Once a child is born and their development continues, then starts the controversy and wonder as to whether how the child is raised effects their outcome in adult hood, or whether they are just born to be a certain way. Child psychology looks into the many different factors that affect the pregnancy and raising a child. Such as, parenting styles, and how the environment (nurture) and the genetics (nature) play an important role in the child’s development. 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. Furthermore, the nature-nurture continuum will demonstrate how every child will fall on this continuum that certain behaviors are a result of the child’s genetic makeup and the type of environment the child is raised in. For instance, a child’s intelligence can be considered under either end of the continuum, and for some cases, fall in the middle. If during a child’s development, a part of their brain is not developing properly due to genetic disorders this would be considered a matter of nature. Whereas, if it solely had to deal with the environment or upbringing the child dealt with such as opportunity to good schooling and services, would pertain to nurture. Except for some children, both would apply in that, the child may have inherited a genetic disorder which has affected their brain development and in turn are nurtured through an environment of plenty opportunities and services
The basic assumption of psychologists in correlation to nurture is that the mind is a “blank slate, or tabula rasa” (Locke, 1689) during infancy, and continues to absorb new information as the environment changes with the child. There are multiple disciplines within the psychological school of thought that become very relevant when studying nurture. For starters, cognitive psychology states that mental
The classic debated topic of Nature versus Nurture has been and will always be a quarrelsome subject in the scientific world. Meaning, the issue of the level to which environment and heredity sway behavior and development in a person. Nature can be defined as, behaviors due to heredity. This means the behaviors is based on the inherited makeup of an individual and is an influence of the growth and development of that individuals’ all through life. On the other hand nurture is causes of behaviors that are environmental. This Intel’s the influence is from the individual’s parents, siblings, family, friends and all other experiences that individual exposed to during life. However, these concept of ideas supports the inborn genetic framework,
The old and popular debate between ‘nature vs. nurture’ has generated a lot of interest in newborns, who were previously thought to be ‘blank slates’, and has contributed a lot to developmental psychology, a field of psychology focusing on studying infants. It is now generally accepted that both nature and nurture make equal contribution to the infant’s development.
Child Development is a very significant topic all over the world in every family. Child development deals with the biological,
A lifespan model consists of identifying the interconnections between earlier and later events in ones life while specifying the biological, psychological and environmental factors that shape and influence development. My personal developmental theory consists of several tenets from theories such as, nature vs. nurture, systems and cognitive developmental theory. While there are many theories in lifespan development, and they are all relevant in the development of an individual I found these particular theories the most influential in my development.
In this document I wish to inform the reader of the merits of both theories, rather than choosing a side. I wish to express that both have their merits, and their flaws. The nature theory place importance on the biological characteristics of one, whereas the nurture theory place its point on the importance of how one is acted towards and treated. I wish to inform the reader beforehand that I will base the paper off of my own experiences. The theories will be in order. (Nature, Nurture, Nature, Nurture, etc…)
The oldest arguments in the history of psychology is the Nature vs Nurture discussion. Both are legitimate and it is very hard to decide whether a person’s development is prone to his DNA or influenced by his life experience and environment. Presently, nature and nurture both play important role in human development. However what remains unknown is if human is developed solely because of nature or nurture. . As of now, we know that both nature and nurture play important roles in human development, but we have not known yet whether we are developed majorly because of nature or due to nurture. Nature is the collection of genes in each human cell which determines the different traits that we have such as eye/hair color,ear size, height etc.
Scientists and biologist have argued the Nature versus Nurture debate for decades. This debate argues the degree to which our genetics or environment, affects our behaviour and developmental stages. Nature is described as the genetic material that makes up an individual. Nurture can be described as the way in which the environment and experiences of an individual influence their behavior and development. The debate has centered on which is a greater factor for many years but current contemporary views accept and acknowledge the intricacy of the developmental procedure and recognize that “development is not the case of nature or nurture, but rather nature and nurture” (Howard & Walton 2015) It has been shown that genetic and environmental factors are in such continuous interactions that the emergence of particular structures and functions is the result of the dependent interaction of genetics and environment.(Lewkowicz, 2011.)
This iconic topic questions whether one's development is predetermined by one's DNA or shaped by one's environment and experiences. My initial conclusion was that how we are nurtured is more influential than our nature as the nature component of our development usually determines only biological traits such as eye colour, body shape and size, hair colour, etc. Also, I concluded that the environment in which the child is raised in is crucial in developing the child’s identity because they pick up a distinct language, dress, ethics, and possibly religion.
Throughout time, nature and nurture have been examined to be two of the most essential topics to which the human was developed. However, the troublesome question that is asked is whether or not one has a more critical impact on human development. Before one can conclude if either is the key component of human development, one must first understand what both nature and nurture establish. While nature is characterized as the genetic makeup of a person through the inherited traits of one’s parents, nurture confronts the perception that adapting and changing to fit certain environmental factors form humans. Many theorists have brought into consideration their theories to demonstrate which approach resolves the question. Unfortunately, there is
Throughout history, philosophers, scientist and psychologists have always possessed different opinions on what gives humans distinct characteristics. “Nature”, includes heredity which is a biological component that is believed to affect IQ while “Nurture” is when one’s environment which shapes us through various experiences. Those who are inquisitive about life commonly reflect on their lives, wondering whether they would be different if their experiences in childhood were altered; childhood experiences or our social environment ever so greatly affects our personalities. Withstanding that, nurture has the ability to change an individual's characteristics based on social environment. However, the severity of these changes is different for each
and the impact it has had on the development of humans. So what is nature and nurture? Why does it affect me? Well it affects you because it is how you came to be. At some point in our lives, we all have looked in the mirror and questioned who we are and how that happened. There are two specific components that help shape and continue to shape who you are. They are called nature and nurture. The nature versus nurture dispute includes whether human conduct is managed by the environment or by predetermined genes. Before we talk about the effect of nature and nurture of human development, we need to define what
Psychologists have proposed several different theories to explain the process and stage that will shape the psychological and overall development of a child. Some tend to focus on the influences of nature and nurture on child development. Others focus on specific achievement that children reach by a certain age and specific aspects of child development such as personality, cognition and moral growth.
The theory of nature vs. nurture, or inherited vs. acquired, is a complex psychological theory that questions how people develop, as a person, in life and how they act. Their impact determines your personality traits, values, morals, and behavior in life. The idea of nature is the belief that people develop into who they are based on genetic traits given to them at birth. For example, some children inherit a musical talent from their parents along with eye color, hair color, and race. These traits can affect the decisions that a person may make in life to suit their skills and ability. Another popular opinion is the theory that nurture, the experiences and people that one encounters in life, has a heavier influence on the development and growth of people. According to the article, the theory of nature claims that, “Characteristics and differences that are not observable at birth, but which emerge later in life, are regarded as the product of maturation” and nurture views these as a product of learning (McLeod). For an example of nurture, a person born into a family that loves sports may grow up valuing athleticism and fitness, while engaging in sports as they grow. A life-changing event or external influence could have greatly impacted a person’s perspective and approach in life, ultimately changing that person as a whole. All decisions will influence one’s life in some way, whether it is miniscule or monumental. Each view of nature and nurture have valid arguments and many
Nature and nurture plays a major role in the ways that children develop. This subject is an argumentative debate that had been around a long time. There are people who feel that nature (genetic) has more influence on how children development and there are some who feel that nurture (environment) has more influence on how children development. Like the psychologist John B. Watson believed that an individual’s abilities and personality were entirely a product of their environment. I will explain the relationship between nature and nurture. I will also explain how biological, environment, societal, and cultural influences on children development in relation to nature vs. nurture. I will discuss which factor is more influential than the other. Nature and nurture work together to influence children development because without either one, children would have some delay because children don’t develop their domains with just nature. Nurture help children develop their developmentally domains by helping children understand what is doing on around them.