nature vs nurture

Question 1

what is the nature vs nurture debate?

Answer 1

it concerns the importance of an individual’s innate qualities (nature) vs personal experiences (nurture) in determining behaviour

Question 2

what is heredity?

Answer 2

the process in which traits are passed down from one generation to the next

Question 3

what is environment?

Answer 3

the impact of the physical environment on people, and the impact of people on the environment

Question 4

what is the interactionist approach?

Answer 4

the view that both nature and nurture work together to shape human behaviour

Question 5

what are the basic assumptions of the nature approach?

Answer 5

• psychological characteristics are mostly/wholly determined by genetics
• individual differences are due to each person’s genetic code
• characteristics and observable traits are not obvious at birth

Question 6

what approach supports the nature side?

Answer 6

the biological approach

Question 7

what are the basic assumptions of the nurture approach?

Answer 7

• nurture is the influence of external factors after conception
• at birth, the human mind is blank, this is gradually filled by experience

Question 8

what approaches support the nurture side?

Answer 8

social learning theory
- bandura’s bobo doll

behaviourist approach
- classical and operant conditioning

Question 9

what position do most psychologists hold in this debate?

Answer 9

the interactionist approach

Question 10

how does the diathesis-stress model support interactionism?

Answer 10

it states that both a genetic pre-disposition to a mental disorder and environmental stressors are necessary for a condition to affect an individual

Question 11

how does maguire support interactionism?

Answer 11

she concluded that driving a taxi (nurture) had an effect on the size of the hippocampi (nature)

Question 12

how do genetic explanations support interactionism?

Answer 12

concordance rates for mental disorders (such as sz) are 40% in MZ twins, and 7% in DZ twins
- shows that nature plays a role
however, concordance rates aren’t 100% suggesting that nurture and environment play a role

Question 13

who researched niche picking?

Answer 13

plomin

Question 14

how does niche picking support interactionism?

Answer 14

genetics account for 50% of all psychological traits, leaving the other 50% up to our environment

Question 15

who researched gene-environment interactions?

Answer 15

scarr and mccartney

Question 16

how do gene-environment interactions support interactionism?

Answer 16

the model states that genotypes can determine an individual’s response to a certain environment, and these genotype-environment pairs can affect human development

Question 17

what approach do held and hein support?

Answer 17

the nurture approach

Question 18

how does held and hein’s kitten study support the nurture approach?

Answer 18

their findings showed that movement in kittens is learnt as environment changes visual responses

Question 19

what approach do goldin-meadow and mylander support?

Answer 19

the nature approach

Question 20

how does goldin-meadow and mylander’s study support nature?

Answer 20

their findings suggest that language acquisition is innate
- differences in culture and child-rearing practices didn’t affect patterns of gestures used to communicate

Question 21

give 3 evaluation points for the nature vs nurture debate

Answer 21

• nature debate lacks a holistic approach
• research to support diathesis-stress model (interactionist)
• nurture affects nature (maguire)

Question 22

nature evaluation: lacks holism

Answer 22

ID: the nature debate can be seen as lacking a holistic approach
Q: this is because it tries to explain complex behaviour with one influence. it doesn’t consider how other factors interact together in influencing behaviour.
EV: for example, it ignores the influence of nurture and the environment on behaviour, which is a key factor that cannot be separated from nature.
AN: therefore, environmental factors will always influence behaviour, and as a consequence, the nature debate lacks validity as it is biologically reductionist.
ELAB: however, the nurture debate can also be seen as lacking a holistic approach as it ignores biological factors.

Question 23

interactionist evaluation: DSM

Answer 23

ID: there is research to support the interactionist approach through the diathesis-stress model
Q: evidence to support the DSM comes from a finnish adoption study
EV: researchers compared 155 adopted children whose biological mothers had schizophrenia, with a matched group of children with no family history of schizophrenia. they found that the group with sz mothers had a 10% rate of sz, along with all reported cases of sz occurring in families rated ‘disturbed’.
AN: this research provides strong evidence that sz is explained through interaction between genetic inheritance and environmental triggers. supporting the interactionist approach.

Question 24

nurture evaluation: maguire

Answer 24

ID: there is research to support that nurture has an impact on nature
Q: this evidence comes from maguire’s taxi driver study
EV: maguire researched into neural plasticity and found that life experiences (nurture) shaped our biology (nature), she concluded that driving a taxi had an affect on the size of the hippocampi.
AN: this presents evidence that nurture can have an effect on nature, and also the importance of an interactionist approach in explaining behaviour.