I used to be an avid proponent for the "nurture" side of things. I felt that if I child chronically misbehaved, it must fall on the parents', not teaching them properly or perhaps modelling inappropriately. I felt that the environment created the person we all grow to become.
However, I'm older now. I've been around the block a few times, I'm a parent of three children and I've watched other children and their parents interact as well. This is also not my first soft science course. Over the past year, I've taken three other psychology courses and now I'm in this sociology course. And although I wouldn't say those courses or my experience has made me completely change my mind and go to the other side of the spectrum and argue "nature", I can certainly see why those who are adamant about nature having a stronger influence would feel that way.
My first experience that I can think of, that caused me to re-evaluate my position was my senior year in highschool. One of my best friends, who had been brought up in a very strict Christian home and taught his whole life that homosexuality was sinful and wrong, was experiencing the most difficult struggle of his life. As much as he wanted to be interested in girls, as much as he wanted to be heterosexual, he felt that his urges, natural urges were stearing him down another path. The inner conflict and turmoil that he felt between his "head" and his "heart" was tearing him apart, and as much as I tried, I couldn't help him find that inner peace. I saw first hand that there is a possibility that our sexuality might be genetically based. Fortunately my friend has come to terms with his sexuality and he is happy with his life decisions now. My suspicions that sexuality might be more genetic than environment was further confirmed in one of my psychology classes this past year, when it was discussed that there is actual research now with twins that points to the possibility that being "gay" might be predetermined.
Another reason why I think nature has a bigger influence is my own children and their dispositions. Both my husband and I are quiet, respectful people. We've always been the "good" kids that followed the rules and were rarely in trouble. However, my husband's siblings aren't all like that, and in fact a couple of them are very much "trouble-makers". When are children were younger, they were very good children. They were polite, respectful. I could take them anywhere with no fear of them misbehaving. Both my husband and I employ an active, authoritative parenting style where mutual respect is expected. But as my daughter grows older, some of her actions I just do not understand at all. It scares me, but her actions and beliefs remind me of one of my husband's siblings--whom she has never had contact with.
I, like many things in my life, tend to "side" with the middle man on the nature vs nurture debate. I think we all have genetically predisposed characteristics and many of those can be brought out or subdued by our environment.
I think this makes sense from a scientific point of view as well. Take some of the more common diseases for example and how the environment can affect them. Take shingles. The virus, similiar to the chicken pox virus, can lay dormant in our nervous system of years, decades even. But it only takes an environmental factor, such as extreme stress, to make that virus "wake up" and next thing we know we have the symptoms of the disease and are left wondering where we could have possibly came into contact with it.
From more of a psychological perspective, someone who is less genetically prone to depression, but is having a very rough time in life, may fair better than someone who is prone to depression. In human development and even some parenting classes, we are told that our children are born with different temperaments, but how we react ("goodness of fit") to those temperaments will determine how well the interactions between ourselves and children will work out. This is an example of now nature and nurture interact. Just because we have a "difficult" child does not mean that raising that child will be "difficult". As parents we have to adjust how we react and interact so that the family unit can remain optimally functional.
I think that nature certainly has a lot to say with human behavior. But how the environment interacts with nature is equally important.
No comments:
Post a Comment