<p>Greed is the disordered desire for more than one deserves, not for the greater good but for one’s own
selfish gain, and at the expense of others and society as a whole. Greed may be motivated by a variety
of factors, including food, money, possessions, power, celebrity, prestige, attention, adoration, and sex.
Whereas, compulsions are habitual, rule-bound behaviours that a person feels compelled to engage in in
order to avoid painful situations. It is more like a strong “want” to do something over and over again that is difficult to control.</p>
<p>References from: <a href="https://psychologytoday.com/us/blog/hide-and-seek/201410/is-greed-good" rel="nofollow noreferrer">&quot;Is Greed Good?&quot; by Neel Burton, M.D. on Psychology Today.</a></p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-10-01T11:50:16.073Z
Psychology Today is a popular scientific blog with questionable credibility. Just to explain the banner above your post.
AliceD
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-08-28T17:48:41.947Z
2021-09-07T22:15:09.877Z
2021-09-07T22:15:09.877Z
Dr. Rachna Khanna Singh
<p>Looking at the synonyms of the two words may be instructive. The synonyms can be visualised according to the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0227877" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Atlas of Personality, Emotion and Behaviour</a> as:</p>
<p><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/H4Rc0.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/H4Rc0.png" alt="enter image description here" /></a></p>
<p>Of note:</p>
<ol>
<li>Greed is therefore a more dominant behaviour than compulsion.</li>
<li>Compulsion is more internal, whereas greed is more (anti)social.</li>
</ol>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-08-20T07:19:28.600Z
2021-08-20T07:19:28.600Z
Tony Mobbs
<p>I want to learn how is human <strong>greed</strong> different from <strong>compulsion</strong> in psychology? Which one is intentional and which one is unintentional? If it makes sense at all? One of the lecturers in our school mentioned that greed is more intentional, whereas compulsion is more an unintentional attribute of the mind. I appreciate any comments or helps in distinguishing these two. Thank you</p>
<p>According to the Cambridge dictionary:</p>
<p><strong>Greed</strong>: a very strong <strong>wish</strong> to continuously get more of something, especially food or money</p>
<p><strong>Compulsion</strong>: a very strong <strong>feeling</strong> of wanting to do something repeatedly that is difficult to control</p>
<p>But I don't know if it is technically sound or not?</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-08-18T07:03:58.260Z
With compulsion it is generally unintentional, whereas with greed it can be either intentional or unintentional. But when intentional, the greed can be really a compulsion.
Chris Rogers
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-08-18T15:36:07.917Z
Thank you, @ChrisRogers. Do you know any references for this? I would really appreciate
user15402571
<definition>
How is greed different from compulsion?
user15402571
# How is greed different from compulsion?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2021-08-17)

I want to learn how is human **greed** different from **compulsion** in psychology? Which one is intentional and which one is unintentional? If it makes sense at all? One of the lecturers in our school mentioned that greed is more intentional, whereas compulsion is more an unintentional attribute of the mind. I appreciate any comments or helps in distinguishing these two. Thank you

According to the Cambridge dictionary:

**Greed**: a very strong **wish** to continuously get more of something, especially food or money

**Compulsion**: a very strong **feeling** of wanting to do something repeatedly that is difficult to control

But I don't know if it is technically sound or not?

**Tags:** definition

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: With compulsion it is generally unintentional, whereas with greed it can be either intentional or unintentional. But when intentional, the greed can be really a compulsion.  
> **username_0**: Thank you, @ChrisRogers. Do you know any references for this? I would really appreciate  

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## 2 answers

### Answer by username_4 on 2021-08-20. Score: 2 | Accepted answer

Looking at the synonyms of the two words may be instructive. The synonyms can be visualised according to the [Atlas of Personality, Emotion and Behaviour](https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0227877) as:

[![enter image description here](https://i.sstatic.net/H4Rc0.png)](https://i.sstatic.net/H4Rc0.png)

Of note:

1. Greed is therefore a more dominant behaviour than compulsion.
2. Compulsion is more internal, whereas greed is more (anti)social.


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### Answer by username_2 on 2021-08-28. Score: -2

Greed is the disordered desire for more than one deserves, not for the greater good but for one’s own
selfish gain, and at the expense of others and society as a whole. Greed may be motivated by a variety
of factors, including food, money, possessions, power, celebrity, prestige, attention, adoration, and sex.
Whereas, compulsions are habitual, rule-bound behaviours that a person feels compelled to engage in in
order to avoid painful situations. It is more like a strong “want” to do something over and over again that is difficult to control.

References from: ["Is Greed Good?" by Neel Burton, M.D. on Psychology Today.](https://psychologytoday.com/us/blog/hide-and-seek/201410/is-greed-good)

> **Comments:**
> **username_3**: Psychology Today is a popular scientific blog with questionable credibility. Just to explain the banner above your post.  

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