Importance of Research with Adopted Twins in Assisting the Understating of Interactions between Nature and Nurture

            When it comes to figuring out how personalities evolve, many researchers turn to twin studies to discover how relative elements like nature (genes) and nurture (environment) influence or define how behavior and traits are formed. The case revolves around the question of what motivates us to be who we are. Twins are used in the traditional method of analyzing nature vs. nurture. Because identical twins have the same genetic code, comparing their health can reveal whether hereditary or environmental variables play a greater influence in their well-being Honeycutt (2019). Twins provide a window into shared family similarities, allowing scientists to determine how much of the similarity is due to genes and how much is due to common environment. When it comes to unraveling the complexity of human behavior, identical twins reveal that while one individual may share the same physical traits as another, many other contributing elements are in play (Powledge, 2011). This is why some researchers look into twins who have been adopted by different families. Adoption studies allow scientists to see how two identical people raised in different contexts affect one other. Will twins be as studious as their moms or as extroverted as their fathers just because they share the same DNA? Are we born with a blank slate that is simply shaped by our surroundings, or do our genes determine the type of person we will become?