Paragraph 1: Prewriting
In my personal opinion, both nature and nurture influence the way we become. My opinion is informed by:
Objective and subjective observations of my own characteristics and abilities.
Objective and subjective observations made on friends and relatives.
Reading and research on the nature versus nurture debate.
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In regard to nature, some of my behavioral characteristics are shared by other members of my family despite the absence of the influence of nurture.
Nurture on the other hand is depicted by changes in my personality from being an introvert to an extrovert ever since I started dating my overly extrovert boyfriend.
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The experience of my best friend also influenced my opinion on the nature versus nurture personality debate:
Despite being separated from his twin at the age of 1, they both engage in the same pastime activities that is basketball and dancing. On the other hand they both exhibit certain behavior traits that tend to resemble the behaviors of their adoptive families.
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My opinion on this recurrent debate was also shaped by my reading of documented results of research studies on identical twins raised under different environments:
One such study concluded that nature significantly influenced one’s personality and behavioral traits.
Interestingly though, a similar study had very different results that favored nature more.
Paragraph 5: Conclusion
My personal opinion is that nurture and nature both impact on who we become although the exert extent of their influence is not known. Observations of my characteristics and abilities have contributed to my position. Observations I have made on my friends have also influenced my opinion. Moreover, individual readings and research have also influenced my opinion. The realization that behavior is influenced by nature and nurture has changed the way I perceive and respond to situations and people.
As the debate over whether it is nature or nurture that influences a person’s continues unabated, I would also like to be embroiled in this argument to which no concurrence is likely to be reached any time soon. In my personal opinion, the way people are is a product of two influences: nature and nurture. My opinion has been arrived at after making objective observations on myself, my family and friends. Information garnered from reading and research has also significantly influenced my opinion.
I have strong reasons to believe that my personality has been greatly influenced by my genetic makeup. Otherwise, it would be difficult to explain why my behavior closely resembles that of my other family members. For example, I have this knack for perfection; something my five year old sister seems to share. Despite her age, she always ensures that her personal belongings are immaculately organized. My father exhibits the same behavioral trait. One might argue that our behavior may have been influenced by our home environment but my parents divorced when my sister was barely two weeks old and my father moved to another country. In effect, his perfectionism cannot be said to have rubbed off on my younger sister. In regard to nurture, I have noticed as well been told that I have adopted some of my two year boyfriend’s mannerisms specifically his outgoing nature. Previously, I was what scientists call an introvert but ever since I met my boyfriend, I have noticed that I have become more outgoing and currently, I am the one who initiates majority of our common escapades.
My best friend’s experience on the other hand has also adequately convinced me that nurture greatly determines what we become. Having lost their parents at 1 year of age, my best friend was separated from his identical twin and both were raised by different foster parents. The personalities of the two twins are quite different on many aspects and both tend to mimic those of their foster parents. While my best friend exudes confidence and talks like a parrot, his twin is rather shy and barely utters more than three words in a sentence. Nature has also shaped what they are because the two identical twins engage in similar hobby activities; basketball and dancing. More amazing is the fact that both their biological parents were barre dancers and who had coincidentally met at a barre dance. The latter information seems to suggest that genes also play a role in determining who we become.
The Jims example in article by Colt (1998) provides irrefutable evidence that nature strongly influences what we become. Despite being separated at 5 weeks of birth and eventually meeting again after 39 years, the set of identical twins exhibited similar behavior traits which could only be attributed to their genetic makeup since the nurture factor was not active. However, results from studies on other identical twins do not always deliver consistent results. In one such case whereby identical twins had been separated from the time they were one year old, this particular set of twins exhibited different levels of intelligence as well as personality traits. Their behaviors were more congruent with those of the people they were living with. The latter information seems to suggest that the environment greatly influences what we become.
In conclusion therefore, my personal characteristics as well as my abilities in addition to the objective observations and readings I have done have led me to believe that both nature and nurture significantly contribute to what we become. This is in spite of the fact that the amount of influence exerted by each is difficult to measure. Based on these realizations, I have changed my perceptions on issues. Moreover, I have become more conscious and objective in the way I address and respond to people and issues since it’s necessary to understand their frame of reference, that is, what sort of background in terms of nature and nurture has influenced how they are.
