In the nature vs nurture debate I land more on the nurture side. While both the environment and biology have an influence, the majority of behavior/actions is due to learning through life’s experiences. Part of the definition of socialization is that no individual is immune from the reactions of others around them, which influences and modifies their behavior at all phases of the life course. Some things attributed to nature can be greatly affected by socialization and choice. So while biology may increase the likelihood that you will behave in a certain way it is the socialization (the shaping and molding from learning as you mature) that makes people do things. Your socialization determines how you act, how you perceive things and the changes you make in your behavior as you develop your identity.

We can look at the behavior differences of children who attend preschool (enter a school setting at age 3) versus those who do not (begin school experience with kindergarten). The child who is taught at an early age that normal school behavior is to sit in their chair and listen to the teacher will put that in to practice. A child who has not had that exposure to the school environment will not know how to act in that environment and can only bring their current experience in to that environment. You can also look at self confidence related to body issues with young girls. Their obsession over not good enough and constant striving for something more ideal is shaped by mass media and the constant barrage of “perfect” bodies and a magazines definition of what is beautiful.

The behavior of the guards and prisoners in Stanford Prison Experiment, on a very basic level, could be used as an example of learned behavior. The subjects were randomly selected to be guards or prisoners. All subjects knew how to play both roles. Their behavior presented in these roles showed how they thought a guard should act or how a prisoner should act. This behavior was learned through socialization shaped by the mass media.