The Origins of Human Behaviour

Bernard Rourke, the seventh of eight children, was born in Liverpool on the 4th of July, 1934. He obtained a BA degree and teaching diploma at Sheffield University. Having being called up for compulsory National Service, he remained in the Army for 23 years. He studied Mandarin Chinese at London and Hong Kong universities to qualify as an interpreter. He then served both as Chief Instructor and later as Commandant of the Ministry of Defence Chinese Language School in Hong Kong, which trained UK and Commonwealth diplomats, and intelligence personnel to qualify as interpreters in Mandarin and Cantonese. He retired a Lieutenant Colonel. Married in 1958, he and his wife have lived on the Costa Blanca, Spain since 1995.

The Origins of Human Behaviour is written in plain English to help us understand how we evolve into the person we become. It sets out to find and explain the major influences, and demonstrates that the origins of human behaviour contain some genuine surprises.Just what are the origins of our myriad personal qualities? Author Bernard Rourke never accepted that living in slums and suffering abuse are principal factors in creating a person's character and temperament. There had to be other more dramatic sources of influence.He examines the role of instinct and other inheritance issues in the animal kingdom, because he believes what has been successful for millions of years might well have carried over into our species. Is human behaviour environmental or ancestral, and what makes us unique individuals?The book also discusses the value of the world's main religions and what influence we really have in our children's personal development. About the Author: Bernard Rourke was born in 1934 in Liverpool, England. During World War II, he was evacuated for three years, and later obtained a BA and a teaching diploma from Sheffield University. He joined the Army and was sent to London and Hong Kong to study Mandarin Chinese to qualify as an interpreter. Rourke was the seventh of eight children and, from an early age, the disparity in the "identities" of his siblings created a life-long fascination with "how do we become who we become."Publisher's website: sbpra.com/BernardRourke