Influence Of Nature And Nurture On Behavior

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Nature versus nurture is the ongoing debate on whether genetics or the environment have a greater effect in the development of human beings. Nature describes behavior influenced by genes, or biological information passed down from parents. On the other hand, nurture explains behaviors that are affected by the environment, or any external influences. The continuous debate stands as some believe nature influences behavior more than nurture, or vice versa.
As stated above, nature and nurture attempt to describe human behavior by genetics and environment, respectively. Nature, more specifically, is used to describe one’s biological makeup and how it influences that individual’s behavior. Those who believe that nurture plays a major role in human
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Researchers use identical twins separated at birth to look at similarities and differences in them as they grow up, in completely separate environments, being nurtured completely different ways. In one study, multiple sets of twins and triplets were separated at birth, some of which have uncovered their stories and some of which have not. Two sisters specifically did find each other at the age of 35. What they discovered is that although there are some clear character similarities between the two of them, their environments are what inevitably determined who they became. Yet, they still accredited about 50% of who they are to their genetics. This study shows the important role of both nature and nurture, and how they are in fact both important in determining human behavior …show more content…
Clearly, nature is what predetermined all of my physical characteristics; color of my hair, eyes, and skin-the list goes on and on. My parents’ genes are what determined all of my physical characteristics, there is no denying that. To me, it is difficult to say whether or not any of my “nature” has determined my human behavior. Maybe I was born to become a nurse, but how is that determined? That is where the gray area between nature and nurture arises.
It’s inevitable to see the differences between people raised in the United States, and people raised in Africa. I know for a fact that I would be a completely different person if I were raised in a different country. So, isn’t it clear that nurture plays a larger role when studying human behavior? The debate will most likely never be solved due to the inability to fully test which is more influential. But, it is clear that both play a role in determining why a person behaves the way they do and how they came to behave that

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