How do innate talent and acquired skill play into expertise?

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

A richly elaborated knowledge base is crucial to expertise in a specific area or domain, but not all differences in performance can be explained in terms of knowledge level alone. There is considerable debate as to whether differences between novices and experts and among different experts themselves are due either to innate talent or to the quantity and quality of practice in a domain. Many espouse the "practice makes perfect" point of view. The practice should be deliberate, or focused. It should emphasize acquisition of new skills and applications rather than mindless repetition of what the developing expert already knows how to do. Ericsson argues that when people invest thousands of hours into acquiring a skill, their skills actually may change so that novice or intermediate performers cannot even be validly compared with experts.

Some, however, take an alternative approach. This approach acknowledges the importance of practice in building a knowledge and skill base. It also underscores the importance of something like talent. Studies have shown that factors, like starting age, personality traits like "grit" (persistence when trying to accomplish goals), passion, and general intelligence may play a role in the acquisition of expert skills.