Nature-Nurture (Debate)

• Background Info 


  One of the oldest debates in psychology, and centres around the relative contributions of genetic inheritance and environmental factors to human development and behaviour
• Nature

  The causes of behaviour coming from within. Innate, unchangeable factors present from birth. Nativists believe in heredity (genetic transmission of mental and physical characteristics from one generation to another). They do however admit that maturation plays a role in causing some innate characteristics to appear, but overall everything occurs internally through genes
• Nurture 


  Refers to the causes of behaviour coming from the environment. These external factors include upbringing, education and social pressure, as well as culture and conditioning. Nurturists argue there has to be some sort of external stimulation to create behaviour. In the past, nurturists presented a view that humans were born a 'tabula rasa' or a 'blank slate', to which experiences were drawn
• Relative importance of heredity and environment 


  General figure for heritability is a correlation coefficient of 0.5 (e.g. for IQ). This is not 100%, which suggests environment is also important. This is also an issue for twin studies
• Interactionist Approach


  Suggests both nature and nurture work together to shape human behaviour. For example, the diathesis-stress model. Suggests mental disorders are caused by a biological vulnerability (diathesis), but are triggered by an environmental factor (stressor). Another example is Epigenetics
• For Nature 


  Easier to establish innate influences than environmental
• For Nurture 


  Extremes of nature can be dangerous in the legal system. This is not as much of as an issue with nurture
• For Both


  Capsi found that children with low MAOA have higher aggression, but only if maltreated (interactionist)
• Against Both


  Both can be used to validate behaviour and difficult to detangle relative contributions
• Nature Example

  Biological approach (e.g. aggression and MAOA gene)
• Mostly Nature Example


  Psychodynamic approach (e.g. Oedipus/Electra complexes)
• Interactionist Examples


  Cognitive approach (Gender Schema Theory) and Humanistic approach (cognitive and interactionist explanations of SZ)
• Mostly Nurture Example


  SLT (SLT as an explanation of aggression)
• Nurture Example


  Behaviourist approach (two-process model for phobias)