Why do humans cooperate and care yet cause such destruction? The World Transformation Movement shares a bold biological theory explaining our inner conflicts.
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In recent decades, psychological science has made tremendous strides – mapping neural networks, uncovering cognitive biases, and treating mental illness with increasing precision for the individual. Yet one profound question continues to loom: why do humans behave the way we do?
Why is it that humans capable of art, empathy, and astonishing intellect can also be consumed by anger, selfishness, and conflict? Why are we so troubled as a species? So prone to prejudice?
Australian biologist Jeremy Griffith believes he’s found the long-missing scientific explanation for this paradox. Through the non-profit organization, the World Transformation Movement, Griffith presents a bold biological theory that aims to explain – and ultimately resolve – the contradictions at the heart of human behavior.
He calls it an explanation of the ‘human condition’: the deep psychological conflict that underlies all human suffering. Griffith’s theory, both ambitious and deeply compassionate, has drawn international recognition, not only from people searching for self-understanding and meaning, but from respected scientists and thinkers. Among them is Professor Harry Prosen, a former President of the Canadian Psychiatric Association who described Griffith as delivering the “the book that saves the world.”
The Human Condition Explained: A Clash of Instinct and Intellect
At the heart of Griffith’s model is a simple but powerful idea – the turmoil of human life originates from a biological clash between our instincts and our intellect.
He explains that when our ancestors evolved a fully conscious mind, our newly self-aware intellect began to question and experiment with how to live. Yet our much older, instinctive self – shaped over millions of years of genetic programming via the process of natural selection – could only guide behavior through ingrained patterns. The two systems, operating by very different rules, inevitably came into conflict.
Unable to understand the intellect’s search for knowledge, Griffith says, our instincts “condemned” this conscious questioning as a betrayal of their inherited order. The intellect, feeling unjustly accused, became insecure and defensive – driven to prove its worth. Over time, this internal battle produced the anger, egocentricity and alienation that have come to define our human condition.
Griffith argues that this tragic misunderstanding between instinct and intellect is the true source of our struggles. And when understood, our defensiveness can dissolve – allowing empathy and cooperation to replace shame and conflict.
As Griffith writes, revealing that humanity was never evil or flawed – only misunderstood – “frees us from the human condition”, hence the title of his central book, FREEDOM: The End Of The Human Condition.
Endorsements from the Scientific Community
Griffith’s synthesis has inspired praise from a diverse array of scientists and academics who view it as a groundbreaking framework for understanding human behavior:
- “I have no doubt Jeremy Griffith’s book FREEDOM provides the holy grail of insight we have sought for the psychological rehabilitation of the human race. This is the book we have been waiting for, it is the book that saves the world.” Professor Harry Prosen, Psychiatrist and former President, Canadian Psychiatric Association
- “FREEDOM is the necessary breakthrough in the critical issue of needing to understand ourselves.” Professor David Chivers, Biologist, Cambridge University
- “Frankly, I am blown away by the ground-breaking significance of this work.” Professor Patricia Glazebrook, Philosopher, Washington State University
- “I am stunned and honored to have lived to see the coming of ‘Darwin II’.” Professor Stuart Hurlbert, Biologist, San Diego State University
This range of support, spanning psychiatry, biology, and philosophy, underscores the wide appeal – and the boldness – of Griffith’s work. While some critics have questioned whether any single theory can truly “solve” human nature, supporters argue that Griffith’s work offers a rare synthesis – one that blends hard science with a hopeful vision of human potential.
The World Transformation Movement: A Global Conversation
Founded in Sydney, the World Transformation Movement has grown into an international network with centers and study groups across the world, including in New York. Its goal is to make Griffith’s work freely available and encourage open discussion about the biological roots of human behavior – and how understanding them could reshape society.
Griffith’s premise is that by resolving the internal conflict at the heart of human psychology, many of the world’s external problems – such as inequality, environmental degradation, and war – can also be addressed at their source. In his words:
“All the ailments the world suffers from are symptoms of the deeper issue of the human condition. Which means that to fix the world we have to fix the human condition, and that’s what FREEDOM does. It solves the underlying, real issue that’s been crippling the human race – and by doing that it opens up a whole new world for humankind where everyone is finally able to live free of the psychological agony of the human condition.”
Whether one agrees with his conclusions or not, the discussion he has sparked bridges science, philosophy, and everyday life – and invites us to look inward as much as outward.
For readers interested in the evolving science of human behavior, Griffith’s work offers a distinctive and thought-provoking perspective on one of psychology’s oldest questions.
