LGBTQ Issues and Nature Versus Nurture

Running head: NATURE VERSUS NURTURE
LGBTQ Issues and Nature Versus Nurture
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1NATURE VERSUS NURTURE
“...man is a bundle of relations, a knot of roots,
whose flower and fruitage is the world...”
The above quoted lines of Ralph Waldo Emerson speak volume regarding the nature
versus nurture debate which has been going on since the traditional times. As opined by
Beaver, Barnes and Boutwell (2014), the human beings are a rational creature and generally
like to know the mechanisms of the things which are happening or the reasons for their
occurrence. Lock and Palsson (2016) are of the viewpoint that the net result of this is the fact
that the human beings have tried to rationalize their own personality as well as actions on the
basis of the knowledge that they gained. It is pertinent to note that people hold different
viewpoints regarding the behavior of the human beings and also the factors which influence
the behavior of the human beings. In this context, it needs to be said that there are individuals
who are viewpoint that the behavior of the human beings is determined to a great extent by
the environment in which the concerned individual dwells, their parentage or other similar
factors that wield a substantial influence on their life (Tabery, 2014). On the other hand, there
are people who are of the viewpoint that the concept of genetics or the genes of an individual
are the sole deciding factors of the actions or the behavior of the human beings (Gottlieb,
2014). This paper intends to shed light on the process of personality development and the
“Nature Versus Nurture: An Age Old Debate” by means of shedding light on the LGBTQ
issues.
Sasaki and Kim (2017) are of the viewpoint that the personality of an individual can
be defined as the conglomeration of the different character traits, emotions, cognitions and
other aspects which determine greatly the actions or the behaviour of an individual. As
opined by Gadjev (2015), these aspects of the personality of an individual are greatly
dependent on the external environment in which an individual dwells and also the biological

2NATURE VERSUS NURTURE
factors. More importantly, it is seen that the construct of personality not only determines the
actions or the behaviour of an individual but at the same time contributes in a substantial
manner towards the identity of the concerned individual as well (Felix, 2016). This can be
explained on the basis of the fact that the individuals are judged as well as identified on the
basis of the actions that they perform or the kind of behaviour that they display. Furthermore,
it is seen that the machinery of personality not only lends distinctiveness to the people but at
the same time makes them unique as well (Conrad, 2016). In this regard, it needs to be said
that the personality of one individual is different from another individual and it is on the basis
of this aspect that one individual is distinguished from another one. Thus, it can be said that
personality forms an integral part of the lives as well as the identity of the human beings and
this is one of the major reasons why the notion of personality has gained such prominence in
the contemporary world.
As opined by Elliot (2016), the unprecedented significance that the notion of
personality has gained within the contemporary world in turn gets reflected in the insistence
of the individuals on the process of personality development. For example, it is seen that
because of the correlation that personality has with the aspect of the identity, individuals are
increasingly resorting to the use of the construct of personality development. Lock and
Palsson (2016) are of the viewpoint that the process of personality development helps the
individuals to effectively channelize their own thoughts, emotions, cognition and other
aspects of their lives so as to gain an effective understanding of themselves. More
importantly, the tool of personality development at the same time helps the individuals to
understand the environment or the society in which they dwell in a much more effective
manner through the development of their physical as well as mental response (Schultz &
Schultz, 2016). Recent researches have suggested that the individuals who undertake the
personality development have a far greater chance of having an effective understanding of

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themselves and also their surrounding environment than the ones who do not indulge in such
processes (Conrad, 2016).
As stated by Gottlieb (2014), the “Nature versus Nurture” is perhaps one of the oldest
debates of the world which has been going on since the dawn of the human civilization. The
central focus of this debate is to understand which factor, namely, the natural environment,
upbringing, parentage and others or the genes of an individual determine the actions as well
as the behavior of the human beings (Gray, 2017). It is pertinent to note that since the
traditional times it had been believed that the natural environment, upbringing, parentage and
other kinds of similar factors were the major ones which determined the actions and also the
behavior of the human being (Breedlove, 2017). In this regard, it needs to be said that various
authors as well as philosophers like Aristotle, Plato, Descartes, Emerson and others concur
with this viewpoint and have even gone to the extent of scholarly works on the same (Ah-
King, 2018). For example, John Locke in his famous work “Essay Concerning Human
Understanding” said, “Let us then suppose the mind to be, as we say, white paper void of all
characters, without any ideas....Whence has it all the materials of reason and knowledge? To
this I answer, in one word, from Experience” (Breedlove, 2017). Immanuel Kant also
reiterated this viewpoint in his famous work “Idea for a Universal History from a
Cosmopolitan Point of View” has stated, “Whatever concept one may hold....human actions,
like every other natural event, are determined by universal laws....single individual may be
seen from the standpoint of the human race as a whole to be a steady and progressive though
slow evolution of its original endowment” (Gray, 2017).
Wang and Kosinski (2018) are of the viewpoint that the advancements which the
human beings have made in the fields of science and technology has not only improved the
quality of their lives but at the same time helped them to understand the important aspects of
their own lives. For example, in the earlier times it the human beings held the viewpoint that