Unit 2 Process of Lifelong Development reading 2

1. Do you agree with the statements below? Why?

1. Biological, cognitive, and social processes influence our development.

2. The process of maturing and experience can help become more developed.

3. The problem is to decide what is more important for development: nature or nurture.

2. Read the news item Maturation and Experience. Why is the question of nature versus nurture so controversial?

MATURATION AND EXPERIENCE

Not only can we think of development as produced by the interplay of biological, cognitive, and social processes, but also by the interplay of maturation and experience. Maturation is the orderly sequence of changes dictated by the genetic blueprint we each have. Just as a sunflower grows in an orderly way – unless flat­tened by an unfriendly environment – so does the human grow in an orderly way, according to the maturational view. The range of environments can be vast, but the maturational approach argues that the genetic blueprint produces communalities in our growth and development. We walk before we talk, speak one word before two words, grow rapidly in infancy and less so in early childhood, experience a rush of sexual hormones in puberty after a lull in childhood, reach the peak of our physical strength in late adolescence and early adulthood and then decline, and so on. The maturationists acknowledge that extreme environments – those that are psychologically barren or hostile – can depress development, but they believe basic growth tendencies are genetically wired into the human.

By contrast, other psychologists emphasize the importance of experiences in life-span development. Experiences run the gamut from the individual's biological environment – nutrition, medical care, drugs, and physical accidents – to the social environment – family, peers, schools, community, media, and culture.

The debate about whether development is primarily influenced by maturation or by experience has been a part of psychology since its beginning. This debate is often referred to as the nature-nurture controversy. Nature refers to an organism's biological inheritance. Nurture refers to environmental experiences. The 'nature' proponents claim biological inheritance is the most important influence on development, and the 'nurture proponents claim that environmental experiences are the most important.

More reliable information about genetics and behavior can be gleaned from twin studies.When compared to fraternal twins, identical twins display remarkable behavioral similarities. (Unlike fraternal twins, who develop from two separate eggs, identical twins originate from a single divided fertilized egg.) However, even studies of identical twins reared in different families are inconclusive, because, as scientists have discovered, in many cases, the different environments often turn out to be quite comparable, thus invalidating the hypothesis that the twins' behavioral similarities are entirely genetically determined. Conversely, studies of identical twins raised in the same environment have shown that identical twins can develop markedly different personalities. Thus, while certain types of behavior can be traced to certain genetic characteristics, there is no genetic blueprint for an individual's personality.

Twin studies have also attempted to elucidate the genetic basis of intelligence, which, according to many psychologists, is not one trait, but a cluster of distinct traits. Generally, these studies indicate that identical twins reared in different families show a high correlation in IQ scores. No one questions the genetic basis of intelligence, but scientists still do not know how intelligence is inherited and what specific aspects of intelligence can be linked to genetic factors.

Twin researchers, encouraged by stunning accounts like this, have been boldly asserting that nature determines who we are to a far greater degree than nurture. But twin research has its critics. One commonly pointed out flaw in twin research is that twins often mythologize, i.e., imagine or manufacture stories about, their shared characteristics. Also in dispute is how "different" the environments really are. Because adoption agencies screen applicants, families generally have certain shared socioeconomic characteristics. In addition, little research has been conducted on "disconfirming evidence," that is, to ask the question, "Are there twins who show no remarkable similarities?" The nature-nurture controversy is far from settled.