Topic Summaries

Nature vs. nurture

A-Level > Psychology > AQA > A-Level Psychology Topic Summaries > Issues and debates > Nature vs. nurture
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Addiction

  • This debate is about the extent to which aspects of behaviour are as a result of inherited influences or environmental influences.
    • Nature: behaviour is innate.
    • Nurture: behaviour is learnt.
  • For example, Locke argued that we have a ‘blank slate’ at birth and become who we are as a result of the environment we grow in.
  • Previously, psychologists would argue either one side or the other, but now they’re more concerned with the interaction between the two.
  • The interactionist approach: nature and nurture interact with another. A child’s innate temperament will change the way the parents respond to them, which affects the child’s behaviour.
  • The diathesis-stress model: models of mental illness that emphasis the interaction of nature and nurture. For example, psychopathy is caused by a genetic vulnerability but is expressed when combined with an environmental trigger.
  • The heritability coefficient: used to assess heritability of characteristics. It ranges from 0-1 which explains the extent to which a characteristic has a genetic basis. 1 is completely genetic and 0 is environmental.
  • Evaluation of nature vs. nurture debates:
    • Most contemporary psychology adopts an interactionist stance (e.g. gene– environment interactions in epigenetics), making the debate more nuanced.
    • Extreme nature or nurture positions can be reductionist, oversimplifying complex human behaviour.
    • Understanding both sides informs therapies (e.g. biological treatments + behavioural interventions are often the most effective combination).

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