Nature Vs Nurture
Principles of Development
What Drives Development? Nature, Nurture, and Reciprocal Relationships
By J.L. Cook, G. Cook
What are the forces that govern or drive the processes, characteristics, and behaviors that develop across childhood? Basically, these forces are a combination of nature and nurture. The term nature refers to the biological forces that govern development. To a certain extent our development is programmed by the genetic codes we inherit. This biological program unfolds throughout childhood. In some respects, child development can be compared to the blossoming of a flower: A seed sprouts, grows into a fragile seedling, and eventually becomes a mature flowering plant. Nature provides the genetic program contained in the seed—and …show more content…
Research also has shown genetic links to conditions such as schizophrenia, depression, and severe obesity. The role of nurture, however, also emerges in many of these same studies. For example, inheriting genes linked to schizophrenia, depression, or obesity does not guarantee that a person will actually develop the condition. Many people who inherit these genes do not develop the condition. Nurture certainly also has an impact on traits such as IQ. IQ scores for identical twins, for example, are more similar when the twins grow up together than when they are raised in separate families (Bouchard & McGue, 1981). Both identical and fraternal twins show similar patterns of emotional attachment to their parents, indicating that shared family experiences (nurture) play a larger role than genetics (nature) in establishing attachment patterns (O'Connor & Croft, 2001). Rather than arguing about whether development is controlled completely by nature or completely by nurture, thanks to the results of behavior genetics research, we are now beginning to understand the interactive roles played by both of these
What Drives Development? Nature, Nurture, and Reciprocal Relationships
By J.L. Cook, G. Cook
What are the forces that govern or drive the processes, characteristics, and behaviors that develop across childhood? Basically, these forces are a combination of nature and nurture. The term nature refers to the biological forces that govern development. To a certain extent our development is programmed by the genetic codes we inherit. This biological program unfolds throughout childhood. In some respects, child development can be compared to the blossoming of a flower: A seed sprouts, grows into a fragile seedling, and eventually becomes a mature flowering plant. Nature provides the genetic program contained in the seed—and …show more content…
Research also has shown genetic links to conditions such as schizophrenia, depression, and severe obesity. The role of nurture, however, also emerges in many of these same studies. For example, inheriting genes linked to schizophrenia, depression, or obesity does not guarantee that a person will actually develop the condition. Many people who inherit these genes do not develop the condition. Nurture certainly also has an impact on traits such as IQ. IQ scores for identical twins, for example, are more similar when the twins grow up together than when they are raised in separate families (Bouchard & McGue, 1981). Both identical and fraternal twins show similar patterns of emotional attachment to their parents, indicating that shared family experiences (nurture) play a larger role than genetics (nature) in establishing attachment patterns (O'Connor & Croft, 2001). Rather than arguing about whether development is controlled completely by nature or completely by nurture, thanks to the results of behavior genetics research, we are now beginning to understand the interactive roles played by both of these