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Nature and Nurture

Looking at what shapes our uniqueness and our

commonalities

Genetics

The branch of biology that deals with the

mechanisms of heredity.

Genes

The biochemical units of heredity that govern the

development of an individual life (20 000- 25 000)
Heredity is the passing on of physical or mental
characteristics genetically from one generation to
another.

Evolutionary Psychology

A subfield that uses the principles of

evolution to understand human social
behavior
Adaptations are not only physical, but
behavioral as well

Evolution: Principles of Natural Selection

Within a species, no two are alike.

Individuals differ in their suitability to their
environment.
Those better suited are more likely to
______________________________
Reproduction perpetuates the genes of
______________________________

Behaviour is strongly influenced by inherited

factors
All human beings act to enhance their inclusive
fitness to increase the frequency and
distribution of their genes in future generations

Evolutionary Psychology

Natural selection has crafted our minds for life

in environments like the African savannah
For most of our evolutionary history we lived
in hunter-gatherer societies and it was only
recently that humans started cultivating their
own food

Evolutionary Psychology

The human brain consists of neural circuits that

have developed to solve problems that our
ancestors faced during our evolutionary history
Our minds are adaptations
Adaptations evolve to meet challenges in the
environment

Evolutionary Psychology

Reproduction is a key avenue of research and

explanation as evolutionary psychology seeks to identify
factors that maximized reproductive success
Women feel attracted to healthy men but are especially
attracted to wealthy men who can take care of their
offspring
Men are attracted to young fertile women because they
have a biological impulse to mate widely

Major tenets

Evolution: Adaptive behavior in

humans and non-humans

Aggression: effective aggressors gain and

maintain access to food, water, and desirable
mates
These aggressive behaviors increase the
likelihood of survival and reproduction

You cannot experiment and those in this field begin with the
effect and work backwards to come up with an explanation
Evolutionary psychology does not take current socio-cultural
factors into account when constructing explanations nor does
it emphasize the fact that much of who we are is not hardwired
Over emphasizes gender differences and downplays contrary
evidence

Criticisms of Evolutionary Psychology

The Nature-Nurture Debates

Extreme biological position

Personality traits, physical characteristics, etc. are all

programmed or hard-wired

Extreme environmental position

All traits and characteristics are shaped by life
experience

How do we study and quantify

nature vs. nurture?

Heritability
A statistical estimate of the percentage of the
variability of a trait within a group that is
attributable to genetic factors. (Note: the
percentage depends on the environment)

Heritability

What does it mean when we say something is heritable?

O
100 % down
to
environment

Intelligence (50%)
Height (90%)

1
100 %
down to
genes

So 50% with respect to intelligence means that

genetic influence explains 50% of the observed
variation among people w.r.t. intelligence
In other words, we are looking at the extent to
which difference among people are attributable
to genes

Heritability means

The Nature-Nurture Debates

Twin-Study

Method

Comparison of pairs of identical and fraternal twins of the same sex

Identical Twins

Are genetic clones - genetically identical

Share DNA, but not fingerprints
Have identical brain wave patterns
Occur once every 254 births

Adoption

Studies

Comparison of twins and other siblings reared together with those

separated by adoption

The Nature-Nurture Debates

Jim twins
Jim Springer and Jim Lewis
Identical twin brothers separated 37
days after birth and raised by different
adoptive families
Reunited at age 39
When reunited, how were they alike
after growing up in different
environments?

Jim twins
Similarities:
Married women named Linda, divorced,
then married women named Betty
Oldest sons named James Allan and James
Alan
Liked math, but hated spelling in school
Worked as deputy sheriffs, pumping gas,
and McDonalds
Enjoyed stock-car racing and woodworking
Mannerisms, tastes, habits, etc.

Nature and Nurture

Genetic influences

Based on the Minnesota personality

studies:
When raised together, monozygotic
twins are more similar than dizygotic
twins.
Twins raised apart are almost as similar
to each other as those living in the same
home.

The Nature-Nurture Debates

Other studies of twins and adoptees show:

Genetic factors account for some differences in
intelligence, verbal and spatial abilities,
criminality, vocational interests, and
aggressiveness.
There is a genetic component to psychological
disorders, such as alcoholism, depression, and
schizophrenia.
And, there is evidence for a genetic link to
peoples attitudes toward issues and activities.

The Nature-Nurture Debates

This study involved

672 twins who rated
their attitudes on
various issues and
activities.
The results show
some influence of
genetic factors.

The Nature-Nurture Debates

Genetic differences typically account for

less than 50 percent of the variation in
personality.
Environmental factors account for the rest
of the variation.

The Nature-Nurture Debates

A study of 5,542 threeyear-olds found that

Children with older brothers had

higher masculinity scores
Children with older sisters had higher
femininity scores

These results support the

nurture hypothesis.

The Nature-Nurture Debates

The Interplay of Nature and Nurture

Genetic and environmental influences are not

independent.

Identical twins receive more similar treatment from their

parents compared to fraternal twins.

Peoples genetic makeup influences how they are

treated by others, the environments in which they
live, and the way they perceive and recall the details
of that environment.

Gender: A Great Divide?

Gender differences have been found in
the following biological areas:

Age when puberty is reached, height,

weight, fat content, and amount each
sweats
Also, women are expected to live longer
than men are(but the gap varies)

Your time to work on your debates.