Color of eyes, straight or curly hair, pigmentation of the skin and certain diseases are all a function of the genes we inherit. Other physical characteristics, if not determined, appear to be at least strongly influenced by the genetic make-up of our biological parents. Those who adopt an extreme heredity position are known as nativists. Their basic assumption is that the characteristics of the human species as a whole are a product of evolution, and that individual differences are due to each person’s unique genetic code. Characteristics and differences that are not observable at birth, but which emerge later in life, are regarded as the product of maturation.
For the past yeast several years the debate over nature vs. nurture have been strongly discussed. Theory of nature vs. nurture simply tells us that there are different types of influences in our life that makes us who we are. Nature determines our personality, genes and heredity characteristics that is passed on from one generation to the next. Our heredity and genes determines our features that is inherited from our great ancestors, it has long been known that certain physical characteristics are biologically determined by genetic inheritance. Color of eyes, straight or curly hair, pigmentation of the skin and certain diseases (such as Huntingdon’s chorea) are all a function of the genes we inherit.
Nurture refers to an individual’s childhood or in what way an individual was brought up and how an individual reacts to life. (Nurture, 2004). Genetic syndromes, the color of eye, hair, and skin are a few examples of nature. Further, things like an individual’s height and life span have a strong biological influence, but environmental influences and lifestyle may have an impact on them. Studies related to twins show that almost half of behavioral traits found in completely developed siblings are heritable; the remaining is caused by environmental factors: the nurture.
Who Has More Influence: Parents, Peers, Culture, or a Combination? Children’s growth and development has many influences, and they often combine produce a unique and individualized child. To what extent do these influences come from the parents, the peers, or the cultures in which they reside? In social science, one of the most debated theories of development is that of nature versus nurture. The child’s nature refers to the influence that genes play on development, while nurture refers to the influence of the environment.
Environmentalist would later argue that the environment in which one is brought up had a much larger role in shaping the mind; these two contrasting views have set the stage for this much argued debate. More recently, nature-nurture, research has been aimed at answering “how much” of our genes or environment have an effect on specific traits and behavior, such as intelligence, and which of these two elemental factors is more important on the development of such traits. Much insight into the debate of nature-nurture is afforded to the research and data obtained through twin, adoption and family studies; with identical twin studies being the most valuable. I have chosen two studies to compare and contrast over the debate of nature-nurture. The first is a longitudinal adoption study; Nature, Nurture, and Cognitive Development from 1 to 16 years: A Parent-Offspring Adoption Study (1).
Describe the different types of evidence used in evolutionary psychology and explain why evolutionary psychology needs to use a multi-method approach. The main types of evidence used to inform evolutionary psychology can be classed as external and internal. External evidence mainly consists of observation, measurement and analysis of how humans behave, to produce quantitative data. Whereas Internal evidence comprises reports by humans on there own behaviour, feelings and histories, to produce qualitative data. There can be some overlap between the two for example, conducting experiments on peoples behaviour in certain scenarios, recording their reactions but also offering them their feelings in each scenario.
Personality is what makes every individual unique. To some extent I think biology can influence personality. One way that biology can affect personality is by affecting the environments in which we find ourselves. Biological influences may cause us to wind up in certain situations, and these situations may then influence our personalities. Biology also affects how we see ourselves and how others interact with us.
According to the life history approach our entire lifecycle represents a series of trade-offs between allocating energy towards different life history traits using this idea of limited energy and trade-offs. Life history theory tries to answer the questions about the unique aspects of human development and lifecycle compared to other primates. Their life stages and their durations are compared to other species to identify where we are different and tries to explain why. Life history theory explains how natural selection and evolution work together for organisms to survive and reproduce in our ever changing environment. Life history theory looks at human lifespan stages through birth, infancy, childhood, reaching puberty, through reproduction stage, menopause, grandma stage and death.
Running head: NATURE VS NURTURE: TWO STUDIES Nature vs Nurture: Two Studies Lesli A. Hill Western Governors University Nature vs Nurture: Two Studies Almost since the beginning of time, humans have tried to figure out why we are the way we are. Are our traits the result of our genetics, or our living situation? This question is the crux of the raging debate called “nature versus nurture.” The nature vs. nurture debate is all about determining whether we are shaped more by heredity or environment, and it has been applied to everything from intelligence to disease processes to sexual orientation. Proponents of the nature theory believe that we are destined have certain qualities because they are pre-programmed into our DNA, while supporters of the nurture theory believe that we learn our
I will in this paper describe a little bit of both sides of the debate, and then give my opinion on it. Hopefully this paper will also allow you to help draw your own conclusions as well. Scientists have known for years that traits such as eye color and hair color are determined by specific genes encoded in each human cell. The Nature Theory says that traits such as intelligence, personality, aggression, and sexual orientation are also encoded in an individual's DNA. (Nature vs. Nurture, 2006) The search for behavioral genes is the source of constant debate.