Roles of Genetics & Environment

Nature of nurture?

Is it our genetics or our environment that has the biggest impact on how we turn out?

This is a big question that people ask when they try to figure out what makes them who they are, and it also occupies our mind when we look at our children and wonder how they will grow and develop. From an article “Child Maltreatment and Brain Development: A Primer for Child Welfare Professionals” from Child Information Gateway, I wanted to pass along some helpful information. Learning about brain development can help you understand more about the roles both genetics and the environment play in a child's development. Genetics will play a role in their development, but experiences and interactions with other people impact how our genes are expressed. For better or worse, positive and negative experiences influence brain development. Positive brain development occurs when our children understand that they can rely on us from an early age; their cries and gestures bring appropriate responses from caregivers. Conversely, when children live in a chaotic, threatening world where caregivers respond with abuse or chronically provide no response, their brains may become overly alert for danger or not fully develop. These neural pathways that are developed and strengthened under negative conditions prepare children to cope in that negative environment, and their ability to respond to nurturing and kindness may be impaired. As mentioned, this development starts early and we certainly want to do our best to help our children get off to a good start. If we have struggled early, we can still make up lost time by educating ourselves about child development, particularly with those who have been successful parents. A “growth mindset” recognizes we all grow at different rates throughout life. You are the key to helping with development.