Symbolic Triggers and Fixed Action Patterns in Humans

Symbolic triggers shape human behavior in profound ways, influencing everything from global mourning to acts of violence. The death of Princess Diana triggered worldwide grief, as she embodied the Princess-Mother Archetype—a universal symbol of beauty, vulnerability, and compassion. Similarly, religious symbols such as the cross in Christianity or the Kaaba in Mecca serve as powerful archetypal triggers, reinforcing identity, belonging, and purpose. When amplified by media, propaganda, or extreme social narratives, these symbols can become Amplified Symbolic Releasers (ASRs), evoking responses that surpass typical religious devotion and move toward radicalized action.

But symbolic releasers also drive destructive behaviors. Consider Nikolas Cruz, the Parkland shooter, who chose Valentine’s Day—a symbol of love and connection—to stage his attack to "ruin it forever." By selecting a date carrying immense cultural significance, Cruz intensified the symbolic weight of his actions. This event aligns with Amplified Symbolic Releasers (ASRs), as explored in Tinbergen’s Nobel Prize-winning work, where heightened versions of natural signals evoke exaggerated responses. Valentine’s Day, already deeply imbued with social expectations and emotional significance, became an amplified trigger for Cruz’s violent intentions.

Much like a stickleback fish instinctively attacks red stimuli, humans can be driven by symbolic cues that bypass conscious thought. These stimuli become supranormal when exaggerated versions of natural triggers intensify behavioral responses beyond typical reactions. Tinbergen’s research demonstrated that artificial stimuli—such as oversize eggs—could elicit stronger responses from animals than their natural counterparts. In humans, media, cultural narratives, and ideological reinforcements can similarly amplify symbolic cues, making them more potent drivers of behavior. This phenomenon reveals the power of fixed action patterns (FAPs) and symbolic releasers—hardwired responses embedded within neural circuits and cultural narratives. Similar mechanisms appear in radicalized extremists, as I discuss in a previous post.

The Stickleback’s Aggression Response: A Case Study in Fixed Action Patterns

The male stickleback fish exhibits an aggressive territorial defense behavior triggered by the sight of red-colored objects. Tinbergen’s experiments showed that a male stickleback would attack a model fish with a red underside while ignoring a more anatomically accurate model lacking red coloration. This behavior exemplifies key properties of FAPs:

• Triggered by a Specific Stimulus: Red coloration acts as a sign stimulus that initiates aggression.
• Stereotyped and Invariant: The attack sequence is predictable and does not vary.
• Resistant to Learning and Modification: The behavior persists regardless of prior experience.
• Autonomous Execution: Once initiated, the aggressive response continues to completion.

Symbolic Releasers in Human Behavior: Eating Disorders and Violence

Just as animals exhibit fixed responses to specific stimuli, human cognition and behavior also follow predictable patterns when triggered by symbolic cues. These symbolic releasers activate deeply imprinted archetypes, leading to automatic behaviors seen in eating disorders and acts of violence.

Eating Disorders: The Beauty Archetype and Symbolic Triggers

Eating disorders, such as anorexia nervosa, follow fixed behavioral patterns in response to symbolic releasers—images of thinness, social validation, and aesthetic ideals perpetuated by media and culture. The Beauty Archetype is an imprinted cognitive structure associating thinness with self-worth, discipline, and control. In "Fairy Tale or Trap? How Beauty Ideals Imprint Young Brains," I explore how these patterns take hold in adolescence.

Like the stickleback fish attacking a red artificial fish, individuals with eating disorders may respond automatically to thin-ideal imagery, engaging in harmful behaviors despite negative consequences. Once embedded, symbolic releasers (e.g. seeing a thin, attractive model, being teased, or even symbols of success) can release fixed behavioral patterns (such as restricting food, exercise or purging). Some studies have found that purging was triggered by symbolic-like cues such as feelings of defectiveness/shame, failure, social isolation, core beliefs and recurrent negative images linked to adverse life experiences (Hinrichsen, 2007).

School Shooters and Extremists: The Warrior and Martyr Archetypes

Violent acts are often triggered by symbolic releasers that activate deeply imprinted archetypes. Assassins, school shooters, and terrorists perceive themselves as fulfilling a higher purpose, with their violent trajectory initiated extreme overvalued beliefs which are later released by symbolic cues. This aligns with the stickleback model—where a simple stimulus (a red object) triggers aggression, ideological extremists may act in response to abstract cues that bypass emotional regulation and logical reasoning. For a deeper look into these radicalization processes, see "Imprinted for Violence."

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The progression of fixed action patterns and symbolic releasers follows a logical sequence from simple instinctual responses in animals to higher, culturally embedded behaviors in humans. Just as a stickleback fish instinctively attacks anything red as a territorial aggression response, human behavior also reacts to symbolic cues in automatic ways. Exposure to thin-ideal imagery can act as a symbolic releaser, activating the Beauty Archetype in individuals with overvalued ideas seen in eating disorders. Similarly, violent media or personal grievances can trigger the Warrior/Avenger Archetype in school shooters, reinforcing aggressive behaviors. Assassins, driven by political or ideological symbols, often embrace the Martyr or Warrior Archetype, just as terrorists use religious or ideological texts as symbolic cues that embed the Warrior/Martyr Archetype, leading to acts of violence. In the cases of John Wilkes Booth and Lee Harvey Oswald, the presidents they targeted (Lincoln and JFK) announced their visits, triggering symbolic releasers. These behaviors, like the fish attacking a red object placed near them, are triggered by symbolic cues that bypass higher reasoning and drive rigid, automatic responses.

Conclusion

Fixed action patterns and Amplified Symbolic Releasers (ASRs) demonstrate the interplay between innate responses, cultural reinforcement, and environmental stimuli, forming the basis of extreme overvalued beliefs (EOBs). The stickleback’s response to red coloration illustrates how seemingly arbitrary cues can trigger rigid, automatic behaviors, a principle extending to human struggles like eating disorders and targeted violence.

By understanding the role of Amplified Symbolic Releasers (ASRs) in activating archetypal imprints, we can better analyze and intervene in maladaptive behaviors. Whether it be the Beauty Archetype compelling disordered eating or the Warrior/Martyr Archetype driving violent extremism, these patterns follow a logic rooted in evolution, neurobiology, and cultural reinforcement. Future research must explore how these symbolic triggers can be disrupted, allowing for healthier behavioral trajectories and psychological interventions. For further analysis of these mechanisms in extremist behaviors, see "Distorted Archetypes in Threat Assessment."