Quote:
Originally posted by NoSoup
Basically, I just believe that no matter what the action, personal gain is the only motivator on the most simplistic level. It is the only reason humans do anything, in my opinion. I realize that that probably isn't viewing people in the most favorable light, but I think it is instinctual.
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Without a very broad definition of "personal gain", I think you are wrong.
If you define "personal gain" broadly enough that it is true, your statement turns into "the reason why people behave the way they do is because people think they way they think."
Altruistic self-sacraficial behaviour (to the point of death) aiding others happens. Sometimes this is because they believe in life/reward/punishment everlasting, but I suspect this isn't the only reason: people actually place others needs ahead of their own, even on instinctual levels. It doesn't always happen, but it happens.
If you want to go deeper down the rabit hole, read up on selfish genes and selfish memes. When the actors on the stage are no longer people, but ideas and genetic features, you can ascribe actions of humans as tending to be in the best interest of various genes and memes. Even here the truth isn't absolute, but rather statistical in nature: genes and memes which are self-interested, and enlightened in this self-interest, propogate over those which are not.
Taking another branch down the rabbit hole, we have the economics of altruism. A friend of mine is doing some mathematical and economic work in this area. A group of humans which are altruistic to each other will outcompete other groups with are not altruistic to each other. Which wins (altruistic or selfish behaviour) depens on which of intra and inter group interactions dominate.
You can also approach this from a philosophical, biological, religious, or a thousand other routes.
For the most part, all the arguements on this sort of issue are rationalizing arguements: why that which is already believed and observed to be true is true, rather than finding unknown truths.