Attention Deficit Dichotomy

The days of making mud-pies, running around the neighborhood, getting poison ivy from exploring the river are dwindling down with the change in society and cultural values. Over the past few decades, children have become less and less familiar and engaged with nature. Children of the millennial generation are encountering new issues defined by a term identified by Robert Louv in his book, Last Child in The Woods, as Nature Deficit Disorder (NDD). This disorder is not a medical term, but it is an appropriate and relatable term for many children to describe the growing disconnect between them and nature. NDD is developing into a real issue because of the change in parental values, school atmosphere, technology and urbanization. As society changes

“The developed world deprives children of a basic and inalienable right: unstructured outdoor play. Children today have substantially less access to nature, less free range, and less time for independent play than previous generations had.” This quote is from the research based paper titled, “Where the Wild Things Should Be: Healing Nature Deficit Disorder through the Schoolyard." This article touches many aspects of how children now a days need more exposure to nature like it was on the older days. Currently, there are many playgrounds around the United States and even more the world. This article is trying to bring awareness to the problem of if playgrounds do not have enough nature or is too safe then it is

Both normative and nonnormative influences and nature and nurture influences both shed light on human development over childhood and adolescence. The nature and nurture debate refers to whether particular aspects of development are a result of inherited characteristics (nature) or obtained characteristics (nurture). The answer to what characteristics were obtained by which source is a difficult task as there is still much to learn about the way genetic markers work and how their patterning influence organisms. Instead nature and nurture should be looked at as a intricate ecology (Claiborne, Drewery, Paki, & Peters, 2014). This is where characteristics are not considered to have only a single source but can linked to a contribution of our genetic

One of the main, and most controversial topics discussed in a child’s development is, nature vs. nurture. Nature pertains to genetic influences that a child has inherited from their parents, such as traits, abilities, and capacities. For instance, what color eyes the child may have, how athletic they may be, and even their brain development. Whereas nurture, refers to the environment the child is raised in and how this shapes their behaviors. Such factors can include, the family’s socio-economic status, schooling, parental discipline, as well as whether the child is provided with enough resources. When it comes to nature or nurture having a stronger influence then the other, the answer is both, nature and nurture, influence the outcome of the child. This idea that both nature and nurture, play a part in how the child will develop, is known as the nature-nurture continuum.

What Louv adds is a focus on the restorative qualities of nature for children. He recommends that we reacquaint our children and ourselves with nature through hiking, fishing, bird-watching and disorganized, creative play. By doing so, he argues, we may lessen the frequency and severity of emotional and mental ailments and come to recognize the importance of preserving nature. At times Louv seems to conflate physical activity (a game of freeze tag) with nature play (building a tree fort), and it is hard to know which benefits children

The nature vs nurture issue has been a controversial argument among psychologist for decades. This argument exposes two different views. One of them emphasizes that our personality depends solely on genetics (nature). On the other hand, the second view suggests that humans “develop through experience” (Myers 2013, SG 6) (nurture).

Children now days are consumed by technology. Going outside for entertainment is a thing of the past. Kids used to be able to run around for hours and get the stimulation they need. Now things such as game systems, computers, phones and other technology are taking over. Because of this it causes nature deficit disorder. Nature deficit disorder is a phrase created by Richard Louv for kids now days being alienated from nature. Nature deficit is not actually a medical term although Ricard believes it should be.

In “Attention Deficit: The Brain Syndrome of Our Era,” Richard Restak considers the effect of technology on our brains. As we process increasing amounts of information at ever-faster speeds, Restak argues that our brains are undergoing “profound alterations” in order to adapt to the changing needs of our modern world. As technology connects us to more people, places, and information than ever before, Restak warns that we are losing important cognitive functions, in particular our ability to focus and concentrate. However Restak fails to mention that technology has created significant affordances as well. Allowing society to advance as a whole, via social media, e-mail, cell phones, and other various communications. Technology is reshaping our habits of mind.Yes technology created a slight defect to the mind but many advantages came about using technology as an asset.

Scholars around the world commonly discuss the topic of “nature vs. nurture” in relation to the importance of an individual’s inherent qualities. All aspects of human behavior are affected by both nature and nurture, operating together. Nature refers to the factors that have shaped the genetics that we inherit from our parents and ancestors. Nurture refers to all the things that have influenced us since we began to develop- even from the moment we were conceived. Therefore, nature determines the range of our human potential while nurture affects the ways that our human potential is objectified, being helped or hindered by good or bad environmental contributions.

It is universally accepted that happiness pushes human society to progress. Happiness brings euphoria which all human beings naturally enjoy. To magnify happiness, people study philosophy to contemplate what brings happiness thus inventing new devices to ease their lives. Philosophy teaches people that acceptance, sharing and love arouse happiness. Consequently, new inventions implement their spiritual understandings about happiness in real life by facilitating communication. In Daniel Gilbert’s article “Reporting Live from Tomorrow”, he proposes that because there is not a single human encyclopedia in the world, communication is necessary to human beings and happiness stems from communication. Traditionally, people needed to make tremendous effort to communicate, but fortunately, new technologies bring easier communication. A good example is that electronic devices are extensively used now. However, immoderate usage of new technologies are harmful. In Richard Restak’s article “ Attention Deficit: The Brain Syndrome of Our Era”, he exhibits that attention deficit which is referred to as a psychological disability, is becoming a label of modern society. With almost addictive symptoms, people pass the boundaries of proper use of new technologies again and again and are now emotionally dependent on them. However, is it possible that people can get true happiness through electronic-devices communication? Although technology heightens people’s happiness temporarily, the fake

According to Kuo and Taylor, more than 4 million children in the United States suffer from the effects of ADHD (2011). Families seek methods of treatment other than those traditionally prescribed such as medication, psychological therapy, or a combination of the two. Recently, newer studies suggest that children who are given the opportunity to participate in outside, “green” activities show milder symptoms and a decreased need for other forms of treatment (Kuo and Taylor). Middle school students will benefit emotionally, physically and educationally from the use of green space therapy as a primary source of treatment for the symptoms of ADHD.

2. Chief Purpose: To encourage researchers, psychologists, and therapist to utilize information within the article to promote involvement with nature upon the human population. To help the human race to develop an eco-friendly environment.

The development of human being during the entire course of life, focus on biological and psychological growth (Berk, 2010). Human development hold several outcomes that are altered by both positive and negative influences. Genetic (nature) and environmental (nurture) influences place significant impact on human development. In fact, Pinker (2004) submits that behavior is the result of a complex collaboration among inheritance and environmental factors in human development, ultimately supporting that nature-nurture work collectively (Pinker, 2004).

Throughout history, our society’s socialization, or lifelong social experiences, has been debated upon quite vigorously. It is quite evident that we all obtain certain characteristics and abilities through heredity factors, but many still argue that this is not the only explanation for how our lives are determined. The argument of nature versus nurture is still being discussed by many, although both have been seen to have an impact on our life experiences.

Many all over the world struggle with social disorders, some being completely mental, like simply being shy in nature to the extreme of having social disorders. Whatever the case may be there is no avoiding the fact that these are serious issues that many people have to deal with. Several topics going along with social skills have been researched saying that nature has had a positive impact on children’s physiological wellbeing. In an article titled American Beliefs Associated with Encouraging Children’s Nature Experience Opportunities, it is stated that many mental benefits come from the connection to nature. Increased self-confidence, self-esteem, and independence can all be boosted when children are connected to nature (Fraser, Heimlich, Yocco, 2010). All of these are connected to the social wellbeing of children and boosting them will advance children’s social skills. By connecting children to the natural world, you can see a positive correlation between a child’s social development and their contact to