What is the mind?

An individual’s mind is his personal system of desires/fears/priorities which causes his behavior as his actions/reactions including his feelings as his reactions to his realizations of his desires/fears/priorities, his personality as his mind-in -action, as his behavior as caused by his desires/fears/priorities, his mental problems as his unrealistic [unachievable or/and inappropriate] desires, and his mental health as his realistic [achievable and appropriate] desires.

A desire is wanting a person, a thing, or an event.

NOTE: For the purposes of the observation and measurement required for an operational definition of ‘desire,’ scientists (and nonscientists) can observe and measure an individual’s approach behavior towards a person/thing/event as evidence of the presence and operation of a desire.

A fear is not-wanting a person/thing/event.

NOTE: For the purposes of the observation and measurement required for an operational definition of ‘fear,’ scientists (and nonscientists) can observe and measure an individual’s avoidance behavior away from a person/thing/event as evidence of the presence and operation of a fear.

NOTE: Desires and fears are interrelated by being opposites. The desire to live is the interrelated opposite of the fear of dying.

A priority is the importance of each desire or fear compared to (relative to) all other desires and fears.

NOTE: For the purposes of the observation and measurement required for an operational definition of ‘priority,’ scientists (and nonscientists) can observe and measure the effort an individual makes for his approach behaviors to desired persons/things/events or avoidance behaviors away from feared persons/things/events as evidence of the presence and operation of priorities.

NOTE: The term ‘desire(s)’ can be used for convenience to designate desires/fears/priorities.

An individual’s mind and his sense of ‘I’ and ‘me’ and ‘myself’ develop in the following process (sequence):

1. There is a material world of people/things/events comprised of matter/energy which exists objectively and independently of the individual’s opinions and in contrast to his ideas/dreams/fantasies/etc.

2. The individual perceives the material world through his (perceptual)  senses of (1) sight; (2) hearing; (3) touch; (4) smell; (5) taste.

3. Through his perceptions the individual learns which people/things/events achieve his desires/do not achieve his desires and avoid his fears/do not avoid his fears.

4. The individual develops desires for those people/things/events who/which achieve his desires/avoid his fears.

The individual develops fears of those people/things/events who/which do not achieve his desires/do not avoid his fears.

Thus, the bridge between the material world and the individual’s ‘I’/mind is his senses/perceptions.

5. The individual’s desires/fears/priorities, taken together as a personal system, (A) comprise his mind; (B) cause his behavior; and (C) (as his mind) is his ‘I’/‘me’/‘myself.’

Paraphrase: The individual’s ‘I’/‘me’/‘myself’ is his mind--his personal system of desires/fears/priorities which causes his behavior.