Nature versus nurture

Name:

Institution:

Instructor:

Course:

Date:

Nature versus Nurture

The argument on whether human physical and biological characteristics are determined by nature or nurture has taken a significant turn over the years. Before the nineteenth century, empiricists and nativists had taken hard-line approaches to the issue. The nativists believed that characteristics exhibited by humans are a result of the process of revolution. They also argued that the individual differences shown by man could be attributed to the individual’s genetic make up. Empiricists on the other hand believed that the human mind is shaped and molded by its environment. This environmental approach to human development speculates that the experiences that man has is what shapes his psychological and biological development process. However, during the nineteenth century, such extremist perspectives were replaced by the pursuit to discover how much of both nature and nurture contribute to human development. Both these aspects significantly contribute to psychological and biological development of man.

The development of a child is influenced by both his environment and combination of biological predisposition and genetics. Interaction of both nurture and nature influence a child’s development (Bee, 2004). The question at hand is the extent to which the individual factors influence the person that a child becomes. This is because both nurture and nature interact in a pool of different qualitative ways. Biological aspects of man interact with his culture, giving rise to molded human behavior.

Nurture

Nurture involves the contribution of the environment to the development of a child. Various behavioral and psychological characteristics are learnt from the individual’s interaction with his environment. For instance, the environment’s influence to the child’s development is where an infant is brought up in an environment with adequate attention and love. The child grows up and easily forms attachments. Many behaviors in children are learnt from their environment.

Nutrition plays a big role in molding the abilities of individuals. Vitamins and mineral supplements increase the intelligence levels of children. After a research that was carried out among sampled children, it was proved that continuous supply of vitamins for a period greatly influenced the ability of these children to depict and respond to intelligent coding (Planet papers, 2001). The coding was like simple language syntax. Intellectual ability of individuals is therefore directly influenced by their environment.

Human behavior is socialized. The way an individual acts is learnt from the society. An analysis carried out of a boy who was found living with wolves showed that he could not adopt to the human setting (Planet papers, 2001). The boy exhibited wolf like behavior in his eating mannerism, walking and running styles. He was not able to experience normal human behavior. Among the wolves, he was socialized to act like the wolves. Therefore, the behavior of man is greatly influenced by his environment.

Language is learnt from an individual’s environment. Children’s language syntax, grammatical order, and vocabulary are picked up from his immediate environment. This explains why two Hispanic children born in Spain and North America have different accents. The one in Spain picks up the Spanish language and its accent while that one in North America will learn English and its accent. Children learn language by imitating those in their environment. Aspects of a child’s sense of humor are also influenced by his environment. Cognitive aspects of humor are shaped by a child’s environment. This was proved after a test was carried out in two pairs of identical and fraternal twins (Franzini, 2002). The identical twins were separated from birth while the fraternal twins shared a common environment. The fraternal twins had a greater rating for cartoon funniness than the identical twins.

Nature

Genetic codes of individuals influence their development. This concept is evident when the lives of twins are analyzed. The analysis is a scientific method of calculating the relative extent of influence that genetics have on human characteristics. The research shows that when twins are separated and placed in different environments, they still exhibit similar behavior. The similarities in the nature of the twins can only be explained in terms of genetic make up. The research showed that, monozygotic twins, whether raised part or together, will still have similar social attitudes, temperaments and occupational interests.

When the lives of adopted babies are compared, various biological and psychological differences are registered. Though the children are raised in the same environment, major differences are recorded in their behavior. However, the children exhibit more similarities with their biological parents than their adoptive parents and siblings. In the learning sector, the children showed similar learning disabilities as their adoptive parents.

Conclusion

Both nature and nurture are responsible for the biological and psychological development of children. They play different roles in cognitive development. Nurturing employs the aspect of teaching and socializing the individuals’ towards a particular behavioral pattern. Nature, on the other hand, deals with the incoherent feature of man and their influence over shaping the lives of an individual. The lives of infants and children are shaped by both these features.

Reference list

Bee, Helen (2004). Child and adolescent development (Section 1, pp. 3). Retrieved July 28, 2004, from University of Phoenix website: www.myresource.phoenix.edu

Franzini, L. R. (2002). Kids who laugh: How to develop your child’s sense of humor. Garden City Park, NY: Square One Publishers.

Nature vs. Nurture (2001). Planet Papers. Retrieved July 28, 2004, from the World Wide Web: http://www.planetpapers.com/Assets/3492.php