The nature nurture debate

A
perennial and favourite discussion topic is the nature-nurture debate. Are
values and morals learnt or do we inherit them? Do we instinctively know right
from wrong or is this down to conditioning of childhood?

A
friend of mine recently had a debate with their partner and discovered they had
very different views: one, thinking that all beliefs and values come down to
one’s upbringing and surroundings. The other, thinking that whilst 'upbringing'
is a contributory factor, there were people they knew who’d had a very
unhealthy moral upbringing, but seemed to instinctively know right from
wrong from an early age.

I
was asked my view.

Of course
I am not an expert on this and anyway the research (read: answer) keeps
changing. Before giving my view, however, one needs to understand a number of
issues around it. For a start, this isn’t really a scientific question – people
want to provide evidence largely for a belief they already have; in others
words, beliefs drive the answer. The reason for this is that the question
touches on the question of what it means to be human.

Put another way: animals always remain in their own state of being; human
beings are always in a state of becoming. The most obvious proof of this is:
animals can only live in their environment; humans create their environment –
in fact, very few humans live in an environment that is as ‘nature’ intended. Moreover,
the nature of being human touches on deep philosophical and spiritual
questions.

 Simplistically,
those who believe that human beings are entirely products of nature will tend
to be deterministic and fatalistic in outlook – leading to a victim mentality
because ‘that’s just the way it is’. On the other hand, those who are think
human beings are products of nurture will tend to idolise humanity itself –
anything is possible, you can be whatever you want, there are no limits. Put
another way, ‘nature’ enthusiasts will tend to be more accepting, passive and conservative,
whereas ‘nurture’ believers will stray towards more active, aggressive and liberal positions.

 So what we think on this spectrum will start reflecting profounder issues
of our nature.

As Chinese philosophy observed long ago: there cannot be yang without yin, and
vice versa. So I believe the correct answer is both, but not in equal
proportions: we are about 30% the product of our natures and about 70% the
product of our nurture or environment.

Of course
in any given individual this can fluctuate. But just as human beings can
profoundly affect their environment, so they can profoundly affect their
internal environment of the self and its body. In one word, the biggest single
factor that will impact your being and change it is belief. What we believe we
ultimately become, and the reason for this is that the actual foundation of the
universe is consciousness itself.