{"id":124071,"date":"2024-03-20T13:32:00","date_gmt":"2024-03-20T17:32:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?p=124071"},"modified":"2025-10-03T11:47:55","modified_gmt":"2025-10-03T15:47:55","slug":"human-survival-instincts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/human-survival-instincts\/","title":{"rendered":"The 3 Basic Human Survival Instincts That Cause Stress"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

What are the most basic human survival instincts? When do these survival instincts kick in?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Human survival instincts tell us to fear and avoid something, to protect something, or to want something better. Mo Gawdat says these instincts can be problematic because they cause us unnecessary levels of stress and dissatisfaction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let’s discuss each of these faulty instincts, how they function, and what happens when we use them to process information.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Editor\u2019s note: This article is part of\u00a0Shortform\u2019s guide to stress<\/a>. If you like what you read here, there\u2019s plenty more to check out in the guide!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Instinct #1: Fear<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Gawdat explains that we react to fear with avoidance in an effort to stay safe<\/strong>. This human survival instinct<\/a> developed in ancient times to keep us alive\u2014for example, we fear river rapids because we\u2019ve seen people drown there. Now we avoid them to stay safe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Shortform note: The evolutionary cause of our fear and avoidance instinct that Gawdat references is theory rather than fact<\/em>. However, recent research found that anxiety can be partially attributed to genetics in rhesus monkeys<\/a>, which are genetically similar to humans. This may support the idea that threat detection (fear) and avoidance mechanisms in modern humans could be passed down genetically from our ancient human ancestors.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, since the life-threatening fears we experienced in ancient times rarely occur today, Gawdat says this instinct tends to take over at inappropriate times. As a result, our avoidance reaction ends up preventing us from achieving success and happiness<\/a>. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

For example, you may fear competition because you\u2019ll be embarrassed if you lose. Therefore, you avoid entering a chess competition even though your dream is to be a professional player and you\u2019re highly gifted. This fear and avoidance prevents you from achieving goals that would produce success and happiness. Instead, you feel unhappy because you know you\u2019re falling short of your potential and missing out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Shortform note: In Big Magic<\/em><\/a>, <\/em>Elizabeth Gilbert agrees that fear often holds us back<\/a> and argues that to reach our potential, we must confront our fear. She recommends three ways to confront fear<\/a> in the creative process<\/a> or in almost any situation. First, accept that fear is natural when doing anything new\u2014we fear what we don\u2019t know. Second, allow fear to exist alongside your creativity (or ambition to do something new)\u2014ignoring fear won\u2019t make it go away. Third, don\u2019t make decisions based on fear\u2014use your courage to guide you instead.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Instinct #2: Protect<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Gawdat explains that our instinct to protect what\u2019s ours stems from our need for security<\/strong>. We want to hold onto what we have because it makes us feel safe\u2014we don\u2019t want to let go of it because losing resources could put us at risk. For example, an ancient human might have carried a sharp rock for miles despite its weight because they needed it for protection and might not find another one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While the average person today doesn\u2019t experience the same level of resource insecurity that ancient humans did, our instinct causes us to hold onto things we don\u2019t need. This produces suffering because, when these things are taken away, we feel we\u2019re losing something vital for our well-being.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For example, you may carry your late mother\u2019s wedding ring to feel like she\u2019s with you. One day, someone steals the ring and you\u2019re racked with grief and pain because you feel you\u2019ve lost your connection to her. Gawdat would argue that in reality, you\u2019ve lost nothing. First, the connection with your mother exists inside you, not inside a ring. Second, your happiness isn\u2019t dependent on your mother or the ring\u2014it\u2019s dependent on you. When you become too attached to people and things, you give them control over your happiness and diminish your autonomy.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Prospect Theory<\/a> Explains Loss Aversion<\/strong>

The idea that we want to protect what we have and avoid losses is the foundation of prospect theory<\/a> <\/em>as Daniel Kahneman explains in Thinking, Fast and Slow<\/em><\/a>. Prospect theory rests on three points<\/a>. First, when you evaluate a situation, you compare it to your expectations or what’s \u201cnormal\u201d for you\u2014for example, if getting $100 for your birthday is normal, not<\/em> getting it is a loss.

Second, the less of something you have, the more impactful a gain is\u2014for example, going from having $100 to $200 feels more significant than going from $900 to $1,000. Third, losing something triggers stronger feelings than gaining something of the same value\u2014for example, you feel the pain of losing $100 more intensely than the joy of gaining $100.<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Instinct #3: Want<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Gawdat explains that we’re driven to want more and better things because of our instinct to plan for our <\/strong>long-term <\/em><\/strong>survival<\/strong>. For example, an ancient human might have enough food to last until the end of the week. However, they\u2019d still forage daily to collect more so they wouldn\u2019t be left with nothing when their current stock runs out come the weekend.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, once again, the average person today doesn\u2019t experience the same resource insecurity or potential threats that ancient humans did. Therefore, we\u2019ve directed our sense of wanting toward unnecessary<\/em> things\u2014a bigger house, nicer car, newer phone, and so on. However, these things only satisfy us temporarily before we want something more. This cycle makes us unhappy because wanting tells our brain that what we currently have isn\u2019t enough. This sense of lack causes us sadness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Humans Are Driven by Mimetic Desire<\/a><\/strong>

In Wanting<\/em><\/a>, Luke Burgis reiterates that humans are naturally driven to want more and better things; however, his explanation for this differs from Gawdat\u2019s. Burgis supports the theory of mimetic desire<\/a>\u2014that humans are driven to want specifically what others have<\/em> because of our natural urges to mimic others and fit in. While these urges may be evolutionary traits, they\u2019re not the same evolutionary trait that Gawdat cites as the source of our wanting\u2014the desire for long-term resource security.

Further, Burgis agrees that wanting can cause us unhappiness and specifies three negative effects of mimetic desire<\/a>. First, mimetic desire can ruin relationships by causing unhealthy competition. Second, mimetic desire can cause you to pursue misleading desires (like the ones Gawdat discusses)\u2014for example, you think getting the new iPhone will make you happy, but really it\u2019s your relationship that needs work. Third, chasing misleading desires causes societal issues\u2014for example, consumerism soars, and as a result, the environment suffers and industries competing for sales are motivated to lower their wages.<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

What are the most basic human survival instincts? When do these survival instincts kick in? Human survival instincts tell us to fear and avoid something, to protect something, or to want something better. Mo Gawdat says these instincts can be problematic because they cause us unnecessary levels of stress and dissatisfaction. Let’s discuss each of these faulty instincts, how they function, and what happens when we use them to process information.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":124939,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,9],"tags":[1419],"class_list":["post-124071","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lifestyle","category-psychology","tag-that-little-voice-in-your-head","","tg-column-two"],"yoast_head":"\nThe 3 Basic Human Survival Instincts That Cause Stress - Shortform Books<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"There are three human survival instincts that we have at our core: fear, protect, and want. 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