When Adam Smith, “The Father of Economics,” conceived of capitalism in the 18th century, he rested his assumptions on the belief that humans are self-interested by nature. What he wrote then would reach its logical extreme in the present-day ethics of Wall Street.
Since then, many in power have perpetuated the myth of the selfish human to advance policies and principles that undermine generosity and empathy. Then came along Dr. Felix Warneken, now a professor of psychology at Harvard University, who developed experiments to trust whether toddlers are naturally altruistic. The results, captured on video below, are pretty striking.
via Scientists tested a theory of human nature on toddlers. The results are delightful..
An American Point of View 