C1: The Nature vs. Nurture Controversy

The heart of the Nature vs. Nurture controversy is whether our environment or our biology determines who we are, what we do, what comprises our personality and how we live our lives.

Note: often students understand the basic idea, but sometimes they get confused with the terminology. Nature has to do with your genes or your biology. It is what you were genetically given at birth. 

Nurture is what you have experienced or your environment. Even after teaching this concept for 30 years, I still think to myself "We all want to be nurtured" which helps me remember that NURTURE is what we experience or our environment and NATUREis the "other side" or Biology/Genetics.

Traditionally, Behaviorists like John Watson and B.F. Skinner argued that much like training a dog, people will become whatever they are trained to become. In other words, they suggested that we are at the mercy of our environment. Watson went so far as to write, "Give me a dozen healthy infants, well-formed, and my own special world to bring them up in and I'll guarantee to take anyone at random and train him to become any type of specialist I might select a doctor, lawyer, artist, merchant-chief, and yes, even beggar-man and thief" (1924, p. 82, Behavioralism). In other words, Watson believed that who you are is completely determined by your upbringing and your environment.

The other side of the argument is that our personality and behavior is determined by our biological make up. Most researchers agree that some people are clinically depressed because of chemical imbalances in their brain. People who have schizophrenia may have brain abnormalities as well as chemical imbalances. The list goes on and on demonstrating how important our brain is in determining our moods, actions, behaviors, perceptions and personalities.

So which side of the argument is correct? Well, the answer depends on your view point. Probably both sides are right to some degree. After all, none of us grow up in a vacuum, never being exposed to various obstacles in the environment. And who can deny that our biological make up has at least some impact on determining who we are and what we do.