Evidence

Now that you have your main idea sentence that articulates an argument, you can construct the rest of your paragraph. The first portion you add is evidence. In academic writing, we paraphrase—putting information into our own personalized voice—to effectively combine that evidence with the overall argument. This week, let’s also practice properly citing research using APA format.

In this Discussion, let’s practice identifying and paraphrasing evidence in support of the arguments we created in Week 2. Evidence is what provides the credibility to a researcher’s position, and it is what gives us a way to “back up” and support our claims.

Nature and Nurture in ODD

Nature analyses the biological factors that have resulted in this disorder. These factors are divided into genetic and neurological factors. The biological factors show that genetic predisposition influences a person, resulting in ODD. Children coming from a family of historical mental health disorders are likely to develop ODD. Neurological factors resulting in differences in the functions and structures of the brain influence an individual and lead to ODD. These brain parts interact with environmental factors, leading to ODD. Environmental factors shape and exacerbate an individual's behavior.

Nurture, conversely, refers to environmental factors such as parenting style and social influence. When a child is exposed to inconsistent or harsh discipline, exposure to violence and lack of supervision in homes contribute to ODD. Children with problems with caregivers and poor relations with others will likely show oppositional behaviors. Social factors such as social interactions and peer influence can lead to ODD (Hawes et al., 2023). Children forced to struggle and form a positive or healthy connection with others in society are likely to develop oppositional behavior.

Connection between biology and environment leading to ODD

The interplay explains how biological and environmental factors can lead to ODD. Genetic and neurological factors explain the disorder's existence; however, environmental factors shape and exacerbate the behavior. Take the example of children with a genetic predisposition. Once they are exposed to environments that reinforce oppositional behavior or when they undergo inconsistent discipline, they are likely to develop ODD.

Reference

Hawes, D. J., Gardner, F., Dadds, M. R., Frick, P. J., Kimonis, E. R., Burke, J. D., & Fairchild, G. (2023). Oppositional defiant disorder. Nature Reviews Disease Primers, 9(1), 31.