Essay on Nature vs Nurture Debate

be solved. From a nature standpoint, it is scientifically proven that genetics are able to but do not

The characteristics of nature vs. nurture are quite different. Nature is those qualities about a person that are deemed genetic. Such genetics heritability includes a person’s color and gender. Nature is a person’s biological determinism. Characteristics of nurture include environmental variation and external influences. These characteristics are dependent on such factors as social status and education and the influence these factors have on a person’s character. In my opinion, both nature and nurture uniformly determine of person’s personality and intelligence. This opinion is widely debated but not debunked.

The issues pitting nature against nurture are exceptionally significant for the gamut of discoveries that attribute an increasing proportion of traits and behaviours to one's genetic makeup. The resulting variety of physical shortcomings and limitations in each person has, for centuries, been countered by endeavours to improve or interfere where necessary, and every individual is consequently the product of a delicate middle path of balance between the two.

However, recently more progressive mindsets on the debate have been formed and it is now believed that it is neither nature nor nurture that is completely responsible for the psychological development of a child, but rather the relationship between the two that have the most impact on the development of our minds. This new answer to the “Nature vs. Nurture” debate seems the most accurate since there has not been a determined conclusion to which has the bigger effect. Members of society are now coming to terms with the idea that both of these factors are important to the psychological maturity of every human mind, however, I still believe that how a child is brought up has the most impact on their future success and the person they become. Biological elements have the power to set limits on what our mind can achieve, but life experiences, familial relationships, and the way we are educated all influence the way we mature socially, academically and as people. These limits that are set by our DNA (i.e. mental disorders, delayed development, etc.) are all challenges that have the control to stop one from surpassing a certain point psychologically, however, it is the way we are nurtured that allows our minds to grow in the first

In today's society, one will find that there are many different factors that go into the development of a criminal mind, and it is impossible to single out one particular cause of criminal behavior. Criminal behavior often stems from both biological and environmental factors. In many cases criminals share similar physical traits which the general population do not usually have. For example criminals have smaller brains than properly adjusted individuals. However biological reasons cannot solely be the cause of criminal behavior. Therefore, one must look to other sources as to how a criminal mind is developed. Social and environmental factors also are at fault for developing

easily traced as far back as the start of the present century with at least some

Most of us have an intuition that, although our genes provide advantages and constraints, we retain great control over our lives. However, we are developing a second, competing intuition that, like it or not, our genes determine our abilities, our preferences, and our emotions. We would like to think we are much more than the sum of our genes, but scientists have apparently demonstrated that our genes determine some of our most complex behavioral and cognitive characteristics.

     Studies of twins place them in two differing groups. Identical twins or monozygotic twins, according to Clegg and Woollett, "are formed by the accidental splitting of a single fertilized egg, so that the babies develop from one egg and one sperm." They also define fraternal or dizygotic twins as non-identical twins that "develop from the fertilization of two eggs by two sperm" (16). It is common knowledge ones genes are inherited, half from ones mother, and half from ones father. Since monozygotic, or MZ, twins are a split of the same egg and sperm, they contain identical genes. However, the genes of dizygotic, or DZ, twins are only as similar as typical brothers and sisters. Scientists are interested in fraternal twins reared together because, being the same age and in the same home, they share practically identical environments. They are also interested in studying identical twins that have been reared apart from one another, because they share identical genetics but have differing backgrounds. These groups of twins provide researchers with automatic control groups.

From Dr. Money’s perspective, raising Bruce as a girl would allow him to live a “normal” life, if he were to live his life without a penis, he would be seen as an outsider and rejected from society. He also suggested to put Bruce on estrogen, but also surgically give him a cosmetic vagina. Dr. Money explained to Ron and Janet that Bruce/Brenda, would psychologically mature as a woman, and be attracted to men, as well as be able to have sexual intecourse, without a problem. According to Bruce’s parents, there was no reason “that it shouldn’t work” (50). However, they could have thought it out thoroughly, what if Brenda didn’t feel comfortable in her own skin? Would she feel as though something is wrong with her? This is where the topic of

In the article “What is nature vs nurture?” by Kendra Cherry it mentions, “... Tabula, which suggests that the mind begins as a blank slate… everything that we are and all of our knowledge is determined by our experiences”. A man does not grow up hating everyone and everything but is innocent; changed by society and it’s ways. As children we don’t have our own mindset but more of “a blank slate”. Man begins to follow and take over the habits of what they grew up seeing, both good and bad. Society has it’s ways in getting to people and pushing them to their limit and as a child we are exposed to how others react to those limits being passed. The more man is exposed to hatred the more man begins to grow hate towards what they

One of the oldest debates in psychology is nature versus nurture. Nature is the inborn, innate character of an organism. (Spencer A. Rathus pg. 56) Nurture is the sum total of the environmental factors that affect an organism from conception onward. (Spencer A. Rathus pg. 56) Basically nature is what you have from heredity and nurture is you environmental influences.

     Throughout the history of human existence, there have always been questions that have plagued man for centuries. Some of these questions are “what is the meaning of life” and “which came first, the chicken or the egg”. Within the past 400 years a new question has surfaced which takes our minds to much further levels. The question asked is whether nature or nurture has more of an impact on the growing development of people. It is a fact that a combination of nature and nurture play important roles in how humans behave socially. However, I believe that nature has a more domineering role in the development of how people behave in society with regards to sexual orientation, crimes and violence and mental disorders.

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.

Nature and nurture are two words that may look similar by first glance, but the two words are on opposite ends of the spectrum. According to Soc.ucsb.edu, “nature refers to all the evolutionary factors that have shaped the genetics that we have inherited from our parents and ancestors.” The same site defines nurture

1) Use the example of feral children to construct an argument in the nature versus nurture debate.