Impact of Nature or Nurture on Humans - Essay Example

The debate regarding the impact of nature and nurture on human development has persisted for a long. Nature entails the genetic makeup of an individual while nurture encompasses the upbringing of a person. Both nature and nurture have a remarkable impact on the development of adolescents. The influence of these two aspects on the development of adolescents can be regarded as significant. The inherited traits (nature) have an impact on the development of adults in several ways. For instance, adolescents may portray some of the traits that they have inherited from their parents. The biologically inherited traits of adolescents may become visible during adolescence. Nature influences the development of adolescents because there tend to be some traits that people have to inherit from their parents. An adolescent may either inherit positive or negative traits from their parents (Dowling, 2011).

On the contrary, nurture entails the various environmental conditions that shape human development. Nurture influences the development of adolescents in that environmental factors influence the acquisition of some traits in adolescents. Some of the environmental factors that influence adolescent development include peer pressure, the media, and the environment of the adolescent’s upbringing. The adolescent's immediate family, friends, and society at large influence their development. Adolescents tend to exhibit behaviours that they learn from their parents, peers, and other significant members of society such as celebrities. One reason why nurture influences adolescent development is that socialization is part of a child’s upbringing, and socialization agents have a significant impact on behaviour. Moreover, nurture influences the way a person behaves since it instils acceptable norms of behaviour in the adolescent (Dowling, 2011).