's action. I look at it as half and half. I think that yes, your brain does play a big role in your actions but then you do have self-control to actually make yourself do the action and listen to your brain. So, therefore, you have the option to listen to your brain or to ignore it. So, I think that knowing the difference between right and wrong comes into play with what your brain is telling you. When it comes to the controversy about adolescents being subject to death penalty, I think that it is fair that they are not because their frontal lobes are still developing and their self-control may not be as strong.
ReplyDeleteIn all honesty I don't really have a strong opinion on this subject because the topic is very hazy, it could go either way and be very well supported. Somehow I feel that the cause of someones actions may be a combination of a genetic human rule and motivated wishes. Personally i wish the article had given a real life example because It's hard to understand exactly what it is saying. Although I think I understand. Somehow people are not always responsible for their actions but their brain is. I think this could be applied to most every decision, I mean when do you really know that your brain did it or you did? I simply don't know which is more reasonable yet because it is YOUR brain wouldn't that make it apart of YOU and therefore, yourself?
ReplyDeleteThis is definitely an interesting topic, but at the same time very hard to wrap your head around. It is interesting that they say the brain is making the decision for you, although I know when I am standing in line at the campus shop deciding between chips or gummy worms, I believe that is me making my own personal decision and not my brain. I do understand that our brain may make stupid decisions when we are younger, due to the frontal lobe not being fully developed, but I still believe that it comes down to ourselves making the decisions, and that we need to be aware that we are not fully developed.
ReplyDeleteBased on the research discussed in this article I conclude that the brain is most likely solely responsible for our actions. All around the brain is a mystery and it is hard for scientists to study how the brain affects human decisions. Such as violent strikes as researched in this article. Also each situation can vary based on genetics and on personal background. In conclusion the brain is responsible for your actions but what your brain decides is based on your opinions and your personal experiences.
ReplyDeleteThe article said things in kind of a confusing way. Im not even entirely sure what its facts are. I mostly got out of it that, that the people acting violently say that they are making some of the decisions but other people think that it is just their past. But what the article was saying is that the psychological states of the participant are also biological because ones biology feeds into their psychology. I dont feel like this is a completely valid argument for every person because there are probably some people who decide to act violently.
ReplyDeleteI found this article very interesting. It is a very controversial subject, whether the phycological or biological component of the brain is to blame for our behaviors. What I got out of it was that there is no clear cut answer, it is a ever changing balance. I think that our chemical makeup, genetics, and experiences are contributions to our actions, but ultimately our behavior is whether we choose to act or resist our biological impulses.
ReplyDeleteI think this topic is very interesting and could go either way. You could say that a persons background affects the way they make decisions but it will always be biological. The brain is responsible for our actions but this topic is hard to pinpoint exactly what affects it. I think it depends on the situation and also I think that either way, the person should have self control even if they are immature. One thing to take into consideration is the maturity level. If you are looking at a case of a child that committed a crime, you might think that it was because they are too immature to know whats right. In these types of situations, i think that the child still has to have self control and that the mind is solely what triggers your actions.
ReplyDeleteThe author of the article is right: my brain is responsible for every single thing I ever have done and ever will do in my whole entire life. It's a little ridiculous to say that it's not; without my brain I wouldn't be able to do anything. That being said, in my opinion it's also a little ridiculous to think that nurture doesn't have anything to do with it at all. They way we are raised is crucial to who we become later in life. For example, the way that a child is shown love in the first few years of his life is the way that he will show love to other people for the rest of his life. It is my opinion that nature and nurture are equally important when it comes to people making decisions. However, it is also my opinion that nowadays when people who are perfectly capable of making good decisions make bad ones, they have so many scapegoats; mental illness, childhood trauma, etc. Just own up to the fact that you made a bad decision and move on.
ReplyDeleteThe discovery that our frontal lobes are not fully developed is an extremely important discovery. Because we are now aware that young adults frontal lobes are not fully developed I support the decision that young adults should not have to be put on the death penalty because our frontal lobes are not fully developed. If these lobes aren't fully developed then we are not completely aware of our actions and therefore they are not our fault. Our brain plays a major role in these actions. The brain controls almost everything, but at the same time there should be some self control and knowing right from wrong. I think it is important to keep these issues in mind when determining whether an adolescent should be subject to the death penalty.
ReplyDeletei agree with the article that the brain controls what i do but at the same time there is also free will. If every criminal pleaded that they were messed up in the head based on this article those people could receive a lesser sentence than they deserve. This is not fair and on top of everything people can choose to do things their brain may be telling them not to do. This does not in anyway excuse them from their crimes and they should be punished.
ReplyDeleteI strongly agree with the article in the sense that our brains ultimately decide every decision we make, however the way we think, and many of our choices are results of external stimulus. For example, the Colorado Movie Theatre shooter had suffered harsh bullying, and lack of parental involvement in addition to his natural chemical imbalances. In his case, I do not believe that he would have committed a mass murder if he had had a better upbringing. Granted, he was clearly a mentally unstable to begin with, but many people are psychologically troubled and are not violent. What tipped his scale so that he became violent? A side note, I do not believe that capital punishment is ever okay, and that everybody has a right to life, even if it is in jail.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading this article I do not really have an exact opinion. I feel like it could go either way. It partially depends on your brain, however; there can be conscious/intentional behavior that is not blamed only on the brain. As far as crime punishment goes, I agree with the law that was about the adolescents not being sentenced to a death penalty because they are not fully developed.
ReplyDeleteBefore reading this article, I believed that our brains did not "make us do it". After reading this article, I still believe that our brain did not make us do it. Although I believe that our brains did not make us do it, I believe the findings in this article are interesting. For instance, the discovery that our frontal lobes aren't completely developed as adolescents is significant. However, as the article stated, we didn't need science to tell us that adolescents struggle with self-control. I too believe that our brains are responsible for behavior, but human experiences can alter our behavior. It is important to note that everyone experiences everything differently, however, we all seem to have a general sense of right and wrong and can choose whether or not to act on our belief of right and wrong. People can be mean and cruel, which proves that people are fully aware of their behaviors. Mean people have intentions to hurt others, as do criminals. Although I believe that our brains did not make us do it, it is a difficult stance to take since no one is ever really sure how much of an effect human experiences can have on one's behaviors.
ReplyDeleteI think that our brain being underdeveloped is definitely a reason why adolescents make the choices that they do. You show a lot more self control as you get older. I think that it is true that we are not fully mature to make certain decisions but I think that it isn't right that they think that you can make the right decisions in war at age 18 but you cant make the right decision while having an alcoholic beverage until 21. I agree with the fact that the death penalty for juveniles is unconstitutional because I think that a lot of times as a teenager or child you make mistakes that you later realize weren't the right decision.
ReplyDeleteThe article was very interesting regarding the responsibility of our brains and decisions. I think it it very possible that some decisions we make are based off of an unconscious part of our brain that we might not have compete control over. Although there are some studies on the idea of our brains "making" us do stuff, I think it is a hard case to prove. Also, as an adolescent it is easier to relate to the idea of acting off of impulses and not completely rationalizing decisions and actions. Therefore I agree with the idea of adolescents receiving less harsh punishments for crimes then adults.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the fact that as young adults our brain isn't fully developed and that can cause us to make decisions that are not the best. I think that it partially plays into the fact that our brain isn't fully developed but also to the fact we are still young and we still have a lot to learn. I think it is interesting that our decisions could be made from an unconscious part of the brain and that more studies should be done to test this theory. Overall this article was very interesting.
ReplyDeleteI think an adolescent should not be held totally responsible for actions that he or she may make because their brain IS still developing. However, I think when people get to a certain age they need to start recognizing that some actions were their fault and not just blame it on their brain. I understand that our brain does make us make some decisions but you can't go through life just blaming everything you do on your subconscious mind, you have to take responsibility for your own actions.
ReplyDeleteI think that because young adults brains have not fully developed they have less control of the decisions that they make. However most young adults know what morally correct and should be punished for their crimes. Even if their brain is more likely to make them commit their crimes they still need to be punished like anyone else.
ReplyDeleteI found this article very interesting, how it says that adolescents shouldnt be held responsible for their actions because their brains are not fully developed. but I still think they should be held responsible for their actions even though their brains are not fully developed they still know what they are doing and should be help responsible.
ReplyDeleteI believe that because young adults brains are not fully developed we make more mistakes and learn from these mistakes. The idea that your brain is making your decisions is an interesting one because it test the idea that people control their minds. I believe that all mentally stable people do have the power to control what they are doing. I also believe that people should be punished for their actions even if they claim not to have control of their actions.
ReplyDeleteI think that this article does point out an important point: teenagers mess up. These kids are getting off the hook with the law because "their brain isn't developed" which in turn made them do whatever the bad thing was. I don't believe that people should even consider this as an excuse to let a kid off from breaking the law. The kid was still thinking wasn't he? I believe that regardless weather our brains are developed fully or not breaking the law is still breaking the law, there shouldn't be an excuse.
ReplyDeleteI think that young adults brains aren't fully developed yet, but thats no excuse for doing bad things like breaking the law. Even if your brain isn't fully developed, by the time you are a young adult you should have a good idea of basic moral and ethical codes that you should know to not break.
ReplyDeleteI think that the article definitely makes a strong argument, the brain does control us, but technically we control our brain (the brain controls itself, but your brain is part of us). So in adolescence you could definitely not be able to be responsible for some of your actions because you are not in full awareness of your brain is telling you.
ReplyDeleteOur brains are responsible for all of our actions, including the good and bad. After reading this article I believe that our brain does control our conscious and unconscious drives. In the experiment described, they tested those who had committed acts of violence and what could have possibly caused them to make those decisions. During the experiment they tested some who experienced rough childhoods and others who had deformities in the brain. As a result of the experiment they concluded that the majority of people would assume that a criminals (violent) past was a result of the brain, which caused the person to make poor decisions. I agree with the author about how teenagers and mentally ill peoples actions should be taken into consideration when brought to court. In addition to that I think that it is fair for minors to not receive the death penalty because of how little their frontal lobes are developed (compared to an adult) Also another point mentioned was about how as a society, we should think about what we will do and the amount of impact it has rather than what our brain tells us.
ReplyDeleteIt makes sense what was said in the article, after all the brain is considered the most advanced computer there is, all be it and organic one, still a type of computer with electrical impulses and signals running through it. If something gets messed with in our brain that can change the way the signals are sent and how our brain works, thus changing the way we are. it's kind of like the Phineas Gage case with the spike through his head, only a bit more severe, and changing him more drastically.
ReplyDelete-Bates Jones
I think that this argument could go either way in different cases... Yes, teenagers/young adults brain's are not completely developed, which could cause them to make mistakes, but this is still something that they should be punished for. When someone entirely blames their actions on their brain being underdeveloped you know that that would be just an excuse because their brain is developed enough already in order to make their own decisions and decide their own actions.
ReplyDeleteInteresting article. Yes, adults are more mature and are older but this could be because of experiences that have developed them over time. You could argue that the brain is more developed at an older age or that experiences have taught it to be more mature. Also there are many kids that are very mature. A child's age should not determine whether they are mature or not. I know many adults that act like kids. It all comes down to the individual person and Im not sure this is a study you can generalize.
ReplyDeleteI think the writer of this article is going against the biological approach. Maybe we should not just leave everything to scientific explanations because not every source is straightforward and simple. It makes me think that maybe I behave in ways that I am unaware of at the time and I question myself on normal behavior. Maybe the environment in which I grew up in had a bigger effect on my behavior than I could have imagined. However, I agree with the article and believe that we do know what we are doing MOST of the time and are fully aware of it. This I think should not be an excuse for adolescents because our brains might be immature, but we can still determine what is right from what is wrong.
ReplyDeleteChandler Cook- Personally, i think that each one of us have full control over actions we make. Even though through research it has been proven that the brain controls most actions, we are still in complete control. If adolescents cannot be punished because their brain is not fully developed than can we praise them for accomplishments or successes? Maybe i'm wrong but its just a thought.
ReplyDeleteI agree that the brain isn’t fully developed as a teenager which causes us to make some poor decisions. I think we still have a part in the decisions we make, its not just all the brain. I think that teenagers acting out has a lot to do with what happened to them in the past. The article did confuse me a little though.
ReplyDeleteBefore reading the article I always believed that people had main control over there actions. However now I think that we have less control then we think. Something as simple as a imbalance of chemicals can make you go crazy and shoot up a movie theater. Also as an adolescent you don't think of yourself as someone who has little control over there actions. However our frontal not being fully developed it makes sense that younger people generally make worse decisions because we cant control it.
ReplyDelete-Alex Johnson
I think that the assertions made in the article are completely valid. Everything action relates back to the brain, but there are some that are more directly influenced than others. For example, when it talks about 1% of people with a brain malfunction committing violence, it makes sense that the violence can be completely blamed on the brain problem in every case. If 100% of people with a brain malfunction committed violence, it would be much more likely that they were directly related. I think that the statements about charging adolescents is spot on. I agree that, due to brain development, adolescents cannot be judged or punished so harshly when they still have time to mature and improve their behaviors. But that being said, one could argue that everyone has room to grow and mature and fix themselves, so it could be seen either way. -Hannah Bell
ReplyDeleteI believe that our brains are involved in every act we commit. People who have brain disorders are not aware of the effects of the actions they commit because they are unconscious of it. I also believe that people who are of a younger age do not understand the effects of their actions because their brains are not fully developed. Although this does not give young people an excuse to make bad decisions, I definitely believe it is something we need to be aware of.
ReplyDeleteI found this article very intriguing. I personally agree as a young adult our brains are not fully developed just yet, while we're young we make mistakes and learn from them. Of course as young adults get older our brains develop and even mature, most of the time because of learning from the mistakes we make while we're young. The example of the Colorado Movie Shooting I believe he would have never committed that mass murder if he had a better childhood, his past was what led him to be the way he is today. We're always held responsible for our actions even if our brain unconsciously makes those decisions.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the article. Yes you can attribute attitudes and reactions to different situations to biology, but I also think there are aspects of a persons childhood that affect the way they react. Children mature as they get older and there are situations that many young teenagers and children alike have not experienced. They we react to certain situations will cause other things to happen. In the case of the colorado movie shooting, the shooters past of bullying did attribute to him shooting people in a movie theatre.
ReplyDeleteI think that this is very interesting, however, like the article says, we cannot use this as an excuse for our actions. It's interesting to see the direction in which the science is evolving. I never thought that something like this was even possible. I'm a firm believer that will power is the strongest aspect of the brain. Of course, this doesn't always apply, but if you don't want to kill someone, then you probably wont. However, cases spring up in which people kill victims because they had a brain dysfunction. These victims of their own brains should still be help accountable for their actions, but they should be treated, not thrown in jail. If we ever do manage to prove that your brain does force you to commit certain heinous actions, then maybe we will be able to better society and clear out some jails. But until then, we must always be aware and responsible for our actions.
ReplyDeleteI agree that our brain does dictate some of our actions and that impulses are automatic, but I don't think that can justify doing harm to someone. As humans, we are able to think about our actions before we do them. We can weigh the consequences and decide if it is moral or not. I don't think that every action we do is caused by our brain chemistry, but I think since it affects our emotions, which relates to how we act, then it might be related.
ReplyDeleteSavannah Harris
I feel like you do have control over your actions if we are talking about killing but there are some times when you just cannot control yourself even though you really want to be able to. I feel like if you kill someone they shouldn't claim you not guilty because you can't help it. You can help it and if you are crazy then you are crazy but you still killed someone so you shouldn't get off for it cause you will most likely go do it again.
ReplyDelete-Lizzie Wilmer
I don't believe that someones biology can justify their actions. Though our brain does control majority of our actions and reactions (for example reflex) our "will power" or "free will" is stronger. I think its our moral choices that separates us from the rest of the animals, our ability to choose not to kill someone. People who have brain dysfunctions are still making doing the action and must pay for their crime. Perhaps they shouldn't go to jail but rather a mental institution where they can get help and be able to understand what they have done.
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