Why are some people “evil” whereas others are not?

Why Are Some People “Evil” Whereas Others Are Not?
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Abstract
The behavior of an individual and conduct of activities varies from one person to another. There exists a significant difference between people about how they behave themselves and their view towards the impact of their behavior. Each society has expectations and considerations that are considered either right or wrong. Different social identities share some norms and principles in which the members are regulated to act within such set standards. However, people tend to deviate from the standards through indulging in activities considered as evil. Contrary, others will stick to the right morals, principles and societal considerations of being good. This paper, therefore, explores the reason behind the existence of variation in behavior among individuals in the society. It adopts psychological perspectives which aid in the analysis of this common condition among people in the community. Both cognitive and biological perception has been used in this paper as a guiding tool towards the understanding of this behavior. The cognitive perspective primarily relies on the religious beliefs while the biological perspective in psychology draws its argumentation from the structure of the human gene.

What is the reason for the existence of “good” and “evil” people? The concept of ‘good’ and ‘evil’ had arisen during the early Biblical times when Adam and Eve disobeyed God. In understanding their meanings, right people are those who are considered self-centered while evil people are those involved in acts that show a lack empathy (Taylor 2013).

However, psychologists have tried to prove why the phenomenon of evil exists by analyzing humans from different perspectives. Analysts consider evil to be any act that may result in the destruction of people, a behavior that can either be learned or inborn and one which results in the destruction of some kind.
From the cognitive perspective, the myth of the existence of right and wrong is bound to the Christian belief in the existence of spiritual forces that control good and bad which exist on its own. According to Piercarlo Valdesolo, human beings are guided by the phenomenon that the devil is the personified implication of evil and thus he controls people psychologically, making them take part in actions that are considered inhuman or perceived to be wrong (Valdesolo, 2013).
In this perception, most human beings believe that God is a representation of right and thus attribute him to the acts of kindness and goodness. The devil in the other hand is the root of all ‘evil” actions. With this belief in mind, humans believe that people are born evil, and they should be eradicated to end “evilness” in the world. Valdesolo counters this argument and says that the cognitive belief is only as a result of “misguided understanding of the human nature” which has resulted in people focusing on social-cultural traditions to judge people rather than on the individual and environmental forces (Valdesolo, 2013).
Given his argument, I disagree with the implication that “evil” people originate from Satan and that they should be killed to eliminate evil in the world. It is because the assumption does not view all aspects that surround human beings in determining whether they are “evil” or not. The argument also eliminates those who are involved in the persecution of wrongdoers as being evil, as they are considered the “heroes” of the world for reducing crime.
Cognitive belief fails to explain how the real understanding of evil can be measured or how the belief in evil influences the responses of human beings to wrongdoers (Valdesolo, 2013). The belief that “evil” people should be terminated only leaves us wondering; isn’t killing an evil act? It can thus be viewed as a myth since its roots, though ordinary, is considered extraordinary. It only implies that “evil” people are not in control of their actions but are the devil’s physical representation on earth, which is not true.
Another perception that has been used to determine why “evil” people exist is the biological knowledge that explains that the tendency to be “evil” exists in the human gene. In looking at the life of one of the notorious, most wanted serial killers of his time, Ted Bundy is said to have been a child with likable character and high intelligence who later grew up to become a serial killer that would terrorize the people of Florida before he was finally executed in 1989. His tendencies cannot be attributed to his environment or his individuality, since by looking at his history, one would conclude that he was bound to be a productive citizen. Such acts are what made us question whether certain people are born with an evil gene.
According to geneticists, there exists an extra Y chromosome in individual genes, a rare condition that has been found to exist in the genes of most violent offenders (Stephenson, 2012). Scientists have thus concluded that there exists a biochemical code in human blood that bears aggression which can be attributed to massacres and violent killings of human beings by other human beings. The condition is however not hereditary. Although Adrian Raine, a criminal psychologist in Southern California disagrees with the possibility of the existence of an “evil” gene, he is keen to mention that the different evidence provided could show that there is a genetic predisposition for crime, but to some extent (Stephenson, 2012).
I tend to disagree with this perception which states that people are born evil, by relating to the life of Ted Bundy. About the words of Essi Viding, it is not possible that people are born killers, and for that reason, neither are they born evil (Goldhill, 2014). It is feasible to determine a person’s character by analyzing their childhood and their view of emotional matters. A lack of empathy is a clear indication that the child will likely be a psychopath and thus has a higher likelihood of committing a crime and thus being involved in “evil” acts. A person’s environmental exposure also determines how they react to issues. It can be concluded that no gene gives one criminal tendency and thus, this could also be ruled off as being the cause of the existence of evil people. It doesn’t state how the gene comes into existence since it has ordered off heredity and only implies that the gene exists randomly in people.

References
Goldhill, O. (2014). Are some humans born evil?. Telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved 6 December 2016, from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/men/the-filter/11195840/Are-some-humans-born-evil.html
Stephenson, F. (2012). The Evil Gene – Florida State University’s Research in Review. Rinr.fsu.edu. Retrieved 6 December 2016, from http://rinr.fsu.edu/spring96/features/evil.html
Taylor, S. (2013). The Real Meaning of ‘Good’ and ‘Evil’. Psychology Today. Retrieved 7 December 2016, from https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/out-the-darkness/201308/the-real-meaning-good-and-evil
Valdesolo, P. (2013). The Psychological Power of Satan. Scientific American. Retrieved 6 December 2016, from https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/psychological-power-satan/