Hi Tracy. I would say that environment, genetics, parents, society, etc, all have an affect. It is not one or the other. But there are some influences that are greater than others. It is another complex issue which cannot be broken down into either/or categories.


>The only issue I have with the effect of the environment during childhood having an impact on the behavior of people later in life is there are many examples where children were one of many in a family and only one of them turned out to have serious behavior problems or serious morality issues. Children that demonstrate antisocial behavior persistenatly before the age of 8 tend to escalate this behavior later in life, but not all children in a family demonstrate this behavior even though they experienced the same environment.
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>I'm sure parenting plays a large role but and the overall environment a role also but I lean more towards a pre-existing condition (or lack of one) than mostly environment having a large impact. As to income, most of the poor are not criminals and many crimals are not poor. I doubt whether it is due to dysgenics either.
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>>Hi John
>>
>>While reading a post by Dragan I realized I had not responded to one part of your post to me:
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>>>But btw, have you had kids close together?
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>>Yes, they are young now - 7 and 4.
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>>> did you nurture them well?
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>>I am trying but I know that I am usually coming up short.
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>>>Did they ever pinch and hurt each other gratuitously when tired or bored?
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>>Sometimes but not "gratuitously".
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>>>Was that your fault, then, if their behavior is a result of your upbringing?
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>>When it is sometimes and when young its normal behaviour for children. If it became a lifelong obsession with hurting other people I would need to seriously consider what I may have done wrong, as well as consider other factors. I would not shun my responsibility of them and try to find a place to lay the blame.
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>>I hope that you do not really consider such behaviour in children as some sort of proof that children are "intrinsically bad". Like your example of the child that goes astray and causes their parents grief.
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>>If my children turn out genuinely bad then yes I will accept my role in that outcome. I will accept that in one way or another I have also failed to some degree. I exclude some sort of genetic aberration over which I would, of course, have little control.
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>>And I agree with Dragan's reply to this same post.