Personality: Is It a Product of Nature, Nurture, And/or Personal Choice?

Parish, Thomas S., Barness, Ryan, Education

It is certainly true that everyone seems to have a personality, but why is that so? This paper will seek to examine some of the available evidence in order to answer this particular question.

One possible explanation is that personality has a gene linked on a chromosome. For instance, on chromosome 11 there lies a gene called the D4DR gene. It provides the genetic programming for the development of a protein called "dopamine." This protein is a neuro-transmitter that is released from a pre-synaptic axon terminal of a nerve cell. This neurotransmitter, i.e., dopamine, will cross a synapse to dopamine receptors located on the post-synaptic dendrite of another neuron. Then the action potential, i.e., "the message," can be sent to the next nerve cell, so on …

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Publication information: Article title: Personality: Is It a Product of Nature, Nurture, And/or Personal Choice?. Contributors: Parish, Thomas S. - Author, Barness, Ryan - Author. Journal title: Education. Volume: 130. Issue: 1 Publication date: Fall 2009. Page number: 151+. © 1999 Project Innovation. COPYRIGHT 2009 Gale Group.

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