Environmental Determinism and Probabilism

Paper Summary:

This paper explains that environmental probabilism states that almost all or any behaviors may be probable within one or in any environment; whereas, determinism states that it is the physical environment and not social conditions, which shape a person's character and behaviors. The author points out that the concept environmental probabilism has emerged as a direct result of reactions to the supposed shortcomings and inadequacies of environmental determinism. Although these environmental theories today are being used in anthropological research to better understand the exact role human beings play in nature, the paper concludes that hopefully more theories related to these theories will emerge soon, which will explain human behavior in a more succinct and terse manner.

From the Paper:

"Reportedly, Winston Churchill made the statement that a human being shapes a building, and thereafter, the building shapes him. He meant to say that there exists a subtle relationship between one's building and one's behavior; environmental psychologists have found this to be true after extensive research on the subject. The relationship is viewed through a list of possibilities and probabilities, and this then is the principle upon which 'probabilism' is based. This concept has given rise to the idea that there is a probability of the built environment playing a positive or a negative role on organizations and campus environments."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Banning, Carolyn S; Banning, James H. (1994) "Use of Nonverbal Cues of the Physical Environment in Campus Consultation" Campus Ecologist, vol. 12, no. 4, pp: 36-38.
• Blair, Alasdair; Hitchcock, David. (2001) "Environment and business" Routledge.
• Kay, Jeanne. (1986, Jun) "Commentary on the social origins of environmental determinism" Annals of the Association of American Geographers, Vol. 76, No. 2 (Jun., 1986), pp. 275-277.
• Laura, Johnson. (1999) "Neo-environmental determinism and agrarian collapse" Antiquity, vol. 73, pp: 634-42.
• N. A. (n. d.) "Griffith Taylor and Environmental determinism" Retrieved 28 September, 2007 from http://www.ndsu.nodak.edu/instruct/isern/382/taylor.htm

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