Nature / Nurture Or Both !
The controversy over what determines who we are, whether it is Nature
(heredity, our biological make up) or Nurture (our environment) is taking a new
shape. Through the past decades, psychologists have developed different theories
to explain the characteristics of human-beings; how we feel, think and behave.
Usually, these theories were one directional in the nature / nurture question.
Today, a new approach to deal with this question is emerging. This new approach
finds a middle ground between nature and nurture. The conclusion that nature and
nurture are complementary and work hand and hand to shape a behavior (a
purposeful and meaningful activity) is not a compromise; it is a result of ...
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third, new-emerging approach meant to
solve the mystery of “ What is it that makes us who we are?”
“Our genes made us. We animals exist for their preservation and are
nothing more than their throwaway survival machines.” This is what Richard
Darwin states in his book: The Selfish Gene. In his international best seller
book, he argues that we are merely a product of our genes and our main purpose
in life is to serve the genes, become distribution agents and ensure their
proliferation. Before we take any stand to Darwin's statement, let us
familiarize ourselves with what is meant when the term nature is used. Nature
represents what we are born with and cannot control. Our biological make up is
determined by the genes we receive from our parents(reside in the 23 pairs of
chromosomes, 23 from each parent.) “A gene is a segment of DNA or a sequence of
nucleotides in DNA that codes for a functional product,” (Tortora, Microbiology.
p. 575.) These genes not only affect our outlook, ...
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I'm reacting to my mother,
who was an absolute slob.”, (Neubrauer, Peter P 21) In this example, we see a
natural preference based on heredity. Both twins blamed their mothers for their
behaviors, while none of the mothers required such neatness. Another study on
heredity and alcoholism conducted by Goodwin et al (1973) indicated that
adoptees with alcoholic parents were four times more likely to become alcoholics
than those without, although there was no such relationship with alcohol misuse
in adoptive parents, ( Pelle, Stanton. p 2). Even though scientists have only
identified 16,000 out of the total 100,000 genes, many psychological diseases
are on the verge of being unraveled. Take ...
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"Nature / Nurture Or Both !." Essayworld.com. November 27, 2004. Accessed April 25, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Nature-Nurture-Or-Both/18147.
"Nature / Nurture Or Both !." Essayworld.com. November 27, 2004. Accessed April 25, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Nature-Nurture-Or-Both/18147.
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