By Abdulfatai Yunus
Duke Elligton once said that Selfishness can be a virtue. Selfishness is essential to survival, and without survival we cannot protect those whom we love more than ourselves’.
It is known in the history of humanity and psychology that not all selfishness is necessarily bad and not all altruism is good.
The term ‘selfish’ means an undesirable or immoral act characterized by self centered exhibition. Altruism, on the other hand, is considered as universally desirable and virtuous.
The survival of an individual may depend on the human capacity for self-interest. A fight or a flight system that promotes looking out for oneself can save lives in some circumstances.
Therefore, people who are basically selfish are not necessarily bad and self-centered. People give and take in social relationships; they have the capacity to be both selfish and otherwise. In the face of threats to existence, people are hardwired for both self-interest and other interest
According to William Nicholson “Selfish people are hard to love because so little love comes out of them”. Oscar Wilde also says “Selfishness is not living as one wishes to live, it is asking others to live as one wishes to live. And unselfishness is letting other peoples’ lives alone not interfere with them”.
The two quotes insinuate that Selfishness does not appear to foster psychological well being, physical health and social relationship. But that is not to say that Selfishness is never good for the self.
Importantly, not all Selfishness is necessarily bad, and not all altruism is necessarily good. Selfishness is largely associated with indicators or adaptive psychological functioning and genuine prosocial orientation, whereas pathological altruism is associated with maladaptive functioning, vulnerable narcissism, egocentricity and helping behavior that might be