Chapter 3- Genetics Flashcards
Sexual strategy theory
Mating strategies and preferences reflect inherited tendencies, shaped over time in response to different types of adaptive problems men and women face.
Five Factor Model
Personality trait theory
40-50% of personality variations among people are due to genotype differences.
Social structure theory
Men and women display different mating preferences not because nature impels them to do so but because society guides them into different social roles.
Evolutionary personality theory
Looks for the origin of presumably universal personality traits in the adaptive demands of our species’ evolutionary history.
Strategic pluralism
The idea that multiple behavioral strategies might be adaptive I’m certain environments and would therefore be maintained through natural selection
genotype
the genetic makeup of the individual
phenotype
the individual’s observable characteristics
chromosome
a double stranded molecule of DNA
codon
a triplet of nucleotides , 64 of which make up genetic code
genes
biological units of heredity
polygenetic transmission
when a number of gene pairs combine their influences to create a single phenotypic trait
Human Genome Project
results:
human genome consists of less genes than previously estimated.
animal used to study human brain fuction
mouse- 99% identical brain
Behavioural Genetics
how heredity and environmental factors influence psychological characteristics
Adoption study
adopted children more similar to their biological parents than their adopted ones.
twin study
identical twins reared together are more similar than twins reared apart . therefore environment has some influence.
identical twins more similar than fraternal twins even if reared apart.
heritability coefficient
estimates the extent to which the differences in a specific phenotypic characteristic within a group of people is due to their differing genes
Fixed action pattern
unlearned response that is automatically triggered by a particular stimulus.
Shared environment
the people who experience many common features
unshared environment
experiences that are unique to us
reaction range
the range of possibilities that the genetic code allows
evocative influence
a child’s genetically influenced behaviours may evoke certain responses from others.
epigenetics
the study of changes in gene expression due to environmental factors independent of the DNA
Biologically based mechanisms
enable us to perceive, behave, feel and think in certain ways.
