survival instinct

survival instinct (plural survival instincts)

1. Any of various unlearned, unthinking responses that serve to preserve one's life or make it difficult to risk one's life.
   • 1911, Christian Archibald Herter, Biological Aspects of Human Problems, page 99:

     The instinct most likely to intrude on the survival instinct is the instinct of sex, which stands in the same relation to the preservation of the race as does the survival instinct to the preservation of the individual.

   • 1989, Robb Huff, Michael B. Farley, Sea Survival: The Boatman's Emergency Manual, page 175:

     The "every man for himself" attitude, for example, is typical of this type of basic instinct. It is usually triggered by a state of panic. Although this selfish survival instinct may seem abhorrent in action, it is nevertheless a natural aspect of human behavior.

   • 1993, Liz Palika, Fido, Come!: Training Your Dog with Love and Understanding, page 25:

     The prey drive, or chase instinct, is another survival instinct.

   • 1996, Christine Adams, Ernest Fruge, Why Children Misbehave and what to Do about it, page 5:

     You are born with a survival instinct that helps you take care of yourself and your loved ones.

   • 2004, Irfan Ahmad, Digital and Conventional Dental Photography, page 72:

     This is a primitive survival instinct to guard against predators and potential danger.

   • 2021, Martin Luntig, Survival Instinct:

     As with all mammals, the survival instinct is innate in humans. We always strive to preserve our health and our lives, have a great need for security and protection and are constantly on the lookout to avoid danger.

2. (by extension) The will to live and thrive.
   • 1990, Thomas W. Shapcott, Biting the Bullet: A Literary Memoir, page 246:

     The Cicadas' must be one of the most chillingly vivid of all of Elizabeth's narratives of sexual predatoriness, emotional vulnerability, and the mean-spirited but triumphant survival instinct that forms the jungle of human struggle.

   • 2000, David L. Goetsch, Stanley Davis, Quality Management, page 430:

     The better approach is to show them that their survival instinct is tied to cooperation, not turf.

   • 2003, Wendy Whitworth, Survival: Holocaust Survivors Tell Their Story, page 139:

     Hunger, deprivation and humiliation were our constant companions, and only hope and our survival instinct kept us going.

   • 2003, Harvard Blackletter Law Journal - Volumes 19-20, page 156:

     Bayet seems intent on distinguishing the survival instinct from the political instinct. I submit that in the context of a substantial power imbalance between groups reified by a calculated legal framework, the survival instinct cannot be assumed distinct from the political one.

   • 2007, Byron Lindsey, Tatiana Spektor, Routes of Passage: Essays on the Fiction of Vladimir Makanin, page 102:

     Trapped between two hostile platoons in the woods, Rubakhin obeys the survival instinct and covers the prisoner's mouth and nose to keep him silent.

• self-preservation

• “survival instinct”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.