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PubMed2003

Behavioral genetics: scientific and social acceptance.

Human behavioral genetics can be broadly defined as the attempt to characterize and define the genetic or hereditary basis for human behavior. Examination of the history of these scientific enterprises reveals episodes of controversy, and an apparent distinction between scientific and social acceptance of the genetic nature of such complex behaviors. This essay will review the history and methodology of behavioral genetics research, including a more detailed look at case histories involving behavioral genetic research for aggressive behavior and alcoholism. It includes a discussion of the scientific versus social qualities of the acceptance of behavioral genetics research, as well as the development of a general model for scientific acceptance involving the researchers, the scientific literature, the scientific peer group, the mainstream media, and the public at large. From this model follows a discussion of the means and complications by which behavioral genetics research may be accepted by society, and an analysis of how future studies might be conducted.

Alcoholism↗
PubMed2005

Behavioral genetics of personality.

Behavioral genetic personality research has moved from findings of genetic and environmental effects to new areas. Personality disorders have been included, children and adolescents studied, gender effects evaluated, and the importance of rater sources investigated. Recently, multivariate methods have been applied to disentangle the genetic and environmental latent structure, and investigate covariance in mental disorders. Perhaps the most exciting recent developments are the investigations of situation variables, the studies of how genotypes influence how individuals select themselves into situations and other form of gene-environment correlations, and how genotype moderates the effect of situations and circumstances on behavior (gene-environment interaction). In the future, we will learn how personality, partly determined by heredity, influences our entire lives. We will better understand what we experience, how we interpret the experiences and how to react to them effectively. We will learn how our mental lives develop while we interact with the environment, and we will broaden our understanding of which genes are coding for mental health and mental disorders.

Environment↗
PubMed1998

Short note: Behavioral genetic research: achievements and concerns.

Behavioral genetic research is advancing rapidly. This can result in the improvement in diagnosis and treatment of psychiatric disorders. However, humankind may not be able to use reasonably the results of research into the genetic basis of behavior, and genetic discoveries may lead to the violation of human rights. The author calls for international cooperation in order to make sure that the results of genetic research will be used for the sake of people.

Ethics, Medical↗
PubMed2003

Behavior genetics of canine aggression: behavioral phenotyping of golden retrievers by means of an aggression test.

Molecular genetic analysis of complex traits such as aggression strongly depends on careful phenotyping of individuals. When studying canine aggression, the information provided by the owners of the dogs is often not detailed and reliable enough for this purpose. Therefore we subjected 83 golden retrievers, both aggressive and nonaggressive individuals, to a behavioral test. These tests were analyzed with help of an ethogram, resulting in a behavioral profile for each of the dogs. In this article three methods are described of converting these profiles into a measure of behavioral phenotype. The usefulness of the methods is evaluated by comparing the test results with information provided by owners. Moreover, the hypothesis underlying all these methods, that a lowered threshold for aggressive behavior in general is present in the dogs, is also evaluated. Future research will need to reveal whether the methods meet the high standards that are necessary for studying complex traits.

Aggression↗
PubMed1991

The behavioral genetics of colony defense in honeybees: genetic variability for guarding behavior.

Guard honeybees stand at the entrance of colonies and facilitate the exclusion of nonnestmates from the colony. In this study, we examined the hypothesis that genetic variability among individuals in colonies might explain variability in guarding activity. To do this, we cross-fostered honey bees between colonies with high-defensive responses and colonies with low-defensive responses in alarm pheromone tests. Individuals from high-defensive colonies were more likely to guard in their own colonies (controls) than cross-fostered bees from low-defensive colonies. Cross-fostered high-defensive bees also were more like to guard in low-defense colonies. These results support the hypothesis that interindividual differences in guarding behavior are at least partially under genetic control. A positive correlation between number of guards and response to alarm pheromone demonstrates a link between behaviorally separated components of the overall defensive response.

Agonistic Behavior↗
PubMed2005

Are genetically informed designs genetically informative? Comment on McGue, Elkins, Walden, and Iacono (2005) and quantitative behavioral genetics.

M. McGue, I. Elkins, B. Walden, and W. G. Iacono presented the findings from a twin study examining the relative contributions of genetic and environmental factors to the developmental trajectories of parent-adolescent relationships. From a behavioral genetics perspective, this study is well conceptualized, is well implemented, and raises some interesting developmental questions. Yet, the classic twin methodology and heritability estimates obfuscate the dynamic gene-ecology transactions that underlie these social developmental trajectories. There is a growing divide between the findings of quantitative behavioral genetics, with its foundational estimate of a statistical genetic influence, and developmental molecular genetics. This comment provides a brief overview of this divide and its implications for the findings of McGue et al. as well as quantitative behavioral genetics more broadly.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

Behavioral genetics and evolutionary psychology: unified perspective on personality research.

Behavioral geneticists and evolutionary psychologists have generally pursued human behavioral analyses with little theoretical or methodological exchange. However, significant benefits might accrue from increased communication between these disciplines. The primary goals of this article are (1) to identify meaningful junctures between behavioral genetics and evolutionary psychology, (2) to describe behavioral genetic research designs and their applications to evolutionary analyses, and (3) to reassess current personality research in light of behavioral genetic and evolutionary concepts and techniques. The five-factor model of personality is conceptualized as subsuming variation in normative species-typical systems with adaptive functions in the human environment of evolutionary adaptation. Considered as universal evolved mechanisms, personality systems are often seen in dynamic conflict within individuals and as highly compartmentalized in their functioning between settings. However, genetically influenced individual differences in personality may also be understood within an evolutionary framework. Studies of the heritability of personality traits indicate broad-sense heritabilities in the 0.40-0.50 range with evidence of substantial nonadditive genetic variation and nonshared environmental influences. Evidence indicates that evolutionary theory (e.g., inclusive fitness theory) predicts patterns of social interaction (e.g., cooperation and bereavement) in relatives. Furthermore, variation in personality may constitute a range of viable strategies matching the opportunities available in the complex niche environment of human societies. Within this wide range of viable strategies, personality variation functions as a resource environment for individuals in the sense that personality variation is evaluated according to the interests of the evaluator (e.g., friendships, coalitions, or mate choice).

Biological Evolution↗
PubMed2005

Behavioral genetics and child temperament.

Most temperament theories presume a biological basis to those behavioral tendencies thought to be temperamental in origin. Behavioral genetic methods can be used to test this assumption. Twin and adoption studies suggest that individual differences in infant and child temperament are genetically influenced. However, behavioral genetics has much more to offer to the study of temperament than simple heritability estimates. The present paper describes some recent findings from behavioral genetics research in temperament that go well beyond the basic nature-nurture question. These findings include the importance of nonshared environmental influences on temperament, genetic continuity and environmental change during development, links between temperament and behavior problems, and harnessing the power of molecular genetics to identify specific genes responsible for genetic influence on early temperament.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

The limits of genetic influence: a behavior-genetic analysis of infant-caregiver relationship quality and temperament.

This report presents data on 9-month-old twin pairs (n(MZ)=172; n(DZ)=333) from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, demonstrating that the role of genetic variation among infants is trivial and the shared and nonshared environment is substantial in accounting for the observed quality of infant-caregiver relationships. In contrast, maternal reports of temperament were best accounted for by genetic variation and nonshared environmental influences. Interestingly, however, shared environmental effects were documented for observations of temperament. Consistent with a growing database, the current study calls into question the ubiquity of heritability effects in all domains of psychological inquiry. It also bolsters consensus in the field of developmental psychology that shared environmental effects are not as elusive as had once been thought.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

Behavior genetics and eating disorders.

Behavior genetics is concerned with the genetic and environmental influences on individual differences in the vulnerability to eating disorders. We should be skeptical about simple genetic explanations for disorders whose development, maintenance, and possible remission involve the interaction of individual behaviors and environmental circumstances. Twin, family, and adoption studies can help to delineate which phenotypes are most heritable, and which are most responsive to family circumstances or individual environments. Subsequent searches for individual genetic and environmental risk factors can be guided by these results. Although there is consistent evidence of genetic factors influencing vulnerability to eating disorders, the details are far from clear, and additional studies will be useful. The further development of dimensional indices of vulnerability will improve population-based and developmental genetic research, as well as facilitating the search for individual genes.

Feeding and Eating Disorders↗
PubMed1993

Behavior genetic differences within and between defined human populations.

The small populations of the Caucasus offer a unique opportunity to consider concepts, such as heritability, which are often considered properties of a trait but which are really properties of a population. A comprehensive strategy is outlined for studying intra- and interpopulation genetic structure across a wide range of traits and environments. A three-way association is demonstrated between 12 of 16 psychophysiological traits, attitude, and the t allele for PTC sensitivity. Differences between populations and traits are evaluated in theoretical terms for morphological, physiological, and psychological measures. While decreases in performance with inbreeding are often predicted, in these small, isolated populations the effects are minimal.

Adolescent↗