3AB Developmental Psychology - Nature vs Nurture Flashcards
1
Q
Nature vs Nurture
A
- If intelligence is based on genetics, nothing we can do to improve
- Based on nurture, potential can be maximised through exposure and stimulating environment
- > Qualities, heaviours and ideas that define what it is to be human inborn
- > Acquired through life
2
Q
Intelligence
A
- The global capacity to think rationally, act purposefully and deal effectively with the environment
- Questions and tests help measure intelligence
- Intelligence Quotent
- Compares a person’s mental age w/ chronological age
3
Q
Mental Retardation
A
- Condition of mental ability that is limited
- Difficulty in adapting to the demands of life
4
Q
IQ Tests
A
- Number of tasks designed to measure how smart an individual
- In areas such as: logical thinking, working with numbers and memorisation
- Does not measure social or emotional intelligence
- Most people aware of moderate similarity in their intelligence of parents and their children, brothers and sisters
- Closer two people = more alike their IQ’s likely to be
- Correlation decreases as genetic similarity lessons
- Shared environment increases correlation in all causes
5
Q
Nature / Nurture Debate: Twin Studies
A
- Twins can be fraternal / Identical
- > Identical: 100% DNA
- > Fraternal: 50% DNA
- Psychologists have looked at whether identical twins are more alike in characteristics
- If identical twins found more alike, heredity considered to play a role in dev of that characteristic
6
Q
Sandra Scar (1992)
A
- Twin Studies
- Heredity played a role in determining degree of extraversion / introversion
- Played a bigger role in determining level of intelligence
7
Q
Thomas Bouchard (1990)
A
- Found sets of twins from around the world who had been separated and raised apart
- Brought to a lab where he compared them on:
ability, leisure time, social attitudes, personality and vocational interests
Results:
-> Identical twins raised apart shared similarities
- > IQ werent as similar as those idential twins raised together
- > Still similar than those of fraternal twins raised together
- Heredity makes a strong contribution to differences in IQ
- Issues with naturalistic studies
- > No way to ensure similarities in environment
- > possible that identical twins treated more alike than fraternal
- > Not ethical to split twins to raise diff.
8
Q
Adoption Studies
A
- Look at whether adopted children are more alike w/
=> adoptive parents
=> biological parents
9
Q
Denise Daniels and Robert Plomin (1985)
A
- Longitudinal Adoption Study
- Tested sociability vs shyness of children adopted at 12 & 24
- > See whether they were more alike biological or adoptive mothers
Results:
- > Heredity found to play a role in shyness
- > Extreme shyness in biological mother predicted that her biological child would be shy at age
- > Family environment important in the dev. of shyness
-> toddlers whos adoptive mothers were unusually shy also showed above average shyness at age 2
10
Q
Another Study
A
- Investigators followed children of two groups of mothers
- > Low intelligence
- > High intelligence
- Adopted at birth by parents of above average income and education
- Tests of intelligence taken during their school years showed:
- > children from low IQ biological mothers scored above average in IQ
- > Therefore benefiting from having an advantaged home life
- > Children from high IQ biological mothers scored higher
- > Placed in similar homes
therefore heredity and environment play a role in dev.
11
Q
Nature Versus Nurture Conc.
A
- Psychologists believe that both play a role in the dev of an individual
Nature: hereditary / genetic component is fixed at birth
Nurture: Schooling and improving the social and educational conditions for the child to achieve their potential
12
Q
Cultural Differences in IQ
A
- Not seen in young children
- Become apparent after children begin school
Nurture: some cultures have high emphasis on education
