Personality: Product of nature and Nature - Essay Example

? Personality: Product of Nature ‘and’ Nurture of Introduction ‘Nature versus nurture’ debate has dominated the fieldof psychology for a long time. People working in the field of psychology are trying to understand the root cause of development of personality patterns in human beings. The understanding of the root cause of the personality will not only help human beings to know what makes their personality develop in a particular way, but will also help them in working in the right direction for bringing a change in their personality. Hence, knowing whether it is the ‘nature’ or the ‘nurture’ of human being that shapes his personality is important for human beings. This debate has been covered by different media, where effort has been made to find an answer to the debate. Similarly, the video “Nature Vs. Nurture: Child Rearing Debate” is the video that tries to find the essence of the debate through its content. The video focuses on the debate of ‘nature versus nurture,’ and tries to understand what really shapes the personality of a human being. Unfortunately, in an effort to understand the point of views of both, i.e. the psychologists who support the ‘nature’ side of debate and psychologists who support the ‘nurture’ side of debate, the video fails to look into the matter in depth. Even though the video begins with a strong statement and intention, due to lack of depth and lack of time, it fails to dig deep into the debate. However, through its conclusion, which says that human beings are not totally predisposed to their genes but have an opportunity to shape their personality through environment, the video provides an optimistic picture towards human behavior and personality. Hence, even though the video “Nature v. Nurture: Child Rearing Debate,” lacks the in depth look at both the sides of the debate, it is an interesting, informative and entertaining video, and through its modern and fresh presentation it succeeds in convincing the viewer that personality is the product of both, the genes and the environment. Positive aspects of the video The video “Nature v. Nurture: Child Rearing Debate,” is an interesting video which talks about the debate that has been going on in the field of psychology for a long time. It talks about the role that genes and environment play in the development of human personality. The video is interesting and grips the attention of the viewer right from the beginning. The video begins by talking about the statements given in the media regarding genes as the cause of human personality and behavior. It tells the viewer how people are misled into thinking that one particular gene can cause a particular behavior pattern or a particular disease in human beings. The information about the newspaper and magazine headlines, given in the video, is true as one often comes across genes related attention grabbing headlines in print and electronic media. For example, the headline like “half of our happiness lies in our genes,” has a potential to dampen the spirit of people who read it (Joshi, 2008). It makes the impression on a reader that if he does not have the genes that are responsible for happiness he will always remain unhappy no matter what he achieves in his life. The video says that by making dramatic headlines regarding the relationship between genes and behavior popular newspapers and magazines try to impose a picture that human being is completely at the mercy of his genes, and hence has no control over his behavior or intelligence. The video says that this is a wrong picture. It is the wrong information provided through media that makes people feel helpless and weak. By attracting the attention of the viewers towards the dramatic but half true headlines in media, the video tries to tell the viewer that there is more to the role of genes in human behavior than what is told to them. Hence, one of the positive aspects of the video is its effort to show a true picture of the role of genes in the development of human personality. The second positive aspect of the video is its statement of purpose. The video says that it is not only the genes, but also the environment, that plays a role in development of personality of a human being. The video has taken a mature outlook towards the debate of “nature versus nurture.” By saying that it is both the nature and the nurture that shape the personality and the behavior of a person, it has approached the debate in a flexible way. By showing the interviews with psychology teachers, referring to the studies on twins and studies on adopted children, the video has tried to prove that it is the environment in which a person grows that plays a major role in the development of personality, behavior and intelligence of a human being. In the past, the psychologists had taken an ‘either-or’ approach in their study of the causes of human behavior and hence there was a conflict. However, through the interview clipping of psychology teacher, Paula Sizemore, the video has referred to the fact that modern psychology has taken a new approach to the debate and has accepted that it is both, the genes and the environment, which is contribute to the development of the personality and the behavior of human beings. Hence, the video has done an excellent job of making the viewer aware of the current approach of psychology towards the debate of “nature versus nurture.” However, the video also has some negative aspects to it. Negative aspects of the video The negative aspect of the video is its inclination towards the ‘nurture’ side of the debate. In an attempt to prove that it is not just the genetic influence, but also the environmental influence that shapes the personality of a person, the video has focused very little on the genetic side of the study. It will not be wrong to say that the video has completely ignored to bring forth the role of genes in human behavior. The fact is that many of the studies in the field of psychology have proved that genes play a major role in development of personality traits in human beings. According to the first study on twins, which examined the identical twins reared in different families, it is not the child rearing but the genetic makeup of a child that has a strong influence on the personality of a child (Goleman, 1986, para 1). The interesting thing is that this study, which was conducted by University of Minnesota, was a long term study (Goleman, 1986, para 2). In this study, more than 350 pairs of identical twins went through extensive testing throughout six day (Goleman, 1986, para 2). The tests included analysis of blood, brain waves, intelligence and allergies (Goleman, 1986, para 2). The results were based on the long term study which had started in 1979 (Goleman, 1986, para 2). Hence, the results of this study cannot be discarded as weak. The study also included the identical and fraternal twins who were raised in different environment (Goleman, 1986, para 7). It was found that personality traits like “sense of well-being, zest for life, alienation, vulnerability or resistance to stress, fearfulness and risk-seeking,” were the traits that were determined by hereditary factors (Goleman, 1986, para 13). This shows that genes do have a major influence on the personality and behavior. Moreover, there are not one but many studies which show that genetic predisposition plays a major role in development of the personality of human being. A study by researchers from University of Missouri and Holland revealed that borderline personality disorder (BPD) has a link with the genetic material on chromosome nine (University of Missouri-Columbia, 2008, para 1). BPD has a potential to cause a person to become an addict, suicidal or maladjusted in relationships (University of Missouri-Columbia, 2008, para 1). This means that the BPD affects the behavior and personality pattern of a person very strongly. As the research has revealed that BPD related behavior pattern is linked to genetic material, it will not be wrong to say that BPD is genetic in nature. It is important to note here that BPD affects not only one, but many personality traits, as it affects the mood, interpersonal relationship, self-image and behavior of a person (University of Missouri-Columbia, 2008, para 1). Hence, it can be said that different aspects of human being’s life, and his personality traits, are affected by his genetic makeup. This makes it clear that genes do play a major role in the development of different behavior patterns and personality traits in a human being. However, the video “Nature v. Nurture: Child Rearing Debate,” has failed to mention these studies in its content. By ignoring to mention the ‘nature’ supporting studies, the importance of genes in development of personality and behavior was deliberately downplayed. However, it does not mean that the video has failed to convince the viewer. The images and the content The video “Nature v. Nurture: Child Rearing Debate,” through different images and graphics, has presented the topic in entertaining and interesting way. Through colorful images of people and places, the video succeeds in gripping the attention of the viewer till the end. Also, even though the topic of “nature versus nurture” is an old topic and is in the news since a long time ago, the video has presented it in a very fresh and modern way. Hence, the viewer does not get bored or disinterested during the video. Moreover, due to its insight on different theories proposed by different psychologists regarding the “nature versus nature” debate, the video has covered a lot in its short time span of approximately nine minutes. Also, the content of the video has taken a modern psychological approach towards the topic. The latest studies in the field of psychology, for example the studies by Bornstein and Lamb (2005), and Gottlieb (2003), have led the developmentalists to believe that biological predispositions and environmental factors interact with each other to form a personality and behavior of human beings (Shaffer, 2009, p. 11). Hence, the other strength of the video is that its content is based on the latest findings. Conclusion The video “Nature v. Nurture: Child Rearing Debate,” is an interesting and informative video. Hence, even though it fails to take an in depth look into the ‘nature’ side of the debate, through its strong content and its focus, the video succeeds in convincing the viewer to believe that personality is the product of both, the genes and the environment. References Goleman, D. (1986, December 2). Major personality study finds that traits are mostly inherited. The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/1986/12/02/science/major-personality-study-finds-that-traits-are-mostly-inherited.html?pagewanted=all Joshi, M. (2008, March 5). Half of our happiness lies in our genes. TopNews. Retrieved from http://www.topnews.in/health/half-our-happiness-lies-our-genes-21332 Nature versus nurture: Child rearing debate. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D2uoIe7x7UE Shaffer, D. R. (2009). Social and Personality Development (6th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning. University of Missouri-Columbia (2008, December 16). Possible genetic causes of borderline personality disorder identified. ScienceDaily. Retrieved from http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/12/081216114100.htm Read More