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Is Intelligence Nature Or Nurture Essay

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One important component of a person 's identity is Intelligence. According to Dan Hurley, Intelligence is how we use and learn from experiences to gain insight into life, as well as making sense of information we are given, in a world where media can often influence or change information. (Hurley) According to this definition intelligence is not how “smart” we are, or how good at solving common problems, but more about how we make sense of things and look at things from different perspectives. The origin of Intelligence has been widely debated. Some argue that genetics can affect a person’s intelligence (nature), while others argue that the environment we are raised and educated in has a more significant affect (nurture). While it is likely that both of these factors play a crucial role in a person’s intelligence , nurture is more significant. A great deal of research has been conducted that supports …show more content…

Their study helps to illustrate this argument. Scientists tested the IQ of siblings raised by their biological parents compared to siblings raised by more educated adoptive parents. Researchers found that the IQ of the siblings raised by their, often less educated biological parents, was approximately 4.4 points lower than of those raised by adoptive parents. The evidence outlined above offers valid support for the nurture argument but, once again, it is not without flaws. One limitation is that only identical twins share the exact same genes. Since this study didn’t only record data from identical twins but also fraternal twins as well as regular siblings, the genes can vary slightly. Therefore, the difference the adoptive parents environment made could not be recorded

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