Nature Vs Nurture In Early Childhood Development

This is a summary of Part 2 (chapters two through five) of The Nurture Effect by Anthony Biglan, PhD. Chapter two is titled ‘Nurturing Families.’ As one might imagine the chapter revolves around the topic of family. It discusses the importance of nurturing development during pregnancy and the first two years of the child’s life. The Nurse-Family Partnership program is talked about as a great solution for poor single teenage mothers. As the chapter continues it goes into topics related to the development of young children and adolescents. Specifically, emotional regulation and nurturing young children as well as the power of attuned, attentive interactions and the

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.

During the ages of early childhood, particularly from birth till elementary school, a child requires the utmost care and attention possible. Quite literally, a baby is born in the world as a seed and needs nothing more than unconditional nurturing in order to grow and develop at a steady pace. In the case of psychiatrist Bruce Perry’s “The Coldest Heart”, Leon is a teenager who comes from a tight-knit, affectionate family yet unlike his older brother Frank, Leon was never exposed to such care and attention. Instead, he spent his childhood in a state of neglect and darkness- an apparent yet uncalled for trigger to his juvenile, criminal behavior that shaped him to become what Dr. Perry considers being a “classic sociopath” (Perry, 114).

Throughout history, studies have shown that who you become later in life is determined at birth, that one’s genes solely influence who they grow up to be. To some extend this may be true however, new research concluded that the environment and experiences someone experiences as a child can be just as influential as genetic makeup. These studies have led to the Nature verses Nurture debate, with the nature side being one’s heredities and the nurture side, childhood experiences and relationships. This controversy has largely impacted the criminal world, as law enforcement tries to understand why some people commit horrendous acts. Nature vs. Nurture specifically comes into play when trying to understand the psychology of a serial killer, as

From the time of conception to the time of death, we are constantly developing and changing. Although some of the changes are as a result of personal adoptions and incidences, most changes experienced are as a result of our shared biological and mental heritage as humans and are shared by all individuals in the globe. A lot of studies have been dedicated to the study of human growth and development. In the book, Lifespan development, various concepts have been discussed in the first nine chapters. These include, the theories in the study of human development, the question of whether nature and nurture affect the development of a child, conception, pre-birth and birth, infancy, early childhood and middle childhood.

The ability to think is what distinguishes humans from other living beings. A human’s capacity to create, plan, organize, distinguish, use judgement, imagine, and speak are all elements of thinking. Cognitive development explains the progression of thinking, specifically critical thinking, throughout the lifespan. During childhood, the brain, particularly the areas of the brain that control cognition, are bursting with connections and changing continuously. Between childhood and adolescence, the capacity to think develops enormously and changes drastically.

Much research has been done on the influence of a mother on a child’s well-being and development (Pougnet, Serbin, Stack, & Schwartzman, 2011). However, research has shown that an engaged and loving father can contribute greatly to a child’s cognitive, social, and psychological development (Bronte-Tinkew, Carrano, Horowitz, & Kinukawa, 2008; Duursma, Pan, & Raikes, 2008; Pancsofar & Vernon-Feagans, 2010; Wilson & Prior, 2010).

The nature vs. nurture debate has been a long and bloody battle for the longest time for psychologists. Some believe that we are the products of our environment, meaning that we become who we are as a result of our upbringing, social influences, and schooling among other factors. On the other hand, the naturists believe that outside influences have nothing to do with how we turn out; it all depends on our genes. One psychologist, however, has made the attempt to bridge these two sides together. Robert Plomin’s work in genetics and psychology has helped people understand the roles the environment and genetics play in areas such as education, behavior, and development.

The Attachment Theory was discussed in chapter 1 of Belsky and is described as the close connection between a caregiver during early childhood and to a significant other during all of life. This theory is very important because it is crucial to human development and survival. How a child’s caregiver treats his or her child during early childhood determines lifelong mental health, and our ability to love later in life. The nature and nurture influence can be described as development being influenced by either life experiences/environment or genes. Nature is the biological or genetic causes of development; nurture is the environmental causes of development.

There are many different ways that behavior can be explained, especially on the terms of nature vs. nurture. Aggression is a behavior that has been extensively analyzed in a complex manner and the causes of it can be explained many different ways. Aggression can be defined as hostile or destructive behavior that can cause injury or destructive outlook especially when caused by frustration. Nature can be defined as aspects of behavior that have been inherited or are genetic, while nurture is all aspects that are influenced by environmental characteristics and experience. Many factors, both biological and environmental, influence and promote aggressive behaviors, such as hormones and neurotransmitters, genetics, family life, past experiences, and hobbies.

Middle Childhood is the name given for the age division from 6 to 11 years of a child’s life. They are also known as the “school years.” During this time a child’s health, education, and emotional well being are all undergoing changes. Though not as drastic as the changes they will soon face in adolescence, they are steady, and the impact that nature and nurture will have on these aspects reach far and wide across the many developments they face in their lives.

The overall focus of Chapter 2 is the effect of the relationship between nature and nurture, on a child’s development. The three main important ideas of this chapter to me, a mother of young children, are the early perspectives that one factor, either nature or nurture has on development, the importance of context in a child’s development and finally the interaction among nature and nurture and its effects on development.

Nature Vs Nurture; Nature is influenced by genetic inheritance 50% from their mother and 50% from their father or can stem from a family relation, from health issues to how one looks (ie) hair or eye color etc, it can also be hormonal influences and brain activity being responsible for development and behavior. Nature/Nurture is one of the most controversial debates in psychology. Nurture refers to the behaviours we learn through the socialisation process, this means the things we do are a result of what we have learned through interactions with the environment or experiences such as socio-economic factors. Behaviors can also come from expectations and guidelines found within our culture or society.

One of the oldest human development debate in psychology is nature vs. nurture. Some scientists believe that people are born with personality qualities that come from instinct, without the need to learn the trait (Rathus, 56). They are other scientists that believe ones personality is effected by his/her surroundings (Rathus, 56)

of “self and mind [being] social products” Henslin, J.M. (2013). I started to and now