Nature Vs. Nurture Debate

What determines who you are or what you will become? The debate between nature versus nurture is trying to figure this out. According to “Essentials of Psychology”, Jeffrey S. Nevid (2012) Nature versus nurture is the debate about how genetics and nature determine our behavior. In other words, have your attitude, behavior and health problems developed because of how you were raised or who you came from. It is a debate that has stumped psychologists for centuries. The study of twins, both identical and fraternal, have made it easier for psychologists to figure out this debate. So what is the answer to this age old debate; Nature or Nurture?

For years upon years, people have argued the nature vs. nurture debate. The term “nature vs nurture” has been dated to be used all the way back to the Elizabethan period. To break down exactly what nature vs nurture is, it’s a debate whether prenatal care and home environment determines human behavior, or if that simply relies on a person’s genetics. Personally, I believe both nature and nurture play an important role in a human’s development and behavior. To fully understand my reasoning, I’ll break down exactly what nature and nurture are in this long-standing debate.

The historical debate regarding nature and nurture has been going on for years and is still unresolved. Many theorists believe what we have inherited and our genes, makes us the way we are and how we develop. Other theorists believe it is the way we are brought up and our experiences, that make us the way we are and how we develop.

This study included 361 families, each of whom adopted a child. Participants were the adoptive parents, the adopted child and the birth mother. One of the best studies to distinguish between what is caused by genetics and what is caused by environment is an adoption study, as there is a very distinct differentiation between nature and nurture. (Natsuaki, et al.)

The nature versus nurture debate is said to be one of the oldest, longstanding debates within psychology. This debate really sparks the interests of researching whether it is soley by nature (our genes or hereditary factors) or by nurture (our enivornment, relationships, teachings) that we become who we are or what influences us most.

According to a telegraph article, twin studies tells us that genes play a far more vital role in shaping who we are. Researchers from Edinburgh University studied more than 800 sets of identical and nonidentical twins to learn whether genetics, or environment plays a bigger role. Twins almost always share the same environment as each other, but only identical twins share the same genes. The study comprised a series of questions, asking the participants how they viewed themselves, “Writing in the journal of personality, the researchers found that identical twins were twice as likely as nonidentical twins to share the same personality traits, suggesting that their DNA was having the greatest impact. Professor Timothy Bates, who had led the study had this to

Through history, the idea of nature vs. nurture has been a hotly debated issue. Nature, or genetics is often believed to be the most important aspect of a persons’ upbringing, as nature is something intrinsic to any one person. However, many debate that nurture, or the care and encouragement of any human life, trumps nature. The earliest evidence and rebuttals of these theories have been honed and developed over time by specific psychologists and educational theorists – all who hoped to prove their own ideas as fact at one time in history.

The dizygotic twins show a higher correlation than their other siblings even when reared apart supporting the theory that nature does have a major influence on human intelligence.

The significance of nature and nurture has been a prolonged debate that has caused quite a controversy and the discoveries made on this topic have made harder to determine which side is the most crucial. Multiple experiments and research studies have been conducted to prove one is better or stronger than the other and they continue to be conducted. As a species, human beings inherited DNA from our ancestors, but what impacts our actions the most is our environment. The predetermined genes are impactful, but it is what one makes of it that shapes oneself. The path is driven by the human being. The way we carry ourselves out is affected by the choices we make, but the way we have evolved mentally comes from the nurturing of our caretakers.

We know that our eye color, hair color, and height can be attributed to our genes. But what about our emotional or behavior traits? There has been an ongoing debate about whether nature or nurture matters more in determining the traits an individual will have. Nature is influenced by our genes and other biological factors. Nurture is the influence of external factors after conception, such as environmental factors and learning experiences such as our childhood experiences or social relationships. People know that both nature and nurture influence how we live, but how much of our traits are determined by this.

The intelligence scores of identical twins reared together are more similar than those of fraternal twins. Brain scan also reveals that identical twins have similar volume to their brain’s gray matter, and those areas associated with verbal and spatial intelligence. Because many genes influence intelligence, it is said to be polygenetic. The intelligence test score of fraternal twins are more alike than the intelligence test scores of other siblings. This provides evidence of an environmental effect because fraternal twins, being the same age, are treated more alike. Studies of adopted children and their adoptive and biological families demonstrate that with age, genetic influences scores are more like those of their biological parents than their adoptive

Nature against nurture – that’s one of the most popular questions ever studied in psychology. Even today no one knows for sure what’s more valuable for our human development – nurture or nature. Many researches, experiments and discussions have been conducted to answer this question, but positive results are still unavailable. In this nature vs nurture essay you’ll find a brief history, significant characteristics of the nature versus nurture problem and fresh original thoughts on the

The nature and nurture debate is one of the oldest arguments in psychology. Both sides have valid and equal points, which make it really hard to pin point one being the strongest. The debate is based on whether a person’s development is influenced by their genes (DNA) or the environment they live in. They both play very important roles in human development, but it is still not yet known which one has the most influence over us.

The nature vs. nurture debate is one that has persisted throughout generations of scientists and neuroscientists. Some believe that all aspects of human behavior and human functioning are strictly hereditary, passed down from the parents through genetics. Others believe that the environment has a much greater impact, and can determine one’s personality and intelligence. However, this issue is not as black and white as it might appear. While genetics might have more power than the environment, it is my belief that both are equally important in the shaping of one’s personality and behavior.

Nature versus nurture has long been debated, especially in psychological research. Are humans’ development preconceived by their genes, or developed during their life cycle from experiences? As time has pasts and many studies have been created, many scientists have put their input on whether nature, or nurture, has a major impact on shaping humans. Two psychologist, Aristotle and Plato, are two individuals who studied and argued this topic heavily. Plato thought that our character, intelligence, and certain ideas are inborn, while Aristotle contended that everything in the mind comes from our senses and the external world. (Myers & Dewall, 8) I strongly believe that while both may play a huge part in shaping us, nature has the most to do with