Infants and Children: Prenatal through Middle Childhood - Assignment Example

In real-life situations, the personality characteristics of a child can sometimes be found to be similar to that of his parents. Nature explains this contention by stating that when similar genes from the parents have been inherited by the child, then he can be expected to exhibit those comparable traits (Berk 90). Meanwhile, nurture would explain that the same personality attributes have developed because of the great impact of family interactions in the everyday life of a child (Berk 90). Personally, I agree with the theory of epigenesis which states that development is really the result of the influences of both genetic predisposition and environmental influences (Berk 89).

Among my siblings, I have noticed that we have the same dry sense of humor that our mother could be explained by hereditary influence but we also have different ways of dealing with a problem depending on the kind of peer group that we have. Socioeconomic status, culture, family structure, and schools both have positive and negative effects on children’s development. Uribe, Levine, and Levine (as cited in Berk 73) stated that parents with higher socioeconomic status tend to focus on enhancing their child’s verbal abilities.

As part of family culture, the personal abilities of the child are also developed by providing training abilities. In school, children also learn a lot of things that improve their mental functioning (Berk 73). These influences are not based on stereotypes but are a result of the educational level and upbringing of parents. Most of the time, parents who have been trained by their family, in the same way, tend to impose the same practices on their children. In order to afford children the same opportunities for growth, parents, educators, the immediate community and the government should work collaboratively to provide children will all the exposure necessary for the child’s holistic development including health, recreational and mental services.

On the other hand, a family structure that is too intimate that grandparents are included in it can have adverse effects on the child.