Nature Versus Nurture

Nature versus nurture has been thought of by many to be one of the greatest debates of all time. From the teachings of Aristotle and Plato to Freudian psychology to modern day debates on alcoholism, criminals, and homosexuality, nature versus nurture has been examined, tested, debated, and verified to varying degrees. Hundreds of years encompassing various types of scientific scenarios and predictions have passed leaving us no closer to a concrete nature or nurture decision than before.

At earlier times in my life I believed more strongly that nurture was responsible for the greatest proportion of our traits, beliefs, and behaviors. Today as I recollect on my earlier steadfast position I see myself as having been somewhat naïve.

As a young mother and a not quite mature adult, I was of the mindset that I was the exact product of my upbringing and my children would be also. I thought if I showered them with love and attention, taught them right from wrong and honesty, and shared what it is to love and be responsible, that they would all grow up to be loving, considerate, warm-hearted, honest, and responsible adults.

Once reaching the other end of the child rearing spectrum, I became harshly aware that life is not all as simple as I would like to believe. Not only did my adult children help to reformulate my nature versus nurture position, but my own aging and maturing brought about new realizations regarding how nature and nurture had truly affected who I have become.

At this crossroads of my life questions of such magnitude as nature versus nurture require greater contemplation. It is with great consideration and personal analysis I propose a position that nature is indeed responsible for the greatest majority of who we become. Nurture has its contributing factors but will be overruled by nature if such a conflict were to present itself. I've come to believe overcoming nature is only possible when someone uses great conscious effort and has the resolve to stand fast against their inner conflicts.

Alcoholism is an excellent example of nature versus nurture and the conflict that can ensue. A child born of two alcoholic parents has a very high likelihood of either becoming an alcoholic themselves or at the very least enduring a battle of will to defeat the demons of alcohol. Whether these parents rear their children together, separate, or not at all they still tend to pass the disease process forward to future generations. Though a child of alcoholic parents when reared by a substitute parenting system may not become an imbiber, they will most likely have to face a battle with alcohol versus will at some point in their lives. The take away lesson here is that nature is likely still the more dominant because it is only overcome by will and awareness not by nurture.

In further support of my position, I put forth the example of a child raise with heterosexual parents and without any exposure to homosexual ideals, behaviors, or examples. The child was not raised with an awareness of alternative lifestyles. As expected, this child grows up, gets married, has children, and sets upon the path they have been programmed to walk upon. Somewhere in adulthood a relationship is formed with a member of the same sex. The relationship grows and becomes much more, leading to a complete change of lifestyle. This change of lifestyle leads to feelings of oneness and fulfillment never known in any heterosexual encounters.

Is this an example of nature overcoming nurture? Having seen examples of this play out in real life, I come to realize that something more than exposure and experience contributes to these situations. I believe it is the inherent nature of the individual that helps one to finally determine who they will become and helps them to find happiness and completeness.

The implications of my position that nature contributes more in determining whether one is homosexual or not has been discussed in many debates regarding biology, sociology, legalities, rights, and discrimination. If homosexuality is by nature and not by choice, then it should not be viewed as a deviant behavior even within a society. This population should be afforded the same legal protections and rights as heterosexual individuals or couples.

The implications of a more generalized approach to the concept of nature being stronger than nurture suggest our child rearing practices, examples, lessons, and experiences have little to do with the end result of who we grow to be. If this were able to be proven it would necessitate an entirely revamped approach to the parent/child relationship.

Of course, nothing is ever so cut, dry and simple. There are always further repercussions that occur much the same as widening ripples after a pebble is dropped into a pool of water. Once rights are afforded to all persons regardless of their sexual orientation, will there be more or less divorce, more or less insurance costs, etc. If parenting methods, examples, and teachings are thought to have very little impact on whom and what we become, will parents care less and not want children for fear of what they might become?

I would hypothesize if society were able to affirm that nature or nurture was specifically responsible for certain traits it would lead to various forms of gender selection, ethnic cleansing, and potentially to acts of genocide. By nature of our humanness, humankind strives for superiority. If it were proven we could breed Albert Einsteins and Florence Nightingales by simple gene selections, would we? If specific child rearing principles were proven to result in exemplary members of society who are compassionate, fair, loving, and responsible would we force conformity?

It is doubtful this ancient debate will find a resolution. An enormously interesting debate, due to the ability to construct experiments, discover true biologic proof of variances, and engage the minds of superior scientists of varying disciplines, the nature versus nurture quandary must settle for only quasi-success to this point in history. I would further suggest this is a debate we truly do not want to find the answer to. It is an interesting dilemma which has provided sufficiently good entertainment for brilliant minds for centuries. Their investigations have lead to gene discoveries, multiple relationship dynamics, and a host of other scientific milestones. Thus, nature versus nurture will likely remain a puzzling mystery affording considerable debate and discovery so long as humanity remains for we are in search of an answer that likely rests in the art of compromise.