I asked a psychology student today, "What is Crazy". Her responses was, "I know what is Crazy". Not exactly a clear definition. But then again, psychology as a whole isn't much of a clear science. Unlike other sciences that exist off imperial facts, psychology is defined more by society then by reason.

But under a more scientific light, what is "Crazy". Is it a detachment from reality? Is it an inability to blend in with society? Is it an inability to control one's actions?

A viewers of a scary movies often experience a detachment from reality, to the point where they jump when something scares them on the screen, or become paranoid after watching the movie of some kind of monster or boggy man that continues to stalk them like it did the characters from the film. This seems to be a rather sharp detachment from reality, but is acceptable because others have also experienced it as well. So detachment from reality seems acceptable as long as others have experienced the same thing, but unacceptable if nobody else has. This means that people that experience unique detachments are crazy only because nobody else has experienced what they feel. It's an interesting, if somewhat prejudicial way to look at things. Are we really to punish people for being unique? In psychology, that often seems to the case, because physiology is social motivated, rather then scientific.

How about the unwillingness, or inability, to blend in with society? This is always a volatile subject. How far out of society's norms should a person be allowed to act? If the actions are consciously driven upon by the individual, then it becomes an issue of personal expression verses social acceptability, which varies widely from region to region. Things like tattoo and dress can get a person into alot of trouble if the local population exercises alot of peer pressure against them. Of course, some people are completely incapable of acting like everyone else. Their actions always seem bizarre because they don't comfort at all to social norms. But really, should people be punished just for being different? This seems more a factor of local prejudice then an actual malady, depending of course, one if those actions harm another person. Then again, who hasn't seen a "Trespassers will be Shot" sign? Apparently, under the right circumstances, extremely anti-social behavior is acceptable, even to the point of death. It's all about what society is willing to accept.

How about the inability to control one's actions? Again, this seems to hang strongly on one's point of view. If you see something upsetting, it's considered acceptable to be angry about it. But becoming angry simply from a visual stimulus is an example of not being in control of one's actions. Certain things we aren't in control of at all, such as hunger and pain, so having those factors influence your actions is considered acceptable. Again this is because other people have experienced the same thing. Even killing and murder become acceptable, if other people agree that it is. Soldiers and Police shoot people, often people that don't pose any immediate threat to their lives, because they are told to do so. They aren't crazy or considered homicidal because their actions are justified by others, but people still end up dead, so the results are the same.

A man dismembers corpses in his basement, that's clearly crazy, right? But the man at the morgue does the same thing daily for slightly different reasons, and it's rational behavior. Is it "Rational Reason" make the autopsy a sane action? Hard to say, as what people consider rational is still set by society more then by the individual. The Slasher or Lone Gunmen might have plenty of rational reasons to kill people, in their opinion. These aren't likely to be reasons acceptable by others though. It's only the reasons for killing that society accepts that are considered sane and rational.

Psychology can seem like society's overbearing attempt to control individuals, but that doesn't mean it's without merit. Plenty of people seek out help from others to help mold their actions into something more desirable, not just by society, but by themselves. Compulsive behavior, bad dreams, irrational fears, these are all things that people actually seek out help to overcome. But really, this kind of help has existed since the dawn of mankind. From churches and temples, to bars and fraternities, people have sought out the help of others to control their own actions. A person with extreme dementia might have sought out an exorcist in the past, to purge them of their mental demons. And even today, a frightening number of people self medicate their problems away at bars. Who hasn't sought the comfort of a Beer when life's troubles get you down? Or Television, another popular source of self medication.

But overall, this makes psychology far from a science. It's more the current culture indoctrination of the exorcists of the past. Just another way for people to drive away the demons in their mind, when peer pressure and substance abuse fails.

On a side note, why do the people that study psychology always seem to have serious ego and personality problems themselves? That's something I'm still studying...