Nature Vs Nurture

I think the nature vs nurture debate should be laid to rest and  we simply accept that both are influential in human development.  Although we each receive a genetic influence of chromosomes, environment plays an equally important role in our development.  The argument of which is greater may never be substantiated.

“Bad” outcomes defined by Jean-Jaque Rosseau as being such things as aggressive behavior learned from others or from experience is offset by more modern studies into behaviors intended to injure other persons or objects.  This definition of aggression has shown to occur in every child to at least some extent.  The form and frequency of aggression, however, changes.  In Chapter 11, I found it interesting that studies show how aggression changes with age.  Young 2-3 year old children use aggression to achieve a goal, like getting their toy away from another child, and is defined as instrumental aggression.  This aggression stops as the goal is achieved.

Hostile aggression is found in older preschoolers, whose goal is to hurt other’s feelings.  Physical aggression hurts others through physical damage or threat of such damage.  Trait aggression is predictive of a long-term pattern of antisocial behavior.

Relational aggression is found at all ages, even as adults, as ostracism, threats of ostracism, and cruel gossiping or facial expressions of disdain are frequently used in all levels of society.

 

 

Moral Behavior Blog Chapter 12

Discuss two reasons why children and adolescents engage in antisocial behavior (e.g., stealing, aggression, cheating in an exam). What explain the behavior? Nature? Nurture? Or both?

Two Reasons Children & Adolescents engage in antisocial behavior:

1. If all the other students in junior high biology class are marking their quiz answers as a “c” and then during the self-grading process, changing the “c” answer to the correct, “a”, “b”, or “d”, then the child perceives this as acceptable classroom behavior because “everyone is doing it.” The child may do it to get the same odds on passing the quiz and to appear to fit into the acceptable social behavior. In this regard, Nurture or Environment is affecting the social situation and affecting the child’s decision process.

2. Aggressive behavior, such as boys being physically aggressive in the school yard, is often affected by Nature in that male behavior tends toward more aggression. If this behavior is the accepted norm and expected in the playing arena to win the game, then it is encouraged through Nurture and Environmental acceptance and a boy may be accepted by his peers for this behavior.

Pg 288 of our text states that, “Indeed, at every age, boys show more physical aggression and more assertiveness than do girls, both within friendship pairs and in general (Coie & Dodge, 1998).
Also, it states, ” The social consequences of aggressive behavior vary with gender. For girls, aggression seems to lead consistently to peer rejection. Among boys, however, aggression may result in either popularity or rejection (Rodkin, Farmer, Pearl, & Van Acker, 2000: Xie, Cairns, & Cairns, 1999).

Gender and sex roles

Nature and nurture both contribute

Genes identify hormone and organ growth.

Nurture contributes to role identification and self-esteem.

 

Blog – Language development

It is theorized that language develops in phases and that language has components, such as syntax.

It is amazing that even the babbling of a baby is a part of the learning process of language.

Environmental factors that may affect language development include:

1.  Infant directed speech such as a higher pitched voice.  This is interesting because there was a time when “baby talk” was discouraged.
2. We should talk to children often.  I wish I had talked more to my two sons.  The second one is more verbal than the elder son.  I believe the younger one had more people to talk with.
3. Reading to your children is important.  My mother read to me.  I read to my sons.  We all love reading and have learned much from doing so.

Language development – class activity

State and briefly explain.  One idea/fact/theory that I learned in class today:

At age 9-10 months there is a shift from a child making “babbling” sounds to a set of sounds.

My grandson, who’s ear development is not fully complete will still do this despite his challenge. His hearing aid looks like a blue headband with a little black box attached. He is developing very normally and is an delight to me, his grandma.

What is intelligence?

Intelligence as defined on page 167 of our text is: “A set of abilities defined in various ways by different psychologists but generally agreed to include the ability to reason abstractly, the ability to profit from experience, and the ability to adapt to varying environmental context.”

A dictionary definition is, “(1) The ability to acquire and apply knowledge and skills used. (2) Synonymous with intellectual capacity, mental capacity intellect, mind, brains, judgment, reasoning, understanding, and ability to perceive and comprehend meaning.”

Albert Einstein is an excellent example of a very intelligent man.

One of his many quotes is, “The measure of intelligence is the ability to change.”  This is a simple, yet profound statement as we and our environment are in a constant state of change.  I respect Mr. Einstein’s intelligence and his ability to apply his intelligence.

Resilience

Rudyard Kipling wrote a poem called “IF”.  It is quoted in full below as I believe one needs to read it in its entirety to enjoy the rich meaning.

His poem reminds me of resiliency because I believe we all have some resiliency and we have a choice to build upon what we are genetically born with and what we obtain from our environment.  We are, after all, alive and demonstrating our resiliency in living each day.  Page 8 and 9 of “The Developing Child” explains vulnerability and resiliency and explores research done in Kauai, Hawaii by Werner and Werner & Smith.  They found that “only two-thirds of the children who grew up in poverty-level, chaotic families turned out to have serious problems themselves as adults.”

I believe that the difference lies in a certain amount of choice we each make given our genetic makeup and our nurture.  Happiness, it is said, is a choice.  Horowitz proposes that a resilient child “can take advantage of all the stimulation and opportunities available.”  As stated in our text, “…the same environment can have quite different effects, depending on the qualities or capacities the child brings to the equation.”  I agree.  Please enjoy the poem below.

“IF” – by Rudyard Kipling

If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you;
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise:

If you can dream -- and not make dreams your master;
If you can think -- and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two imposters just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with worn-out tools;

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breathe a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on!"

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings -- nor lose the common touch,
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,
If all men count with you, but none too much;
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run --
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And -- which is more -- you'll be a Man, my son!

Ch 4 Sleep Problems Blog / Forum

In class we have been introduced to the need for sleep and that, in general, U.S. populations are sleep deprived.  On Page 102 in a discussion entitled, “A good night’s sleep for kids (and parents, too!)” is a discussion of predictable schedules and routines to help with sleep patterning behaviors.

As my daughter-in-law has a bachelor’s in Psychology, I have been able to observe her use of a nightly routine to assist her 2 year old in a “go to bed” pattern.  The establishment of this routine helps my grandson, James, set patterns of behavior that tell his body it is sleep time and quiets his mind through a ritual.  Their ritual is to brush teeth, read stories from books and look at the pictures, sing songs, take a soft toy to the bed and leave the room or continue to sing for a short time as needed.  James self-comforts and talks himself to sleep most of the time now and they started this routine before the age of one, so I believe it is working!

Birth and infancy – class activity

An example would be that native Americans used cradle boards and carried babies in a contained/wrapped position and their children grew and developed through both nature and nurture and cultural preferences to affect infants’ behavior.

CH 2 Child Development

Identify 1-2 behaviors scientists have observed in fetuses.

*  Neuronal migration takes place to specialized regions of the brain  (Johnson, M. 2011) , and once they have reached their final destination behaviors signal the process of synapse formation is underway (Walusinski, Kurjak, et.al. 2005), when the fetus shows periods of activity and rest and can yawn.

* As soon as the 25th week of gestation (Joseph 2000), a fetus will respond to sound with heart rate changes.

What behaviors most surprised me in Ch 2:

*It was most interesting that a fetus recognizes and learns rhyme patterns and that heart rate drops during recitation. (DeCasper, et al, 1994) and (Kruger, et al, 2004; (Pressman et al, 1998) and the fetal ability to remember.

Do I find the evidence of prenatal learning convincing? Why or why not?

Yes, I do find the evidence convincing.  I believe that a bonding effect takes place during fetal development and the studies reveal that babies do have a preference for sounds heard in utero. (DeCasper & Spence, 1986).

Child Development