Nature/Nurtue Flashcards
Tell me about the nature-nurture debate - what are the key points?
Interactionist approach, Diathesis stress model, epigenetics
What is an interactionist approach
It is not really a debate because all characteristics combine nature and nurture. For example, attachment can be explained in terms of parental love (Bowlby) or child’s temperament (Kagan 1984). Environment and hereditary interact.
What is the diathesis stress model
In this model, behaviour is caused by a biologically/environmental vulnerability (diathesis) which is only expressed when coupled with a biological or environmental trigger (stressor).
For example, a person who inherits a genetic vulnerability for OCD may not develop the disorder. But, combined with a psychological trigger (eg a traumatic experience) this results in the disorder appearing.
What is epigenetics
This is a change in genetic activity without changing the genetic code
Lifestyle and events we encounter (ie smoking, diet0 leave ‘marks’ on our DNA (genes) - switching genes on or off
This has a lifelong influence and can be passed on to future generations.
Name the three key concepts of the debate
Nature
Nurture
Measuring nature and nurture
Talk about nature and nurture
Nature: inherited influenced ie genes
Early nativists argue that human characteristics are innate - the results of our genes. Psychological characteristics ie intelligence or personality are determined by biology factors just like eye colour and height.
Nurture: Environmental influences
Empiricists like Locke argued the mind is a blank slate at birth and is shaped by interaction with our environment ie the behaviourist approach
Lerner (1986) identified different levels of the environment:
- prenatal terms eh mother smoking or hearing music
- postnatal experience eg the social conditions a child grows up in
Talk about measuring nature and nurture
Concordance - the degree to which two people are similar on a particular unit
Heritability - proportion of differences between individuals in a population, with regards to a particular trait, due to genes. 1% is very little contribution, 100% means genes are the only reason. The figure for heritability is an IQ of about 0.5 50%.
Evaluation points
Strength: adoption studies / counterpoint
Support for epigenetics
Real world application
Extra: Implications of the debate
Explain the strength of adoption studies in the nature/nurture research
and counterpoint
If adopted children are more similar to their adoptive parents, this suggests environmental influence, if more are similar to biological parents, this suggests genetic influence.
Rhee and Waldman (2002) found in a meta-analysis of adoption studies that genetic influences accounted for 41% of variance in aggression.
This shows how research can separate nature and nurture influences.
Counterpoint: Children create their own nature by selecting environmental appropriate to their nature - a naturally aggressive chid will choose aggressive friends and become more aggressive (niche-picking. Plomin).
This suggests that it does not make sense to look at evidence of either nature or nurture.
Explain the strength of support for epigenetics
In 1944, the Nazis blocked the distribution of food to the Dutch people and 22,000 died of starvation.
Susser and Lin (1992) found that women who became pregnant during the famine had low birth weight babies who ere twice as likely to develop schizophrenia.
This suggests that the life experience of previous generation can leave ‘epigenetic markers’ that influence the health of offspring.
Explain the strength of real world appplication
Nestadt et al (2010) put the heritability rate at .76 for OCD ie it is highly heritability. Such understanding can inform genetic counselling.
People who have a high genetic risk of OCD because of their family background can receive education about inheritance, management and prevention of the disorder.
This shows that the debate us not just theoretical but that us t also important at a practical level, to understand the interaction between nature and nurture.
Evaluation point on the implications of the debate
The extreme nativist stance is deterministic and ed to controversy eg linking ethnicity genetic and intelligence, and eugenic policies
Empiricists suggest that any behaviour can be changed by altering environmental conditions eg aversion therapy. This may lead to a society that controls and manipulates citizens.
This shows that both positions, taken to extreme, may have dangerous consequences for society so as moderate, interactionist position is preferred.
