The 5 Most Important Types of Rationality in Human Beings

Rationality is one of the qualities that define us as humans, but its definition can be stated in different ways.

Therefore, we can establish various typologies, depending on the criteria we select to talk about this concept. This is the question that we are going to analyze throughout the following paragraphs, which will allow us to know the different types of rationality

What do we understand by types of rationality?

In order to delve deeper into the various types of rationality, we first need to make an introduction about this concept, since its complexity may be greater than it seems at first glance. Rationality refers to the ability of human beings to think and act according to their own logic or elements

This quality is what allows us to understand the reality that surrounds us and use our mental processes to try to achieve our goals in a conscious way, through making the most optimal decisions for each goal. This is a tremendously complex characteristic that is not found at this level in any other species.

Rationality is inherent to human beings, although there are individuals who have not yet developed it, as is the case with babies, others who will never be able to develop it (or at least not fully, depending on the case), such as some people with disabilities. intellectual.

Others, on the other hand, had rational capacity in the past, but have lost it or have seen it limited, either due to dementia due to advanced age, brain injuries or other diseases or disorders. Excluding these cases, we could say that rationality is a characteristic of human beings.

Nevertheless, Evidence of some very primitive types of rationality has been observed in other animal species such as different primates, dolphins and even animals much further removed from us evolutionarily, such as octopuses, which do not even belong to the group of vertebrates.

Of course, although rationality is a human condition, it does not mean, by any means, that all our mental processes and behaviors are based on a rational question. On the contrary, on many occasions, people fall into behaviors or thoughts without any logical foundation and, therefore, irrational.

Different types of rationality

After a first part in which we have been able to delve into the meaning of this concept, it is time for us to now review the types of rationality. There are several types that can be carried out. In this case, We are going to use the one proposed by the famous German sociologist, Max Weber

In his theories, Weber spoke of the concept of social action, as a basic form of interaction between people, and stated that this element depended on the types of rationality that were being applied at each moment.

To do this, he distinguished four possibilities in their pure state, although he also considered that in most cases, what could be seen when analyzing the process in question, would be a combination of two or more of these types. In any case, let’s now look at those four types of rationality that Max Weber proposed.

1. Instrumental rationality

The first form of rationality that Weber appreciates is instrumental. The key to this way of thinking and acting would lie in the expectations that the subject has about the way other people or the entity with which they are interacting act This anticipation will mark the subject’s way of behaving, guiding him in the appropriate way to achieve the objective he has set for himself.

This would be the most classic way of understanding rationality: we act as we do because we know (or believe) that this is the most logical way to achieve the particular goal that we have set for ourselves at each specific moment. It is a way of acting that we use constantly, without noticing it.

This type is also known as intentional rationality, since the subject has an intention when behaving as he does, which is to achieve its objective, as we have already seen. The name instrumental would also refer to the use of the means, which would be the specific behavior, to achieve the end.

2. Rationality of beliefs

Continuing with the types of rationality, we would now find that which is based on the person’s beliefs. In this case, the focus would not be on the expectations that the person has of other people or elements, but rather it would be within himself

What kinds of conditions can modulate rationality in this sense? Anything that comes intrinsically from the person, such as their own beliefs about a specific issue, their own ethics and moral values, religious considerations that can modify their vision of the world, etc.

In that sense, these issues are not a predictor of whether or not the person achieves the desired goal, but rather that the behavior or thought is exercised for its own reasons, of the type that we have just listed. We observe, therefore, that belief-oriented rationality modulates the person’s way of acting, but does not guarantee that it is the most successful behavior.

3. Affective rationality

But those are not the only types of rationality that Weber describes. The third of them is affective rationality. Here the emotionality of the subject comes into play, another characteristic of the human being. Therefore, It will be the feelings and emotions you are experiencing at any given moment that will guide your thinking or behavior

In this case, we can observe that the idea of ​​rationality itself is on the edge of its definition, since sometimes the emotion itself or the feelings experienced by the subject could lead him to act in a practically irrational way, according to an external observer.

Max Weber himself was aware of this issue and took it into account when defining the types of rationality, specifically the one we are dealing with at this moment. Even so, it is undeniable that feelings and emotions are powerful elements that can influence people’s decision-making and in fact usually do so.

4. Conventional rationality

Finally, Weber completes his list of types of rationality by referring to social conventions. The cultural elements of the society to which the subject in question belongs can be so integrated that they will also be a decisive factor when it comes to modifying our thoughts or behaviors.

Many of the actions that a person performs would respond fundamentally to tradition. That is to say, he does what he does because he has learned that it is the way to act, it has always been done that way and apparently that is why it is the correct way to act.

Obviously, this may or may not be true, although in many cases there is no truth as to the correct way to act. In any case, rationality by tradition is another important way to modulate a person’s behavior, although it is not always the efficient way to achieve a certain goal.

5. Combinations of the above

Although we already anticipated that for Max Weber there were four types of rationality that could occur, we also mentioned that these four modalities refer to “pure” situations that, in general, do not usually occur. And it is usual for several types to exert their influence at the same time.

It is difficult (although not impossible) to abstract from such human factors as the feelings one is experiencing an intense emotion that is clouding us, the traditions so deeply rooted in our culture, whatever it may be, religious issues that inhibit or modulate a part of our thoughts and behaviors.

In short, it is difficult to put aside all those issues, or other intrinsic factors of the person that, in one way or another, are present when making decisions. Therefore, even if we try to use the first type of rationality, instrumental or intentional, as we have already seen, it is possible that any of the other types (or even all three) are present.

Therefore, even when making decisions in a cold and considered manner, it may be that, even if in a subtle way, other types of rationality are exerting a certain influence on the behavior or thought adopted.