"Behavioural genetics, also referred to as behaviour genetics, is a field of scientific research that uses genetic methods to investigate the nature and origins of individual differences in behaviour."
The study of how genes and environmental factors interact to produce behavior, including the genetic basis of mental disorders.
Heritability: The proportion of variation in a trait that can be attributed to genetic factors.
Twin studies: A method that compares the similarity of identical and non-identical twins to assess the impact of genes on traits.
Adoption studies: A method that compares the similarity of adopted children to their biological and adoptive parents to assess the impact of genes and environment on traits.
Genotype-environment interaction: The interplay between genetic and environmental factors in shaping behavior.
Epigenetics: The study of how environmental factors can influence gene expression and modify the phenotype.
Gene identification: The search for specific genes associated with behaviors or psychiatric disorders.
Gene-environment correlation: The idea that genetic factors may influence the types of environments people seek out or create, and vice versa.
Biology of mental disorders: The study of biological mechanisms underlying psychiatric disorders, such as neurotransmitter systems or brain structure.
Molecular genetics: The study of molecular-level processes involved in gene expression and function.
Psychopathology: The study of abnormal behavior, cognition, and emotions that are associated with psychiatric disorders.
Quantitative genetics: The study of how genes and environment interact to determine the distribution of traits in a population.
Developmental genetics: The study of how genes and environment interact to shape behavior and psychiatric disorders over the lifespan.
Behavioral epigenetics: The study of how environmental factors and behaviors can alter gene expression and modify behavior.
Neuropsychology: The study of the relationship between behavior, the brain, and cognition.
Pharmacogenetics: The study of how genetic factors influence an individual's response to medication.
Family Studies: These studies investigate how traits and disorders run in families. Researchers examine the degree of similarity between family members in terms of their behavioral traits, genetic sequence, and environmental factors. This type of study can help identify patterns of genetic inheritance and relatedness between family members.
Twin Studies: These studies focus on the role of genetics versus the environment by comparing the similarities in behavioral traits between monozygotic (identical) twins and dizygotic (fraternal) twins. These studies help distinguish the importance of genetics and environment in the development of behavioral traits.
Adoption Studies: These studies are carried out by examining the similarities between adopted children and their biological, as well as their adoptive parents. Researchers assess the extent to which the adoptee's behavior tends to resemble the biological or the adoptive parents, and the influence of their shared environment or upbringing.
Gene-Environment Interactions: This type of study investigates how different environmental factors may influence the expression of certain genetic traits. Researchers examine the ways in which an individual's genetic makeup interacts with environmental factors like nutrition, stress, or exposure to trauma.
Molecular Genetics: These studies examine the role of specific genes or genetic mutations in the development of behavioral traits or diseases. This could involve identifying genetic markers linked with a specific psychiatric disorder, analyzing the genetic sequence of an affected individual or family, or testing the effects of genetic manipulation in animal models.
Epigenetics: Epigenetics studies changes in gene expression, but not genetic sequence, that can occur as a result of environmental or lifestyle factors. This type of research explores the mechanisms by which alterations to gene expression can influence an individual's behavioral traits, including those related to psychiatric disorders.
"The field broadly investigates the extent to which genetic and environmental factors influence individual differences."
"Behavioural genetics was founded as a scientific discipline by Francis Galton in the late 19th century."
"...only to be discredited through association with eugenics movements before and during World War II."
"In the latter half of the 20th century, the field saw renewed prominence with research on inheritance of behaviour and mental illness in humans..."
"The late 20th and early 21st centuries, technological advances in molecular genetics made it possible to measure and modify the genome directly."
"...advances in model organism research (e.g., knockout mice) and in human studies (e.g., genome-wide association studies)..."
"Findings from behavioural genetic research have broadly impacted modern understanding of the role of genetic and environmental influences on behaviour."
"Evidence that nearly all researched behaviours are under a significant degree of genetic influence..."
"...influence tends to increase as individuals develop into adulthood."
"Most researched human behaviours are influenced by a very large number of genes and the individual effects of these genes are very small."
"Environmental influences also play a strong role..."
"...they tend to make family members more different from one another, not more similar."
"...uses genetic methods to investigate the nature and origins of individual differences in behaviour."
"...typically using twin and family studies..."
"...technological advances in molecular genetics made it possible to measure and modify the genome directly."
"The field broadly investigates the extent to which genetic and environmental factors influence individual differences."
"Behavioural genetics was discredited through association with eugenics movements before and during World War II."
"...leading to new scientific discoveries."
"...they tend to make family members more different from one another, not more similar."