Welcome to Phoenix Rising!
Created in 2008, Phoenix Rising is the largest and oldest forum dedicated to furthering the understanding of, and finding treatments for, complex chronic illnesses such as chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS), fibromyalgia, long COVID, postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), mast cell activation syndrome (MCAS), and allied diseases.
To become a member, simply click the Register button at the top right.
The idea that one can predict behaviour based on personality traits is probably a load of bullshit to begin with. Psychobabble reductionism.
What I meant was if we "screened out" soldiers less likely to suffer PTSD it would have to rely on all the inbuilt flaws of psychiatric assessment and all the self proclaiming dogma that brings.Less conscience you mean?
In any case, I am not sure that you would want to recruit people with a sensitive conscience for military service. The military acts on behalf of the state, under the command of the state. Soldiers are not acting through their own will, but execute the will of state. So individual soldiers should not be carrying the burden of conscience, provided they act within the rules and laws that govern military engagements.
Perhaps they don't in those dodgy and brutally barbaric African militias that appear from time to time, or in countries where you have military rule, but otherwise military action is instigated and authorized by the state. It's odd that you are not aware of this.
What I meant was if we "screened out" soldiers less likely to suffer PTSD it would have to rely on all the inbuilt flaws of psychiatric assessment and all the self proclaiming dogma that brings.
Without a sensitive conscience just how would they make judgments of how to act within the rules that govern military engagements and not to cover up illegal actions they may witness.
I think the target of change needs to be the organizational cultures that breed, promote and train psychopaths. Society needs to change, and this involves corporate and bureaucratic governance. Otherwise pre-emptive screening is likely to be a huge wasted effort.The world is more complex than that. If you don't want bankers to act like psychopaths (as example) maybe fix the legal system to actually prosecute them rather than blaming personality.
Skinner was quite explicit about the need for technocratic rule: “We must delegate control of the population as a whole to specialists – to police, priests, teachers, therapies, and so on, with their specialized reinforcers and their codified contingencies.”[33]
Cameron argued that it was necessary for behavioral scientists to act as the social planners of society, and that the United Nations could provide a conduit for implementing his ideas for applying psychiatric elements to global governance and politics.
Cameron started to distinguish populations between "the weak" and "the strong". Those with anxieties or insecurities and who had trouble with the state of the world were labeled as "the weak"; in Cameron's analysis, they could not cope with life and had to be isolated from society by "the strong". The mentally illwere thus labeled as not only sick, but also weak. Cameron further argued that "the weak" must not influence children. He promoted a philosophy where chaos could be prevented by removing the weak from society
The military acts on behalf of the state, under the command of the state.
Soldiers are not acting through their own will, but execute the will of state.
So individual soldiers should not be carrying the burden of conscience, provided they act within the rules and laws that govern military engagements.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walden_Two
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beyond_Freedom_and_Dignity
I am not a psychologist but I have no problem stating that this guy was not right in his head.
Skinner argues that entrenched belief in free will and the moral autonomy of the individual (which Skinner referred to as "dignity") hinders the prospect of using scientific methods to modify behavior for the purpose of building a happier and better-organized society.
Soldiers are duty bound under the Geneva convention not to carry out illegal orders, the Iraq war is illegal.
How does moral autonomy work? It's a contradiction.
What is referred to as Kant's moral autonomy is the ability of humans to determine the necessary ethical or moral without religion.
I think you are confusing the Geneva Convention, which governs the conduct of armed forces during war, with the laws that govern the circumstances under which a country can legally engage in war.
If its not a legal war that makes the rules of engagement illegal automatically.
You missed one, the capacity for reason. Many ambiguous situations do not fit given authority, nor intuitive response, but have to be thought through.Not sure I agree with Skinner on this point, as I think in reality, morality comes both from external sources of guidance, and our own intuitive feel for what is right and wrong.
Where did you read that? Or did you just make it up yourself?
You missed one, the capacity for reason. Many ambiguous situations do not fit given authority, nor intuitive response, but have to be thought through.