An ancient question about nature and environment seems to have received new answers thanks to cross-cultural psychology and genetics. Researchers say that our identity is a combination of genetic inheritance and cultural influences. Ziada Ayorech, a psychiatric geneticist at the University of Oslo, shows that life experiences in different places shape the way we think and act, even when our DNA remains the same.
“The environment influences our traits, how we relate to others, and the choices we make,” she says. Twin studies show that about 50% of different traits are related to genetics, while the rest is influenced by culture, upbringing, and environment. For example, IQ has a heritability of over 50%, but personality traits are more influenced by the environment. Cross-cultural psychology shows that people in the West tend to be more individualistic, while in Asia, self-perception is more tied to social roles. In one study, Chinese children raised in England were more independent than children in Taiwan, where the culture values obedience to parents.
Philosophers add that the question of “self” is also philosophical: some think that our identity is unchanging, others that our form of being is related to the environment. For those who have lived in different cultures, it seems that the social environment plays a key role. Although we cannot know exactly who we would be in another place, signs of change are evident.