Nature and Nurture in Human Development

• According to T.P. Nun, for human life, life circumstances are so important as rocks, seawaves and fast winds are important for ships. Many psychologists and educationists think that it is possible to predicted how much development may happen. These persons regard heredity more important and do not want to regard environment important for human development. In India caste system based on heredity supports the importance of heredity.
• On the contrary some people believe that environment is more important. Some such persons believe that they can develop the personalities of the children through nature and nurture in the direction they want. Both the ideologies differ in their views regarding the importance of nature and nurture for human development. Psychologists have put for the different views about the question. Which is more important heredity or environment as regards to the human development.
• Human development is influenced by many factors, out of these factors two factors Nature and Nurture are main. Nature of man is inborn.
• This he inherits from his parents and ancestors. This is called their heredity. The factors nuturing development fall in the category of environmental factors. Development of human beings starts in the womb of his mother. This is determined by the gene passed on to him by his parents and the further development after birth is determined by environment. The human development is the product of interaction of heredity and environment.

Nature (heredity)

• Generally children look alike their parents in the matter of complexion, appearance, intelligence, wisdom etc, that is they inherit the physical and mental characteristics of their parents. That is why it is said like bagets i.e. as the parents so are their children. We call this heredity. Heredity can be regarded as the sum total of congenital or in-born characteristics.
• The process of heredity is consisted of cells of human body. This body starts to take shape from a single cell which is called zygote. This zygote is the sum total of two germ cells, out of which one cell is of the father which is called sperm and the second is the cell of mother which is called ovum. In each cell of father and mother contains 23-23 chromosomes and these make 23 pairs in zygote. These chromosomes have genes which contain innumarable traditional characteristics. Each chromosome contains innumerable genes and each gene determines paternal characteristic. This is why these genes are called hereditory determiners. These genes pass on physical and mental characteristics from one generation to the next one.
• Through this process characteristics of forefathers pass on to their decendants from one generation to the other. Individual inherit physical and mental characteristics of their ancestors, but it is observed very offen that a child of learned parents is foolish and different from his parents in physical traits. It is never possible that two individuals are completely similar. Heredity is based on some laws and principles. The laws of heredity most in use are as under.

1. Law of Continuity of Germplasm
2. Law of Resemblance
3. Law of Variation
4. Law of Regression
5. Law of Transmission of Acquired Traits
6. Law of Dominance and segregation

1. Law of Continuity of Germplasm

• According to this law the germplasm giving birth to a child us never. According to Weismann, the propounder of this law, the function of the germplasm is to form germ cells. The germplasm inherited from parents by the child is transmitted to the next generation. In this way germplasm continues from generation to generation.

2. Law of Resemblance

• According to this law as the parents are so are the offsprings. It believes like bagets. The physical features and mental abilities are alike those of the parents.

3. Law of Variation

• According to this law a child is not exactly like his parents but is slightly different. Inthis way the children of one parent being similar, are different from others in intelligence, complexion andtemper. Darwin and Lamark through experiments tried to make the law clear and established mutation and natural selection as the causes of variation. These improve hereditary characterstics.

4. Law of Regression

• According to this law nature tries keep organisms onthe same level by distributing general traits more than specific characteristics. According to this law offsprings acquire general traits or characteristics from their parents and not specific one.

5. Law of Transmission of Acquired Traits

• According to Lamark the individuals transmit what ever they acquire in life to their offspringes. Giving an example of this Lamark says that the neck of giraffe was somewhat like that of a horse but because of certain special circumstances, it graw longer and this trait began to be transmitted to next generation. This law was reviewed and criticised and was not fully accepted.

6. Law of Dominance and Segregation

• Mandel propound two important laws of heredity. With the help of experiment on peas. Mandel proved that the dominant trait of either parent is seen in the next generation and the trait of other parent remains recessive. This is called by law of dominance. He pointed out that organisms of mixed blood or mixed blood castes in next generation proceed towards their original or general form that is a combination of two traits in one generation appear in the form of separate trait in future. This is called the law of segregation. According to this law only the offspring of pure traits remain in existance.

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Important Points of Human Development :- 

1. Development means proceeding towards more maturity which is not quantitatively measurable but in qualitative change.
2. Development in continuous, systematic and sequential.
3. In each cell of parents there are 23 chromosoms and these constitute 23 pairs.
4. Each choromosom has many genes and each gene determines one or the other trait or characteristic.
5. Heredity provides potentialities to develop. These potentialities develop in environment.
6. Sigmund Freud propounded psychoanalytic theory and Erikson propounded Psycho­ social theory which describe the stages of development from birth to adulthood.

Human Development Questions And Answers

1. What is the meaning of heredity?
(A) Sperm and ovam
(B) Chromosomes and genes
(C) Mitosis and Meiosis
(D) DNA and RNA

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2. Which of the following theory has been propounded by Freud?
(A) Cognitive theory
(B) Psycho-social theory
(C) Stimulus-response theory
(D) Psycho analytic theory

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3. Who out of the following has propounded psycho-social theory?
(A) Sigmund freud
(B) Erik Erikson
(C) E.B. Hurlock
(D) Not any of these

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