Almost three decades ago, before it was popular, my father made waves publicly contending that most human behavior—that is, most of who we are—is genetically inherited. That, ahead of the idea that we’re merely products of our nurture.
The idea of a “blank slate” or tabula rasa formally originated from John Locke's 17th century philosophy. He held the theory that at birth the (human) mind is a blank slate without rules for processing data, and that data is added and rules for processing are formed solely by one's sensory experiences. Conversely the doctrine of Innatism holds that the mind is born already in possession of certain knowledge, which is arguably the modern tilt in thinking. To that I reply, “Knowledge? Or instinct? Or …how about inclination toward preset behavior?” From birth onward, I contend hereditary behavior is on full display! Though distinctions become more pronounced as the months ensue, granted. But they are discernible even then! It’s not so much that we’re born with preset or preexisting knowledge, per se, but we’re endowed with preset preferred neural pathways. That’s what BT explains, and what we can observe. As a father of 5 VERY different children, I can tell first-hand this is the case! As parents, we can raise our children the same way, in the same house, eating the same food …and yet they’ll still be as different as fire and ice! (Not in every case, granted.) We've encountered families with astounding diversity, and others that were more homogeneous. I recall one in particular (from Massachusetts) with 9 children--all of which had differing types! More common though, my wife, Danielle, is one of eight children in her family, and four share the same BT. Undoubtedly there are dominant traits (and dominant BTs) at work in families with less variety. Today, the biological sciences affirm and overwhelmingly support the kind of Innatism that my father suspected all those years ago. Namely, that much of who we are (that is, how we think and move) is determined before birth via our genetic makeup. Nowadays it’s more of a question of how much and to what end? How much say do we really have in how we think and behave? (And that’s not to ignore epigenetics, which in simple terms is a meaningful force for change via the combination of nature and nurture.) Without a doubt, this discussion—both scientific and philosophical—is a fun and lively one! “So are Brain Types genetic?” you ask? You bet they are! “But don’t we change? Don’t our personalities change over time?” you ask. Again, the answer is “yes.” Both are true. We’re born with a set of unchangeables (BT), along with changeables (personality/persona). Our inborn framework or blueprint is inherited from our forebears, just as other dominant and recessive genetic traits (hair & eye color, height, etc.). And yet as those of us over 40 may attest, our personality often does change—resulting from environmental variations, new-found inspirations, shifts in our worldview, self-esteem, hormonal changes (with age), depression, or trauma—just to name a few.
BT’s genetic origin is most readily observable via our phenotype, or the outward (physical) manifestation of our genotype. It’s our physicality—from facial expressions, emotions conveyed in our eyes, control of our limbs, the curl of our hair, and to even the way we walk that lends primary support to the foundation that BT is genetically inherited! For now, let’s jump to an example that persons of similar BT often look alike (to varying degrees, of course)! Exhibit A – my 2-yr. old daughter, Kiri. Exhibit B – my wife (ageless), Danielle. Exhibit C - Grandma Kay (Danielle's grandmother, now deceased). On the FIRST DAY Kiri was born, crazy as it sounds, my wife and I had the strong inclination
and voiced our collective opinion that externally she was “a miniature version of Danielle” so far as her features and demeanor was concerned. And, she even resembled her grandmother, Kay, also an F_IL (#7 FEIL to be precise). Therefore, having gone down this road before we surmised she likely shared her BT, or close to it. 2+ years have since passed and Kiri has well-demonstrated that she does in fact share BT with her mother—a 15 (FCIL). So both are 15s (nicknamed “the CEO”), and their uncannily-similar facial mannerisms, habits, and (I)nanimate (L)eft-brained “take charge” tendencies have given our family a lot of good laughs! How so? Danielle relates to how:
Kiri loves to organize her toys, books, everyone’s shoes, and anything else she can find.
Kiri loves to unpack boxes (Amazon, Vitacost, etc.) and neatly arrange their contents.
Kiri is a riot at bedtime—the LITTLEST incongruities frustrate her to no end! She will yell, scream, or dramatically act like she’s dying (which is no small distress to us as parents!) whenever her left-brain dominant world isn’t in near-perfect order. Time and time again, we’ll enter her bedroom and discover that her pillow or linens aren’t just right or straight!
It’s remarkable how 15s—Kiri and Danielle (from yesteryear)—can be so bound and determined to bring order and stay focused! We’re talking OCD with regard to routine and order. In conclusion, having met so many families (like ours) over the years, we know full well there is no shortage of side-splitting stories like ours, which humorously and adequately demonstrate hereditary behavior consistent with inborn Brain Type.
And just for yuks, here's one more example of how the "phenotypic connection" can visually come to life with persons of like BT. Enter in the NBA's Tim Duncan (left) along with a fellow (right) with whom I play pickup basketball, here locally. One black, one white, sharing a like #2 BT along with similar facial characteristics and emotion in the eyes. And yes, BT is a powerful argument against racism, for we have identified all 16 of the brain types present within both the African American and European-Caucasian American communities. Don't doubt it!
Comments