Behaviour Genetics Flashcards
Behaviour Genetics
Study of the power and limits of genetics and environmental influences on behaviour
-Nature vs. Nurture
Heredity
Genetic transfer of characteristics from parents to offspring
Environment
Non-genetic influences
-people and things around us
What was found in the Twin Study?
Twins separated at birth are more similar in personality than twins growing up in the same environment
Temperament
A person’s characteristic emotional reactivity and intensity
-based on heredity
Problems with twin studies
-Twins create the same environment
-Adoptive families are similar
Dizygotic twins
Fraternal
-separate fertilized eggs sharing a prenatal environment
Monozygotic twins
Identical
-developed from same fertilized egg (is split in two)
An easy babies temperament
Easygoing, quiet, cheerful
A difficult babies temperament
Reactive, irritable, sensitive
“Dandelion” children
-More resilient and healthy
-Can survive in even the most unstable/dangerous environments
“Orchid” children
-More sensitive and fragile
-Thrive only in stable/safe environments
Mutation
A random error in gene replication that causes change in gene structure
Natural selection
Inherited traits that enable an organism to survive and reproduce in a particular environment
“Survival of the fittest”
Chromosomes
Thread-like structures made of DNA molecules that contain genes
