genotype and phenotype

Question 1

biological approach

Answer 1

This approach focuses on biological explanations of human behaviour. The biological approach believes that in order to understand human behaviour, we must look at biological structures and processes within the body. It suggests that everything psychological is at first biological.

Question 2

genotype

Answer 2

An individual’s genetic makeup, which occurs at conception and provides the genetic code for how that individual will develop. This dictates characteristics such as eye colour and hair colour. Each individual (apart from monozygotic twins) has a unique genotype.

Question 3

phenotype

Answer 3

The product of what happens when the genotype interacts with the environment.
For example, with the physical characteristic of height the genotype dictates the maximum height an individual can reach, but environmental factors such as nutrition will affect how likely the person is to achieve their potential. The same can be true for psychological characteristics such as mental health disorders. There may be an inherited genetic predisposition to the illness, but environmental triggers such as stress may affect whether the genes are expressed.