A second take on psychology

This is a response to a post by Doulos on this site: click

Firstly, I'm taking off Geography of Thought by Richard Nisbett off my reading list. I just finished it in Melaka. It's where I've been for the last week, explaining by no-posting and no-online.

Firstly, contextualization of psychology. I think, what I truly mean by it is that most of science has branched out from western thought, and I believe, and my belief has been substantiated by the book Geography of Thought, that Asians have a different sense of viewing the world. I'm not saying that juxtaposing both types of cognitive prospects to gain which one is best, that is more of developing better coping strategies. But I'm saying that cognitive differences in cultures should be taken into account, and to a very serious extent, because it has been found that people can be primed to think in a particular way. Besides, psychology is not to judge, but to examine behavior. Thus in order to do so, we must take into accounts the major differences of cultures and design a more adaptable system.

On objectivity, I agree with you that the boundaries of true objectivity are blurred, and one cannot further sustain it. One can only be sure not to be biased to on facet on any topic.

On narcissism, i believe that it's the perogative of the individual, and not up to science to determine. Because it's the individual that decides actions to condone with his/her knowledge.

To conclude, i'll concur with Doulos that we're both on different grounds of the same equation. It's relatively similar to the nature vs. nurture debate. Christianity works from genesis onwards to creation and derivation of actions and behavior. While psychology works backwards, studying behavior to try and find out the causes of it. One day both ways may clash to meet at a point of agreement, or not.

Perhaps our two viewpoints differ because we are on two different goals. You are more of a theological perspective towards life, trying to relate things to God. While I'm assimilating behavior in a more general term of cognition. We may yet come to the same conclusion one day.