The Nurture Theory : David Reimer

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

The Nature-Nurture theory is a big issue in psychology. In this theory, the nature portion of it says that we get all our knowledge from our genes. It’s the biological side to this theory but, there’s also an environmental side to this theory. The environmental side is the nurture portion to this theory. Nurture says that we get all of our knowledge through experiences. Also where, who, and how we grow up.

Within the psychology world, the theory of nature vs. nurture has always been a hot topic. When applied to the matter of gender identification, solid proof as to whether nature is what makes people feel like a boy or girl from early on or if nurturing from parents/caregivers is what is responsible. David Reimer started out as psychologies poster boy for proving theories correct, but this status was short-lived. By the end of this discussion, the reader should have a clear understanding of the topic as well as the case in which it is based on.

For example, individuals who have a predisposition are not into crime scene. People who are born with genetic disorders tend to be more controlled by therapists and medications. On the other hand, nurture is more focused on the impact of “behavior, education, society and environment” (Karen Hart), it is the final determinant of how our genes are expressed. A person’s development is formed more by nurture. For example, in the case of Ethan Couch, lawyers defend their client as not being taught right from wrong.

This refers to the influence of experience, i.e, what is learned through interacting with both the physical and social environment. Supporters of the nurture view are known as empiricists “holding the view that all knowledge is gained through experience", you may be familiar with the term empirical support; where data is collected through sensory experience rather than a reliance on thoughts and ideas.

Nature versus nurture is one of the most controversial topics of discussion among human beings. For many years, phycologist’s have been studying various people’s behavioral patterns in order to settle the debate. The argument of nature suggests that a person is born with a pre-conceived set of personality traits that determine the way they will act for the rest of their life. That is to say that all characteristics of a person, not just physical appearance, are passed down through genetics. The case with nurture states the idea that every person, no matter where they are from, is born with a blank slate. In other words, asserting that the behavior of someone is solely a result of their surroundings. This subject often comes up when a person

The concept of nature versus nurture is that human behaviour is influenced by genetic information inherited from our parents and also by environmental and social influences.

Nature versus Nurture is the issue of the degree to which environment and heredity influence behavior and development. In this issue nature can be defined as, behaviors due to heredity. Which means behaviors are based on the genetic makeup of an individual and is an influence of the individuals' growth and development throughout life. On the other hand nurture are causes of behaviors that are environmental. Which means the influence is from, parents, siblings, family, friends and all other experiences to which the individual is exposed to.

David Peter Reimer was a Canadian boy born in Winnipeg, Manitoba on August 22, 1965. David's parents noticed he had an unusual way of urinating. He was diagnosed with Phimosis at approximately six months of age. David was taken to the hospital at eight months for the standard procedure of circumcision. During the procedure, the physician accidentally burned David's penis far beyond surgical repair. The cause was due to an electrocautery needle that was used instead of the usual scalpel. After the unfortunate procedure, a psychologist named John Money, who oversaw the case, suggested David have a sex change performed to “fix” the problem of the burnt-off penis. David's parents were distressed and were uncertain whether or not to go along with the sex change. They eventually decided to agree with the procedure after constant persuasion from John Money and other medical staff. David ended up having the sex change while John Money selfishly oversaw the case and used David Reimer as a private study. His belief was that

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.

In society, not one person is alike. By saying this, many people believe that they strongly take after their parents. Meaning they think Nature is a big part in their life and why they are who they are. The genes in each cell in us humans determine the different traits that we have, more dominantly on the physical connections like eye color, hair color, ear size, height, and other traits. However, it is still not known whether the more abstract attributes like personality, intelligence, sexual orientation, likes and dislikes are gene-coded in our DNA. The nurture theory has experiments showing a child’s behavior with the environment as to adult behavior. In the Nature Vs Nurture debate, everyone has their own thoughts and ideas on each

Of course, to every argument there has to be two sides. Some scientists argue that the way we are and act is not necessarily all determined by our genes. Believers of this side think that our behavioral aspects are derived from the environment in which we are brought up in. In the theory of nurture, our behaviors are not instinctive, but are learned throughout our lives. For example, we all laugh and cry at different time and under different circumstances. As humans, we learn from our surroundings and are influenced by our peers and parents. Another example of the role of nurture explaining our behaviors is that fact that we learn our fears and phobias. The key difference is that nurture alters itself from the fact that our biological make up is the only explanation for our behavior.

The biggest controversy in psychology today is whether genetics or one’s environment plays a role in the behavior of the individual. Psychologists have researched and developed different theories to explain the reason for the way humans think and behave. The behavior of individuals is either inherited or learned. In my opinion, I believe that nurture plays a big role in the individual’s behavior. Kendra Cherry states, “Nurture refers to all the environmental variables that impact who we are, including our early childhood experiences, how we were raised, our social relationships, and our surrounding culture” (1). People have become who there are because of the environment they were exposed to in their childhood years. The behavior of people is influenced be the environment that surrounds them and can changed many times through one’s lifetime. People have different personalities a person’s

The phycologist recommended to David’s parents that they can raise David as a girl just by developing his identity as a feminine. The physiologist also recommended that the surgical process of constructing penis would be more difficult and risky for David than the surgical construction of a vagina. The psychologist explained to David’s parents that David is an ideal candidate for altering his physical appearance and existing sexual characteristics. The doctor was supporting his nurture theory. The doctor believed that the environment in which the David is raised

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,