IMO the truth is in the middle. Empathy is within human nature, but it’s a very partial emotion (i.e. we have different amount of empathy for different people), and different people have different capacity for empathy. Culture comes in to impose norms that are at least somewhat impartial and universal. And, these norms are still shaped by game-theoretic incentives (plus historical accident).
IMO the truth is in the middle. Empathy is within human nature, but it’s a very partial emotion (i.e. we have different amount of empathy for different people), and different people have different capacity for empathy. Culture comes in to impose norms that are at least somewhat impartial and universal. And, these norms are still shaped by game-theoretic incentives (plus historical accident).