The nature versus nurture debate has lasted centuries due to the difficulty of separating genetic and environmental factors in humans. Studies on behavioral genetics measure similarity between subjects, but cannot locate its origin. For this, a control must be present, leading scientists to twin research. Identical twins have the exact same DNA, differing from fraternal twins with only 50% similarity, no greater than average siblings. Identical twins offer a natural experiment that allows researchers to separate the influence of genes from experience (Segal 87). A famous study conducted by the University of Minnesota reunited Jim Springer and Jim Lewis, identical twins separated from birth. Springer and Lewis were raised in entirely different household environments with no contact with each other. Both Jims had each been married twice, with first wives named Linda; their second, Betty. Their sons were named James Allan and James Alan. Each worked in law enforcement and had a dog named Toy. These striking similarities shocked the media, fascinating America with twin similarities (Segal 118). Further research at Minnesota compared twins reared apart to twins reared together, finding no significant differences in similarity. The Minnesota Study of Twins Reared Apart now includes over 135 pairs of twins or triplets ranging in age of separation, adoptive family cultures, and years before reuniting. These factors seem to have little to no impact on behavioral similarities between the twins, leading some researchers to believe that genetics have a more powerful influence. (“Nature vs. Nurture - Twin Study Overview”) A recent field of biology, called epigenetics, is rapidly transforming previous ideas on the impact of genes. The... ... middle of paper ... .... 4 Feb. 2014. Gallagher, Winifred. Rapt: Attention and the Focused Life. New York: Penguin, 2009. Print. Goleman, Daniel. "MAJOR PERSONALITY STUDY FINDS THAT TRAITS ARE MOSTLY INHERITED." The New York Times. The New York Times, 01 Dec. 1986. Web. 7 Feb. 2014. Moore, David Scott. The Dependent Gene: The Fallacy of Nature/nurture. New York: Times, 2002. Print. "Nature vs. Nurture - Twin Study Overview." Nature vs. Nurture - Twin Study Overview. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Feb. 2014. "Neuroscience Of Intelligence." Neuroscience Of Intelligence. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Feb. 2014. Pinker, Steven. The Blank Slate: The Modern Denial of Human Nature. New York: Viking, 2002. Print. Segal, Nancy L. Entwined Lives: Twins and What They Tell Us about Human Behavior. New York: Dutton, 1999. Print. "What Is Epigenetics?" Epigenetics? N.p., n.d. Web. 4 Feb. 2014.
The 'nature versus nurture' debate is about how plenty someone’s existence is decided by means of their inherited genetics (their 'nature') and what kind of is decided by the surroundings they grow up in ('nurture'). The boys are equal twins and so the difference in the manner their lives flip out need to be a result of their exclusive upbringings and social positions. Russell uses the twin’s concept to persuade us that attitudes in society impact human being’s lives more than their individual efforts at wanting to do
Over the last couple of decades scientist, psychologist, and people have questioned over the idea, and the stereo typical question of nature versus nurture. Using twin studies, scientist have been given the understanding that the environment and heredity influence their behavior development. With using the adoption in twin studies, the doctors and scientists have been able to tell the extent to which the resemblance and families is due to the jeans that are shared and due to the environment that is shared. Because of the jeans that are identical carried by the monozygotic twins, identical twins, there has been a great appeal to most scientists and doctors. Psychologist have been able to link the strong genetic
On the other side of the argument, the nurture proponents are certain that the environment in which we are raised holds far greater sway with the people we become. This argument can even be traced back to biblica...
Benedict indicates that parenting has a significant effect on how we turn out when she says, “Most people are shaped to the form of their culture because of their enormous malleability” (115). Benedict explicitly states that people are extremely, although not infinitely, malleable. From her claim, it follows that parents have great influence in shaping their kids. Pinker, on the other hand, cites identical twin studies to demonstrate the impact of genes and its relationship to our growth. His example was a pair of twins raised in two extremes of culture: “one of whom was brought up as a Catholic in a Nazi family and the other brought up in a Jewish family in Trinidad”(TED). There were remarkable similarities in their wardrobe, eating habits, and demeanor. For example, both “liked dipping buttered toast in coffee” and were considered jokesters because they enjoyed sneezing in elevators to startle people. This study suggests that humans may not be as malleable as Benedict
“The term “nature versus nurture” is used to refer to a long-running scientific debate. The source of debate is the question of which has a greater influence on development: someone's innate characteristics provided by genetics, or someone's environment. In fact, the nature versus nurture debate has been largely termed obsolete by many researchers, because both innate characteristics and environment play a huge role in development, and they often intersect”. (Smith, 2010 p. 1)
Nature versus nurture has been an ongoing argument about whether nature (a persons’ genes), or nurture (environmental factors) has a greater influence on human development. However, many people would agree “It no longer makes any sense to talk of "nature versus nurture" or "genes versus the environment". When it comes to human development, the two are inextricably intertwined…” (Ridley 38). Consequently, I believe that in the novel Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions by Edwin A. Abbott, both nature and nurture have
Davies, Kevin. "Nature vs. Nurture Revisited." PBS. 17 Apr. 2001. PBS. 28 Mar. 2012 .
...rities and the same preferences. They also felt an immediate bond upon meeting. Jim Springer and Jim Lewis are twins who were separated four weeks after they were born in 1939, and they were reunited thirty-nine years later. The twins discovered that they had married and divorced women named Linda, married second wives named Betty, and named their first sons James Allan and James Alan, respectively. They both drove the same model of blue Chevrolet, and they both enjoyed the same hobby. They often vacationed on the same small beach in St. Petersburg, Florida, and owned dogs named Toy (Heredity 62). There have been many cases reported similar to this one, such as where twins were separated at birth and when reunited, found that they had astounding similarities between the two. By studying twins who were reared apart, scientists are learning how the forces of nature and nurture interact to make us what we are (Chensanow 69).
It is true that identical twins have many similarities, but people tend to ignore their differences. The Jim twins, for example, may
For years I have been fascinated by that mysterious quirk of nature called twins. In my family, there are several sets of identical twins, and I have always concentrated on their similarities. I did not realize that identical twins also have many differences. My identical twin cousins, Sue and Heidi, appear to be perfect mirror images. They love to dress alike. They can feel each other's pain. They sound alike and can complete each other's sentences. But upon taking a closer look, I have found that they are as different as day and night. Aside from Sue and Heidi's outward characteristics, they possess several distinguishing traits that allow them to be viewed as two separate, independent individuals.
The first study I found on Nature vs. Nurture was the Swedish Twin study of child and adolescent development otherwise known as TCHAD. It was a longitudinal study about how genes and environment can contribute to development of health and behaviors. This study was one of the largest twin studies ever conducted. It gathered data from 2960 people, 1480 set of twins and their parents over 16 years. The last time any data was collected on the subject were in 2005 when the children reached the of 20. The whole focus of this study was to look at externalizing symptoms such as criminal behavior, ADHD , an...
Psychologists often debate between the idea of nature vs nurture and which of these two has a greater impact on a person's development. Psychologists who argue that nature plays a large role in an individual's development are not necessarily wrong due to the overwhelming evidence that supports the idea that genetics has role in individuals lives for example Julian and Adrian Riester who were identical twins. They were known as being quiet and calm throughout their life and became priests together until they would die with only 15 hours apart providing a strong basis for how important nature can influence the development of people. Nevertheless, there is more convincing evidence that nurture has proven more important in people's development.
Development across the lifespan is one of the most interesting areas of psychology. The word development refers to human development which can be defined as “the scientific study of changes that occur in people as they age from conception until death.” (Ciccarelli, & White, 2009)Psychologists study this developmental change over time through several different methods. The book highlights three: Longitudinal design, cross-sectional design and cross-sequential design. Longitudinal design is a research design “in which one participant or group of participants is studied over a long period of time.” Cross sectional design differs from longitudinal design because cross-sectional designed research studies “several different age-groups of participants are studied at one particular time.” (Ciccarelli, & White)Cross-sequential designed research is a combination of the other two types; the cross-sequential research design studies participants by means of a cross-sequential design but they are also followed and assessed for a period of time no more than six years. A controversial topic associated with development across the lifespan is the theory of “Nature versus Nurture”. Nature versus nurture refers to the relationship between development and heredity and environmental factors. The answer lies on a spectrum between environmental factors and heredity. Psychologists on the environmental side are called empiricists. Empiricists believe that human development is fully influenced by a person’s environment. On the opposite side of the spectrum are the nativists. Nativists are psychologists that believe a person’s development is based completely on genetic factors. The facts are divided in relation to the two theor...
In 1874, Francis Galton said, “Nature is all that a man brings with him into the world; nurture is every influence that affects him after his birth”. The human body contains millions upon millions of cells and each of these cells contains hereditary information and DNA. However, there is no proof that the information carried in these genes predetermines the way in which we behave. I believe it is our life experiences and what we see and are told that shape the way in which we behave. Therefore, it appears to me that nurturing plays a far more governing and dominant role in a human being’s development rather than nature.
Heredity Versus Environment - The Nature-nurture Controversy, Exploring Heredity And Environment: Research Methods, Beyond Heritability