Some scientists think that people behave as they do according to genetic predispositions or even ?animal instincts.? This is known as the nature theory of human behavior. Other scientists believe that people think and behave in certain ways because they are taught to do so. This is known as the nurture theory of human behavior.

?You have your mother?s deep blue eyes, but your fathers thick hair and knobby knees?. It is clear that our physical characteristics are hereditary. Scientists have known for years that specific genes handed down from your parents determine traits such as eye and hair color, but when it comes to our personality traits things become a bit vague. Intelligence, aggression and sexual orientation are thi

So, were our personalities set in stone before we were even born? Or does it develop in conformity to our environment, and adapt in response to each new different situation? Both theories have compelling reasons deserving of our belief, but I believe both play a large role in human behavior. Neither one can exist without the other; both are vital for creating the people we are today. Each one brings different things to the figurative table, and they strike a delicate balance. While a gene may increase the likelihood that you will behave in a particular way, it does not force you to do things. Your actions are not predetermined by your genetic make up, nor is it by the surrounding environment. They come together in a harmony that we may never figure out.

American psychologist John Watson, best known for his controversial experiments with an orphan named Albert, demonstrated that the acquisition of a phobia could be explained by classical conditioning, a type of learning in which a neutral stimulus comes to elicit an unconditioned response when that neutral stimulus is repeatedly paired with a stimulus that normally causes an unconditioned response. ?Give me a dozen h

Some topics in this essay:
John Watson, , human behavior, personality traits, nature theory, people behave, theory human behavior, unconditioned response, preceding behavior, surrounding environment, nurture theory, physical characteristics, theory human,