It is the opinion of Stephen Rose that mankind is subject to genetic determinism with regard to gender. He claims that because males have an innate inclination to polygyny, they cannot be blamed for their philandering. On the same level, he claims that women are genetically encoded to a life of emotional possessiveness. Higton has countered such a view stating that, “all too easily human beings as a species are thought of as powerless machines blindly subject to all the drives and desires of genetics.” Subsequently, he advocates that we take into account man's sense of responsibility; his ability to choose between “the good and the bad.” Just because we are subject to certain dispositions doesn't mean we have to act on them. Similarly, if it is possible that we can be bothered by the thought that we are determined by the tendencies of our gender (e.g. feminism,) then this is evidence itself for our ability to think and desire to aim and act differently. In this view, it is appropriate to praise and blame people for their behaviour; for it implies that it is possible to suppress certain dispositions.
In this society it is generally believed that the strength of psychological traits may be determined by environments. This is made clear by the prison system, which seems to advocate the notion that changing our environments could affect our motivations and, subsequently, our behaviour. Although prison functions as a punishment for those who commit crimes, it also serves to rehabilitate criminals and teaches them how to suppress the dispositions that lead them to commit crimes. If our society didn't believe this to be possible, the government would not insist on rehabilitation programs within prison.
In addition, our ability to act unpredictably suggests that we have the choice to act on our dispositions or ignore them. For example, if my parents have always taught me to be ungenerous and I am genetically encoded to such a disposition, is it determined that when confronted with charity collectors, I will definitely not give them money? According to the way our society is run, and our general attitudes to praise/blame people for their actions, this is inaccurate; for as an independent person able to account for my own actions I surely have the ability to ignore my usually ungenerous disposition and give the collectors some money. Actions are not solely caused by our dispositions, but by the circumstances within which we make the decision to perform them. If we apply this notion to the above example, it is possible that my current circumstances may lead me to disregard my customary meanness and replace it with generosity; perhaps if I were in a particularly good mood, or had just received a pay rise.
It is also true that the desire to be praised and to avoid blame may lead some people to suppress their "natural" dispositions and even fight against previously "nurtured" traits. We tend to think of environmental or social pressures as purely affecting us as children but, in fact, they affect us all through our lives and praise/blame is in some ways society's continued attempt to influence behaviour. In order to understand this further, researchers have experimented with rats by teaching them to do something and then "rewarding" them with a "treat". Is that so different from rewarding good behaviour with praise as an attempt to "teach" and so counter "natural" anti-social tendencies?
In researching for this essay I have discovered that it is the interaction of our genetic coding and the environment in which we are brought up that determines our dispositions. However, I do not think that this can be used as evidence that we are "blameless puppets" of our dispositions. Though we do have the tendency to behave in certain ways due to our dispositions, the circumstances in which each action is performed also play a part. Having been praised/blamed throughout our lives for past actions, we also know what is expected of us in the future. Thus, in conclusion, it is my opinion that it is appropriate to praise/blame people for their behaviour even if a tendency to such behaviour is genetically encoded, for every person has an independent mind and therefore has the ability to ignore or follow such tendencies.
