2 ms·
"Nature/Nurture is almost unsolvable" - I was under the impression that for most traits we have researched the evidence shows that the Nature/Nurture answer is
by PeterisP 6y ago
"Nature/Nurture is almost unsolvable" - I was under the impression that for most traits we have researched the evidence shows that the Nature/Nurture answer is simply "both" ? I.e. I agree that it's getting good experimental data on the exact mix of nature vs nurture is difficult or impossible with ethical methods, but for many traits we can (as far as I understand - it's not my field of research) demonstrate that it's definitely not 90/10 or 10/90 purely from observational studies.
But perhaps it's more accurate to look at this from a "four quadrant" (simplified) perspective, with nature/nurture on one axis and hereditary/nonhereditary on the other axis. So you'd have hereditary nature (biological determinism) factors in one quarter, non-hereditary nature (biological variation, mutations, things like most cases of Down syndrome) in another; hereditary nurture (socioeconomic status, which affects a lot, cultural aspects and family values), and non-hereditary nurture, where (among other things) I'd be eager to place things which are under the individual willpower control even though they're not technically "nurture".
- IfOnlyYouKnew 6y agoYes, indeed. I was thinking of gender roles, specifically, where twin studies are of little help (because "nature" is just sex, not "inherited from parents", and "nurture" is about the influences of society, not your immediate caretakers)