Essay on Nature Versus Nurture Debate - 987 Words

The nature versus nurture debate is one of the oldest and most controversial issues in Psychology. The nature versus nurture debate revolves around the contributions of genetic factors and environmental factors to human development. The primary method of attempting to determine which of these effects human development the most has been cross-cultural studies. Cross-cultural studies are studies conducted across more than one culture, based on the assumption that the differences between cultures genetically are less that the differences within a culture. Through cross-cultural studies, Psychologists are able to determine whether nature or nurture has the paramount effect upon the three major segregations of human development, Cognitive,†¦show more content†¦Jean Piaget, a developmental psychologist, proposed that infants progress through a series of four stages of cognitive development. The first, the sensory motor stage, primarily focuses on the interactions the infant has wi th their surrounds and how they form ideas and concepts concerning the world in this stage. It was found that a nurturing and homely environment would inspire exploration whilst another without engaging activities and things of interest would hinder development. Another researcher of cognitive development was Kearins who, through applying Piaget’s four stages of cognitive development, studied the spatial and visual memory abilities of Australian Aborigines. By comparing the Aborigine adolescents and white adolescents, Kearins studied the differences across two different cultures, enabling the study of environmental factors (Nurture). In Kearin’s study, the participants played a game intended to test their visual and spatial capabilities in which they had to memorise the location of objects upon a grid. Kearin’s hypothesis was supported as the Aboriginal adolescents displayed great visual and spatial memory abilities. Although various extraneous variables could h ave caused the Aborigine adolescents to score higher, this study demonstrates how different environmental factors do influence cognitive development within humans to a degree. Physical development refers to the changes that occur in the size, shape, proportion, appearance, motor skillsShow MoreRelatedThe Debate On Nature Versus Nurture Essay969 Words   |  4 Pagesdetermine its form† (Fraser). The debate on nature versus Nurture has been a mystery for years now, constantly begging the question on what has a greater effect on the human development of humans. Is human behavior, ideas, and feelings innate or are they learned over time. Nature, or genetic influences, are formed before birth and shaped through early experiences. Genes are viewed as long and complicated chains that are present thought life and develop over time. Nature supporters believe that genesRead MoreThe Nature Versus Nurture Debate Essay1911 Words   |  8 Pagesbut our genes are not talked about as much when behavior is the topic. This is how the nature versus nurture debate came about. Scientists who believe in the nature theory believe that people behave the way they do due to heredity and genes. On the other hand, nurture scientists believes behavior is taught and influenced by the environment and the surrounding people. Many say that behavior results from nature, while others believe in the opposite, the environment. Human development has been viewedRead MoreAn Debate On Nature Versus Nurture1082 Words   |  5 PagesConstructing Identity There has been an ongoing debate on nature versus nurture that has been around for years. What determines our identity? Our biological nature or the things we grew up around? The answers to these questions still remain uncertain, but are still widely discussed. Deborah Blum shares her opinions on these issues in â€Å"Gender Blur†. In her writing, she challenges where we separate biology from society. While our biological nature determines our gender, our surroundings and the thingsRead MoreThe Nurture Versus Nature Debate1743 Words   |  7 PagesThe nurture versus nature debate is commonly seen as one of the most important issues in psychology. It is assuredly one of the best researched, with various studies dating back to the beginning of the 20th century. Two schools of individual difference theorists clearly differ in their approach to this question. The first school of thought, implanted in social psychology and sociology, claims that the environment is of principal im portance in determining how individuals behave. For these theoristsRead MoreNature Vs. Nurture : The Debate Of Nature Versus Nurture895 Words   |  4 PagesNature vs. Nurture The debate of nature versus nurture has been an ongoing debate for a long time. When applying this argument to education there is no proven winner. The nature side of the coin believes that a person is born the way that they are. This could include intelligence level or personality traits such as being outgoing or shy. The other side of the argument of nurture believes that the type of upbringing that someone has will play a large role in the way they develop. It is thoughtRead MoreNature Versus Nurture Has Been A Big Debate In The Past1433 Words   |  6 Pages Nature versus nurture has been a big debate in the past few years. Debates and arguments from both sides has its own statements which makes their side stronger. Some argue that it is in the genetics if a person is intelligent where some state the opposite, that surroundings make a person intelligent which improves them in a person mentally and physically. In the 1950s psychologist Harry Harlow studied the effects of maternal deprivation on the development of baby monkeys. Some philosophers suchRead MoreThe Formula for Fruition: The Age Old Debate of Nature Versus Nurture by Kendra Cherry1508 Words   |  7 PagesThe Formula for Fruition: Nature vs. Nurture The Story of My Search Have you ever wondered what makes a person successful? Why is it that people who grow up in the same environment grow up to have such different qualities of life? As a child of two parents who would be considered â€Å"successful† by society, I’ve always wondered how differently I would perform in life had I been the child of different people or raised in a different environment. I’d heard plenty of stories about people coming from badRead MoreThe Nature Versus Nurture Controversial Debate1492 Words   |  6 PagesIntroduction The nature-versus-nurture controversial debate has always been central to the theme of development. Naturally, several predominant theories come to the fore and place different weights on nature and nurture. My concept of interest is active adaptation theory, which falls on the relatively endogenous side of the scale of source of developmental change. From the active adaptation perspective, individuals play an active role in their development; they possess the power to influence theirRead MoreNature versus Nurture Debate Essays776 Words   |  4 PagesFactually Naturally People have been arguing about nature versus nurture for centuries. Does genetics or upraising have more effect on a person? Human development is influenced by various things. But nature, genetics, contributes more to development than the environment does. While nurture has some influence, nature has much more. Genes are responsible for altruism, personality is linked to individual genes, and genetic disorders are effects of nature that can cause drastic differences in qualityRead MoreEssay on Human Development: Nature vs. Nurture1393 Words   |  6 PagesThe nature versus nurture debate is an old issue within the field of psychology. â€Å"The nature-nurture issue is a perennial one that has resurfaced in current psychiatry as a series of debates on the role that genes (DNA) and environments play in the etiology and pathophysiology of mental disorders† (Schaffner) The debate is essentially about what is inherited (nature) and what is experienced by environmental factors (nurture) and how they affect human development. Naturally, the nature versus nurture