The Importance Of Nature Vs. Nurture

Both behaviorism and evolutionary psychology differ from others on the spectrum in that they are both extremes, and the creation of the two fields resulted directly from the nature vs. nurture question. Despite this, modern psychologists disagree with the “all or nothing” mentality that both extremes of the spectrum pose. Instead, the question has been rephrased to “How much does each role play in development?” Given that both nature and nurture play a valuable part in acquired characteristics the important question now becomes “Which is more critical?”
The Nature Vs. Nurture Issue & The Importance to Psychology For some time now, the notion that genetic inheritance strongly predicts the acquisition of specific physical characteristics has …show more content…
Watson went as far as denying human consciousness, claiming humans behavior was derived from experience. This is exemplified by Watson’s statement, “Give me a dozen healthy infants, well-formed, and my own specified 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 - doctor, lawyer, artist, merchant-chief and, yes, even beggar-man and thief, regardless of his talents, penchants, tendencies, abilities, vocations, and the race of his ancestors” (Watson, 1924, p. 104). In short, Watson’s theory stated that new behaviors are learned once an individual associates stimuli with a response. These stimuli are associated with a process called classical conditioning, which involves three stages. Stage one involves no new response. An unconditioned stimulus (UCS) produces an unconditioned response (UCR). This is where the individual reacts to a naturally occurring stimulus and behaves with a natural response. Stage two involves introducing a new stimulus, so that the unconditional stimulus will become associated with a neutral stimulus, making it the conditioned stimulus (CS). This stage is repeated several times. Stage three involves the individual associating the conditioned stimulus with the unconditional stimulus. This association then creates the desired …show more content…
When we reflect, it becomes apparent why the issue was so controversial both in the past and present. Galton’s original idea of natural superiority and intelligence still impacts studies today. Arthur Jenson, an American psychologist concluded from a study he conducted on intelligence that white Americans had higher IQ scores than those of black Americans. Arthur attributed his finding to genetics, claiming that intelligence was 80% inherited (Cite). Critics claimed that these differences were not a matter of inherited genes, but more social inequalities among populations. Galton proposed “selective breeding” to prevent the spread of undesirable traits, also happens to be the very foundation of the Holocaust. What once began as an attempt to understand human behavior has now turned into a political debate about social justice, and a means to justify mass genocide. It is my opinion that we are still asking the wrong “how much” question. Human behavior is for to complex, and cannot be understood numerically. Still, modern research like The Human Genome Project aim is to identify behavior by looking at specific chromosomes. This could be harmful to society because it could allow us to eradicate genes that we view as less desirable. When we put this into perspective it begins to sound eerily similar to unthinkable mistakes made in the