Nature versus Nurture: A matter of choice?
Learning Objectives
After reading this resource, you should be able to recognize the concepts of nature and nurture, and their place in the nature/nurture debate. You should also be able to distinguish between the contributions to Human Growth Development by each of the core disciplines: psychology, biology and sociology.
The nature/nurture debate is one of the key issues in HGD, with the nature side focusing upon the extent to which it is our biological make-up, including genetic inheritance, which sets up our future lives versus the nurture side which focuses on the extent to which we are the product of our upbringing and environment. In other words, how pre- programmed are our life chances and well-being through the course of our growth and development? In this chapter, taken from A Critical Approach to Human Growth and Development (Red Globe Press, 2014), the author Paula Nicolson, uses the nature/nurture debate as an entry point into the field of HGD to demonstrate the range of perspectives available in this lively and contested field.
Reflective Questions
- How has your opinion on Nature vs. Nurture changed as a result of reading this chapter and undertaking the activities in it?
- How do you think your life story has been influenced by both Nature and Nurture?
- What is the importance of understanding epistemology or different theories of knowledge? How do we identify the epistemological underpinnings of research evidence?