Is It Nature or Nurture That Makes Us Who We Are - Essay Example

Your full full October 14, Is it Nature or Nurture that makes us who we are or both? I think both nature and nurture play their part in shaping the attitude and behavior of a person. Nature is a set of our inborn characteristics that shape our personality whereas nurture is the reflection of other people’s teachings or influence of environment on our behaviors. “Heredity and environment both play a critical role in development” (Smith). Let us discuss the roles of nature and nurture in shaping the personality of a person in order to get a better understanding of what is more important for a person to be successful in life. Role of Nature Nature reflects the inborn behavior and characteristics of a person. Some of those inherent characteristics include eating, drinking, feeling, and thinking. Humans do not need to get special training or schooling for perfecting these characteristics because these characteristics are natural in all humans. Some of the behavioral characteristics of humans are inherent whereas some characteristics are influenced by different social, political, and psychological factors. Nature plays an integral role in shaping the personality of a person. Natural characteristics of a person fall into two categories, which are positive characteristics and negative characteristics. Some of the positive natural characteristics of a person include appreciating other persons in their achievements, helping the poor, and taking care of young children. These characteristics make a person admired by other people. If we talk about some of the negative characteristics of a person, we can say that negative characteristics destroy the image of a person in minds of other people. Those characteristics, which play a part in destroying the reputation of a person among his family members and colleagues, include backbiting, sloppiness, and absentmindedness. The genetic buildup shapes the personality of a person. If we talk from gender’s perspective, we come to know that men are generally confident, enthusiastic, and straightforward whereas women’s nature is somewhat different as compared to men. Women generally possess a shy and sensitive nature. Nature of men and women also play an important role in our professional life. In our world, it is a common observation that men occupy most of the top managerial posts in any company or organization and the number of women at the top posts is very less. It is because, men are considered to be more hard working and motivated towards their job responsibilities and for that, they are preferred to run the organizational matters whereas women are not given a fair number of opportunities because they are considered less productive as they also have to take care of theirs husbands and children. It is due to the nature of men and women that we see most of the women taking care of their homes and men performing the role of financial supporters of their families. Development of the personality of a person also depends on the admiration of the people. Admiration plays a vital role in increasing the motivation of a person. When a person is admired by the people with whom he interacts, he begins to gain self confidence which is one of the most beneficial positive traits of any individual. Self-confidence results in increasing the productivity and efficiency of a person. Similarly, when people appreciate a person due to his kind attitude towards them or due to some achievement, it results in increasing the level of loyalty and motivation in the person, which are also two of the positive personality traits. Nature shapes the character and personality of a person. Positive nature of a person brings success for the person not only in personal life but also in professional life whereas negative personality traits result in failure of a person in every field of life. For example, a child who does not participate actively in class activities becomes unconfident. The lack of confidence not only affects the child’s class performance but also affects the child’s future because of his inability to interact effectively with other people. Another example is of a very emotional, demanding, and assertive child who possesses the stubborn nature and does not get back from his demands in any case. Now when such child grows up, his stubborn and inflexible nature causes many difficulties in his practical life because practical life demands flexibility and control of emotions in order to be successful. Therefore, we can say that nature plays an integral role in shaping the personality of any individual. Role of Nurture Nurture plays a more effective role in shaping our personalities as compared to nature. It is because nurturing refines our inborn characteristics. Nurturing teaches us how to behave in different circumstances. Nurturing also refers to the influence of various social, political, and psychological factors on a person’s personality. Nurturing is different from nature in a sense that nature of a person consists of unrefined and inborn characteristics in their original shape whereas nurturing refers to the refinement of existing characteristics and development of new characteristics. Nurturing is the guidance that the parents, relatives, and colleagues provide to a person in order to show him the right path regarding any matter of life. Nurturing not just means to shape our own attitudes and behaviors according to the mindset of other people rather it also means to foster growth in other people around us. Nurturing generally means to shape the behaviors in order to make them acceptable for the society. Parents and teachers are the best nurturers of a person. Parents teach their children how to talk, how to behave in front of others, and all those things that a child needs to learn in his initial stages of life. Parents take care of their children in order to make them good citizens. “If parents nurture their children with warmth, care and love then their children will definitely grow as responsible citizens” (Gandhi). Teachers also play a very important role in shaping the behaviors of the children. They make the children learn those principles of life that are necessary to excel in personal and professional life in a successful manner. Therefore, we can say that nurturing is the act of proper bringing up of a child. Nurturing is a continuous process that starts from the very first day of a person’s life and continuous until the last day of life. Colleagues and friends of a person also part in shaping a person’s behavior. It is a common fact that man is a social animal and in order to live in a society, a person has to change his behavior and attitude according to the environment of the society. Nurturing of behaviors is not only important for our healthy development but also it is important in order to get success in our professional lives. Some people believe that nature is comparatively more influential than nurture as nature consists of such characteristics that can never change. However, I believe that nurturing is somewhat more influential than nature for a person. The reason behind this is that every person lives in a society, which consists of many people. Now in order to be acceptable for the people living in the same society, a person has to shape his behavior and characteristics according to the norms and values of the society. If a person does not change his negative behavior, he is likely to fail in life because no one regards a person who possesses negative behavior. If a person changes his behavior according to the standards of the society in order to be successful in life, it is called nurturing of behaviors. Therefore, I would say that nurturing plays a more influential role in a person’s life as compared to nature. Works Cited Gandhi, Jennie “Nurturing Parent-Child Connection.” Nurturing Parent-Child Connection. 28 Jul. 2008 EzineArticles.com. 14 Oct. 2010 . Smith, Shannon “What is Nature versus Nurture?.” What is Nature versus Nurture?. 16 Sep. 2010 Wisegeek.com. 14 Oct. 2010 . Read More