The nature versus nurture controversy has been argued for centuries.
earliest arguments posed for either side were posed by philosophers such as Plato, Renee .
Descartes and John Locke. These arguments have been continued by modern scientists .
and psychologists. .
Arguments for the nature aspect of the debate have been built on the concepts of .
Inborn Biases, Behavior Genetics and maturation.
The Inborn Bias theory suggests that children are born with a predisposition to react in .
a certain manner to situations. In addition to this is the idea that children are born with the .
knowledge of certain concepts such as the behavior of objects in motion.
Behavior Genetics is the study of genetic contribution to an individual's behavior. .
These genetic contributions have been determined through the study of identical and .
fraternal twins as well as adopted children. Through these studies it has been found .
heredity has a strong influence on alcoholism, depression, anxiety, body shape, and .
intelligence. .
Maturation is the genetically determined patterns of development that occur to a child .
as she or he grows. Maturation occurs to all children, .
occurs in a pattern and is not influenced by the child's environment. .
Arguments for the nurture side of the debate come in the form of the Internal Model of .
Experience, The Ecological Perspective and cultural influence.
The Internal Models of Experience state that the effect of some experience lies in an .
individual's interpretation or representation of it. The child creates an internal .
working model of their view of themselves compared to their environment in which their .
experience becomes filtered.
The Ecological perspective states that a develops not only under the influence of their .
parents or caregivers but also under the influence of the parent's experiences as well as .
the child's interactions with school, other adults and peers.
The cultural influence model suggests that a child's culture has a large role in shaping .
