The Problem of Immediate
Gratification [the PIG] refers
to the universal principle that a small immediate reward has a greater
influence than a much larger, but delayed reward. Incentives that are
especially good at producing immediate gratification
are especially corrupting.
Some incentives such as
physical health, professional success, or loving relationships may have
a large magnitude, but are not produced immediately by a specific behavior.
In contrast the gratification produced by incentives such as: drugs,
alcohol, or food is immediate and for that reason exert an influence on
behavior that is disproportional to their importance. Some people
behave as if they valued such an incentive more than they
value health, wealth, or family. . . causing great sorrow.
In all fairness, it looks
different than it feels, and addictive disorders are experienced differently
by the client than by the observer of the client. As a psychologist in
clinical practice for more than 30 years, I have observed many variations of
the struggle to escape an addictive disorder. Typically, the hero genuinely wants to be
successful, but repeatedly falls victim to pitfalls and traps that are
obvious in retrospect.
The fact that these traps are invisible to us
in real time illustrates The Soul Illusion. We
make decisions based on a perceptual system whose local biases are always
invisible to us - although we can become aware of them when we are distant enough to be
objective. Some
optical illusions provide an experience of the
difference between subjective and objective reality.
Free Will
Free will is a controversial topic, and in some ways the
experience that we consciously control our current behavior is an illusion.
Nevertheless, it is possible to willfully guide one's own life's course.
Like the ability to drive, effective operation of the vehicle requires some
knowledge about how things work, and then lots of practice in real settings.
To operate the motor vehicle you must appreciate that pressing the
accelerator pedal makes it go faster, turning the wheel steers it, etc.
Once you learn how it works it becomes a matter of practice - with some
guidance from dad or a driving instructor - to achieve the desired
competence. Those who live in the north are forced to develop additional
skills to manage icy roads. While it seems unfair that life is harder
and more dangerous for northerners than for southerners, fairness is
irrelevant. Northerners and Southerners must each cope with the
reality they are presented. As partial compensation for the additional
burden, Northerners get to be better drivers in wintry conditions than
Southerners.
The big advantage of
skill acquisition over receiving treatment is that the former is irreversible.
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Give a man a fish,
feed him for a day; teach a man to fish, feed him for a lifetime
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