Untangling

Nature and
Nurture
Behavior Genetics: the study
of the interaction of genes
and environment on behavior
Make your own Jim and
Jim story.

Jim and Jim

(sometimes)
 Heritability
• The percentage of trait variation in a
group that can be attributed to
genetic differences
• Depends on the population
How heritable is that trait?
On a scale of 0-100% where 0% means no genetic influence
and 100% indicates complete genetic determinism.

Creativity
Extraversion
Autism
Depression
Sleep quality
TV viewing
Religious beliefs
Religious conservatism
Divorce
Height
 Heritability
Sara is very
Suzy is timid
outgoing
and
and
non-conformi
agreeable
ng

If this pair of IDENTICAL twins is my population,

what percent of the personality differences is
attributable to genetic differences between them?

The heritability is 0%.

 Heritability
Joe and Hank are
not related. At
birth, both were
placed in identical
environments that
were maintained
identical until they
were 10 years old.

At 10, Joe is At 10, Hank is

outgoing and withdrawn and
friendly. shy.
In this (very small) population, what is the heritability of
their personality traits? In other words, what percentage of
the difference is attributable to genes?
100%
 How heritable is that trait?
Trait Population Heritability
Creativity adolescents 25%
Extraversion adults 30-50%
Autism general 90-95%
Depression general 40-55%
Sleep quality general 35%
TV viewing 3-5 year olds 10-45%
Religious beliefs general 0%
Religious conservatism women 40%
Divorce general 55%
Height women 92%
http://www.peele.net/lib/genes.html The Stanton Peele Addiction Website
 Nature vs. Nurture
“Nature” = the role
that genes have on a
trait
“Nurture” = the role
that life experience
has on a trait.
Sometimes, it is
surprising.
Epigenetics
• Often nature and nurture
interact
• Overkalix study
– Major famine in 1836; great
records
– Undernourished Grandpas
(during puberty) → grandsons
had less heart disease and
diabetes; increased lifespan (32
year avg!)
– Undernourished Grandmas
(during gestation) -->
grand-daughters had shortened
lifespan
Agouti mice
Environmental factors
can alter the expression
of genes. These changes
are called “epigenetic
tags”.
 Twin Studies
Identical Twins v. Fraternal Twins

Same genes, Different genes,

Same environment Same environment

Therefore, greater differences between the two groups indicate

greater heritability (“Nature”). The trait might appear to have a large
genetic component.
Twin Studies
 Twin Studies
Identical Twins Reared Together v. Identical Twins Reared Apart

Same genes, Same genes,

Same environment Different environment

Greater difference between these two groups indicates greater role of

the environment (“nurture”).
Twin Studies
 Adoption Studies
Is child more
like adoptive
parents… …or biological
parents?
Adoptive Parents - Nurture
Biological Parents - Nature
 Adoption Studies

• Note: Two related siblings that grow up in the same family are
strikingly different in personality (as I’m sure many of you can
attest to).
 None of these methods is
perfect…
Identical Twins v. Fraternal Twins

Same genes, Different genes,

Same environment Same environment

1)Do fraternal twins really have equally similar environments to identical twins?
Differences in looks or inborn temperament may cause people to treat you
differently.
2)Identical twins may share a placenta but fraternal twins do not. Thus, we can’t
eliminate prenatal environments as the cause of the differences between the two
groups.
 None of these methods is
perfect…
Identical Twins Reared Together v. Identical Twins Reared Apart

Same genes, Same genes,

Same environment Different environment

1) Adoption agencies try to place twins in similar families

so the variation in environment may be small, and
2) There is a very limited sample of identical twins raised
apart. Is it valid to draw conclusions from this sample?
Heritability