THE PHENOMENON OF BODY BUILDING

The origins of the phenomenon of body building are found in the emphasis placed on physical fitness and training in ancient Greece. Body building was conceived as a part of the human physical development process in ancient Greece. The ancient Greeks viewed human physical development from the perspective of the process, the learner, and the teacher.

The dominant underlying philosophical belief held by the ancient Greeks in relation to the human physical development process was idealism. The idealist holds that universal principles underlie all things, and that these universal principles form a natural law which must be discovered, through the mind, and obeyed. In an idealistic context, therefore, the ancient Greeks viewed the process of the physical development of the human body as essentially a product of the mind. The realist, in contrast to the idealist, does not recognize a duality of spirit and matter, and holds that, to know matter, the mind must proceed experientially to learn that which is true, as opposed to discovering universal truths.

Values held by individuals and societies determine the goals which will be pursued. The dominant underlying philosophical belief held by the ancient Greeks in rela

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e needs, wants, and hungers of individuals. Thus, a desire for selfactualization, within the parameters of Maslow's theory, could drive an individual to participate in intense body building activities, as, indeed, such a desire could drive an individual to participate in a number of other activities. Skinner considered an individual's needs, wants, and hungers as good examples of inner causes of behaviorthe second link in his theoretical chain.14 Skinner did not think that it was possible to know enough about an individual's inner causes, to be able to employ this link in the motivation of behavior. Maslow, conversely, felt that it was exactly these needs which must be addressed in the motivation of individuals. Maslow also thought, however, that it might be possible to fit Skinner's intrinsic reinforcers into his own hierarchy of needs.15 In this context, Maslow felt that Skinner's intrinsic reinforcers were addressing an individual's inner needs directly, whether or not Skinner recognized such an action. With respect to body building, motivation, considered in the context of Maslow's hierarchy of needs, would stem from an individual's desire for selffulfillment, or selfactualization. Considered within the c
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Approximate Word count = 3513
Approximate Pages = 14 (250 words per page)

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