Impulsive Behavior Essay

April 16, 2007, Seung-Hui Cho went on a shooting rampage killing thirty-two college students at Virginia Tech. University before killing himself. This horrifying massacre can be associated with a poor impulsive behavior. Many devastating incidents throughout the years can be associated with poor impulsive decisions. Throughout the years Impulsive behaviors have often been viewed differently. For example, older American Writers seemed to view impulsive behaviors as negative traits, while earlier American Writers found them to be more acceptable. Three American Writers specifically stood out amongst others: Benjamin Franklin, Frederick Douglass, and Theodore Roethke. Our current generation mainly views impulsive behavior as a negative characteristic or inclination. Nowadays, impulsive behaviors are often correlated with diseases or psychological problems. Benjamin Franklin (1731-1813) was one of the oldest authors we read in class. I learned much about Franklin from his autobiography. Franklin was dedicated, disciplined, and focused, which left no room for impulses. Impulses often involved spontaneity and the unknown, which would not follow Franklin’s type of life style. He set aside an hour each day for reading and never missed a chance to find new books. Although he was very disciplined, he felt like it was not enough. That is why he dedicated 13 specific virtues to follow: temperance, silence, order, resolution, frugality, industry, sincerity, justice, moderation, cleanliness, tranquility, chastity, and finally humility. He even set up a calendar to mark the virtues he had accomplished each day. On the top of his weekly virtue chart, he followed a saying, â€Å"Eat not to dullness. Drink not to elevation† (Franklin, 286). Not only did he have a calendar made up for virtues, but also he had a day-by-day schedule set up that accounted for each hour of the day. He would dedicate a certain amount of time for hygiene, work, reading, dinner and rest. In Benjamin Franklin’s life there was no room for profligacy. Someone that plans out every hour of everyday obviously does not leave any room for impulses, and that was exactly how Franklin liked to live his life. He did not like surprises and enjoyed knowing every detail of each day. To Franklin, family and love did not matter; the only thing that mattered was success. Often when it comes to love and intimacy, impulses are right around the corner, which is one of the reasons why Franklin was not very emotional. He eventually got married, but he was more thankful for the help his wife provided in the printing press than the emotional feelings he had for her. Franklin was not the only author we read in class that felt this way about impulsive behavior. Like Franklin, Frederick Douglass (1818-1895) was another older author who believed that impulsive behavior was a negative attribute. He was a self-educated slave and knew the only way that he would become free one day was to become erudite. He learned how to read and write by tracing the letters on the prows of boats. After reading his autobiography, it was easy to tell why someone like Douglass would hate impulses. He knew that if he ever acted upon impulses it was very likely he would have been beaten or even worse, killed. He also hated impulses because he knew when his masters beat him that they were acting out on impulses as well. For these reasons, Douglass could never agree with impulses or support anyone who acted upon them. Although Douglass and Franklin did not agree with impulses, there were many other authors we read in class who strongly supported them. Unlike his predecessors Franklin and Douglas, Theodore Roethke (1908-1963) felt that impulsive behavior should be embraced and enjoyed. He was a poet whose poems symbolized fate and destiny, which is normally defined by impulsive decisions. After reading many of his poems, I could tell that he did not make plans, and he just acted upon his feelings and emotions. I got the feeling that he would follow his instincts no matter where they would lead him, â€Å"God bless the Ground! I shall walk softly there, And learn by going where I have to go† (Roethke 1146). Obviously, someone that just follows his instincts is not very disciplined and does not plan out his life. He believed impulses were the only way to live one’s life. In his poems you could derive a sense of spontaneity and originality. He explains how he followed his fate and thinks by feelings, â€Å"I feel my fate in what I cannot fear. I learn by going where I have to go. We think by feeling. What is there to know? † (Roethke 1145). Roethke wrote many of his poems about love, and as it suggests love is usually a spontaneous and intimate feeling. It seemed that as time progressed, the view on impulsive behavior changed in American Writers from conservative to more acceptable. I wanted to see if the same shift took place in our culture as well so I decided to do my own research using the Michigan State University library system. It was difficult to find articles that supported both sides of the argument, but I eventually found two books that had conducted many studies and trials. I also found two journal articles that helped support my thesis as well. Generally, my research showed that impulsivity is regarded negatively. In Impulsivity and Aggression, they explain how impulsivity is a phenomenon that is present in all species and â€Å"manifests as effects, emotions, and observable behaviors† (E. Hollander and Dan J. Stein 28). Basically, this means that not only humans are susceptible to impulsive behavior, but also animals and other species. However, the focus of the research is on the effects of impulses on human decisions. The majority of the studies conducted in these different articles all seemed to come to one conclusion: impulsive behavior only leads to negative side effects. Every example of impulsive behavior in this book represented some sort of violence or disorder. â€Å"Impulsivity and aggression contribute to major public health problems such as crime, violence, homicide, suicide, substance abuse, and sexual dyscontrol† (E. Hollander and Dan J. Stein 1). Basic emotions such as fear and anger are often defined as impulsive emotions, which are difficult to resist and may be harmful to themselves or others. Oldham, Hollander, and Skodol reinforce this view, â€Å"Traditionally, psychopathological states characterized by impulse behavior, such as substance abuse, rage, outbursts, violence, suicidal or self-destructive acts, binge eating, sexual promiscuity, or social irresponsibility, have been conceptualized as disorders of deficient impulse control† (J. Oldham & E. Hollander & A. Skodol ix). Not a single example in my sources supports a positive side to impulsive behavior. They constantly relate disorders such as kleptomania, pathological gambling, and pyromania to impulses. These studies used scales that measured impulsive behavior by using both personality dimensions and clinical syndromes. These scales are tools used for measuring the outcome of interventions. The effects of impulsive behavior are causing a need for concern, and therefore action must be taken to help prevent these individuals from hurting themselves or others. It is apparent that our current generation’s outlook on impulsive behavior is all-negative. This negative outlook has caused different treatment strategies throughout the years. The majority of these treatments involved medical psychiatric medications for borderline personality disorders (BPD) (E. Hollander and Dan J. Stein 263). The purpose is to control the aggression, hostility, impulsivity, and liability of mood associated illnesses. There are many medications currently being used, but the most popular consist of Neuroleptics, Anticonvulsants, Anti depressants, and Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SRIs). These treatments have greatly reduced the negative impulsive behaviors for specific patients. Neuroleptics have been the group of medications most studied in controlled trials investigating Pharmacological treatment of BPD (E. Hollander and Dan J. Stein 264). These agents are used based on â€Å"their theoretical ability to dampen aggressive outbursts and decrease psychotic thinking. † (E. Hollander and Dan J. Stein 264). Trials were conducted to test these neuroleptics against placebo control agents, which resulted in an improvement in anxiety, rejection sensitivity, and suicidal thoughts. Another treatment that helps decrease anxiety, irritability, and anger are Anticonvulsants. A trial was conducted to test the effectiveness of Anticonvulsants and eleven out of fifteen patients opted to remain on this medication after the study’s conclusion (E. Hollander and Dan J. Stein 266). Even when a small behavioral dyscontrol did occur, it was far less severe than while on the placebo. Antidepressants are also a very popular form of medication, but might not be the best for every individual. Studies conducted show that fifty percent of individuals felt improvements in irritability, energy, and depression were modest or unremarkable (E. Hollander and Dan J. Stein 266). â€Å"The enefits of specific antidepressants are limited, and there is little data to suggest a diminution of impulsivity in any of these studies. † (E. Hollander and Dan J. Stein 267). SRIs have been proven to help with depression, panic, obsessionality, suicidality, self-injury, somatization, eating disorders, and anxiety (E. Hollander and Dan J. Stein 268). The most widely used SRI is Fluoxetine, which has been the best studied of the SRIs for treatment of impulsive and aggressive symptoms. If Seung-Hui Cho had not acted upon impulses, than maybe those thirty-two students would still be with us today. Although earlier American Writers found impulsive behaviors more acceptable, it is apparent that impulsive behaviors lead to a state of chaos and pandemonium. As time progressed, the view on impulsive behavior changed from negative to more acceptable until a certain point was reached. After a certain point, impulsive behaviors took over and caused a state of chaos and pandemonium. The chaos these impulsive behaviors inhibited can be demonstrated as school shootings, terrorist attacks, or mental instabilities. It is important to control certain impulses because otherwise they can lead to severe consequences or even worse, death.