The "enduring mission" of Zing-Yang Kuo to eliminate the nature-nurture dichotomy in psychology

Abstract

This paper reviews the arguments against the instinct concept and the nature-nurture dichotomy put forward by Zing-Yang Kuo (1898-1970) during the 1920s. Kuo insisted that nativism represented a kind of finished psychology, and that the labels of nature and nurture reflected and promoted one's ignorance of the development of a trait. Also discussed are his lesser known lines of research on the origins of the so-called rat-killing instinct in cats and his analysis on the determinants of animal fighting. His research illustrated the shortcomings of a nature-nurture framework and highlighted the necessity of his developmentally grounded alternative to studying behavior. Reasons for why Kuo's work has been marginalized in modern histories of psychology are also discussed.