[MCP] parents vs. environment

[Bill Braun]

Hi Julie,

Are you asking (for example) if white people are hard wired differently 
than people of color? If the anatomical and physiological brain of 
whites functions differently that peoples of color? I don't know of any 
credible evidence that supports that at the cellular level. (I am 
ignoring the years of assumptions that whites were intellectually 
superior, and more current [suspect] work that attributes bell curve 
distributions to innate intelligence across races. Lindsay has done some 
work in this area, and may have more to add.)

You ought to also ask the question, in a pure white population (whatever 
that means) would you expect innate biology to be a determining factor? 
If biology IS a factor, it ought to manifest itself in all populations. 
Short of the distribution of latent disease (i.e., schizophrenia), 
biology is going to be very secondary to the effects of environment.

(We all know of of exceptional children: the exceptional child in an 
environment of great love that grows up to be a sociopath, and of the 
exceptional child in an environment of great fear that grows up to be a 
person of great human capacity and accomplishment. It is noteworthy that 
we are quite fond of using the latter example as evidence that personal 
responsibility trumps all, while we explain the former as an aberration 
that sometimes happens.)

May I assume that your use of the term "biological" was only for the 
purposes of noting that the parents come from more than one homogeneous 
group of people (what ever that means)? And that at the heart of your 
question is an issue of cultural and racial identity development, not 
biology?

I recommend to you the writings of Thandeka (pronounced tandeeka) 
"Learning to be White" and Beverly Tatum "Why Are All The Black Kids 
Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?". Both of them write artfully and 
skillfully about racial identity development. Dr. Tatum devotes a 
chapter to children in multiracial families.

Regards,

Bill Braun

Julie Seda wrote:
> I recently read an article discussing that genetics has more impact on the 
> development of a child than the environment; that although the parents are 
> part of the environment, that the child's genetic disposition and innate 
> qualities can either "fit just right" or "react negatively" with the 
> enrivonmental stimuli (be it parents, or the physical environment)...  25% 
> of the brain is developed at birth, working only from the genes.  And while 
> I know that an additional 65% of the brain is developed by age 3, I am 
> wondering which has more of an impact on the child's identity and 
> self-esteem.  For instance, if a child is of mixed race biologically, but is 
> raised by parents of only one race, will the people raising the child have 
> more of an impact on the child's development than the set of genes and 
> characteristics predetermined at birth?
>
> Thank you for your thoughts.
> Julie Seda
>
>
>   
>> From: Bill Braun <bbraun at hlthsys.com>
>> Reply-To: "Multicultural Pavilion's discussion group on equity, social 
>> justice,and multicultural education." <mcp at edchange.org>
>> To: "Multicultural Pavilion's discussion group on equity, social 
>> justice,and multicultural education." <mcp at edchange.org>
>> Subject: Re: [MCP] parents vs. environment
>> Date: Mon, 16 Apr 2007 19:10:02 -0400
>>
>> Julie, what is the difference between the two other than the level of 
>> intimacy? The parents ARE part of the environment, in some respects in 
>> early years the child's entire [perceptual] environment. Can you rephrase 
>> your question?
>>
>> Bill Braun
>>
>> Julie Seda wrote:
>>     
>>> Which has more effect on the development of a child's identity and 
>>> self-esteem, the parents or the environment?
>>>
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>> --
>> There's nothing more practical than a good theory.
>> 	-Lewin
>>
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>
>
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>> For more equity, social justice, and multicultural education resources 
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-- 
There's nothing more practical than a good theory.
	-Lewin

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