Let’s be honest. We have all heard of nature versus nurture great debate. Which one impacts us more?

Let us break down what both keywords mean. Nature is what influences us biologically, particularly genetic inheritance. Nurture is external influences, life experiences, environmental influences.

Different psychological schools of thought have often pitted one against the other. For example, Behaviorism theory believes that individuals shape their personality because of their environmental stimuli. Whereas, the Biological perspective stresses the importance of genetics. However, more evidence is leaning towards the emergence of both that gives rise to our personality and behavioral traits.

Undoubtedly, our genes are influenced by the environment they are in. Factors like stress, nutrition, and exposure to toxins all play a role in how genes are expressed. This phenomenon is called epigenetics; which emphasizes the interaction of genes and the environment. Rather than seeing them as opposing forces, both are correlational.

Because both nature and nurture are important in causing traits, meaning, no behaviors would exist without genetics, and no genes would express without environmental factors. Heritability studies, such as adoption studies and twin studies, help us understand the variance between individuals for a particular trait. For example, we can look at the concordance rate, for identical twins and determine if environmental factors or genetics influence the expression of one trait more than the other.

The next time you find yourself wondering why you’re more extroverted than your dad, or why you like eating cilantro and your twin brother does not. It is the result of both nature and nurture influencing your traits!