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the nature-nurture debate - Coggle Diagram
the nature-nurture debate
nature
= inherited influences/heredity
descartes
= all human characteristics are innate & determined by biological factors
nurture
= influence of experience & the environment
locke
= mind is a 'blank slate' at birth, which is then shaped by the environment
lerner
= identified different levels of the environment: prenatal factors (how physical/psychological factors influence a foetus) and postnatal factors (the social conditions a child grows up in)
the debate
= concerned with the extent to which aspects of behaviour are a product of inherited or acquired characteristics
measuring nature-nurture
degree to which 2 people are similar on a particular trait can be represented by a correlation coefficient and is called concordance
provides an estimate about the extension to which a trait is inherited
0.01 to 0.1 = genes are nothing to only reason
genetic figure for heritability in IQ is about 0.5, meaning about half of a person's intelligent e is determined by genetic factors
the interactionist approach
central question has now changed to discuss how each factor interacts & which is more influential
any behaviour/characteristic arises from a combination of both
example = bowlby's theory of attachment - determined by the warmth & continuity of parental love, but pagan proposed a baby's innate personality also affects the attachment relationship - thus, nature creates nurture
diathesis-stress model
= suggests behaviour is caused by a biological or environmental vulnerability, which is only expressed when coupled with a biological or environmental stressor
example
= ocd, as someone who inherits a genetic vulnerability for it may not develop the disorder, but combined with a psychological trigger such as trauma, the disorder may appear
epigenetics
= a change in our genetic activity without changing the genes themselves
happens throughout life and is caused by environmental interaction
aspects of our lifestyle or events we encounter leave 'marks' on our dna, which switch genes on or off - explains why smoking has a lifelong influence even after stopping
may go on and influence genetic codes of children
evaluation
strengths
use of adoption studies
useful as they separate the competing influences of nature and nurture
more similar to their adoptive parents = environment is bigger influence
more similar to biological parents = genetics are bigger influence
a meta-analysis found genetic influences accounted for 41% of the variance in aggression
shows how research can separate both influences
support for epigenetics
example of how environmental effects can span generations through epigenetic effects come from events in 2nd WW
research found women who became pregnant during the famine went on to have low birth weight babies
these were also 2x as likely to develop schizophrenia when they grew up
supports the view that life experiences of previous generations can leave epigenetic ‘markers’ that influence the health of their offspring
real-world application
a researcher found heritability rate of OCD is .76
can inform genetic counselling, as it’s important to understand that high heritability isn’t inevitable that the individual will go on to develop the disorder
means that people with a high genetic risk of OCD can receive advice about the likelihood of developing it and how to maybe prevent it
shows the debate isn't just theoretical but is important at a practical level
limitation
(counterpoint to adoption studies) - research suggests this approach may be misguided and that they can’t be two entities that are simply pulled apart
a researcher found people create their own nurture by actively selecting environments that are appropriate for their nature
therefore a naturally aggressive child is likely to feel more comfortable with children who show similar behaviours, then they will further influence their development - known as niche-picking
suggests it doesn’t make sense to loo