Abstract
Although genetic models were in the ascendance within psychology during the early 20th century, the association of early behavioral genetic research with the eugenics movement served to discredit the field in the eyes of many. Twin and adoption studies throughout the latter half of the 20th century helped to reestablish the importance of behavioral genetic models and set the stage for the current focus of the field on developing and testing models of gene-environment interplay. Research findings on developmental behavioral genetic research, gene-environment interaction, and the use of behavioral genetic models to test causal hypotheses are used to highlight the contributions of contemporary behavioral genetic research to psychological research. It is argued that future efforts to investigate models of gene-environment interplay will depend heavily on the field’s ability to identify the specific genetic variants that contribute to individual differences in behavior. The anticipated yield from genome-wide association studies gives much reason to be optimistic about the future vitality of behavior genetics.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Ando J, Nonaka K, Ozaki K, Sato N, Fujisawa KK, Suzuki K et al (2006) The Tokyo Twin Cohort Project: overview and initial findings. Twin Res Hum Genet 9(6):817–826
Bergen SE, Gardner CO, Kendler KS (2007) Age-related changes in heritability of behavioral phenotypes over adolescence and young adulthood: a meta-analysis. Twin Res Hum Genet 10(3):423–433
Bierut LJ, Madden PAF, Breslau N, Johnson EO, Hatsukami D, Pomerleau OF et al (2007) Novel genes identified in a high-density genome wide association study for nicotine dependence. Hum Mol Genet 16(1):24–35
Blum K, Noble EP, Sheridan PJ, Montgomery A, Ritchie T, Jagadeeswaran P et al (1990) Allelic association of human dopamine D2 receptor gene in alcoholism. JAMA 263(15):2055–2060
Bouchard TJ, McGue M (1981) Familial studies of intelligence: a review. Science 212(4498):1055–1059
Bouchard TJ, Lykken DT, McGue M, Segal N, Tellegen A (1990) Sources of human psychological differences: The Minnesota Study of Twins Reared Apart. Science 250:223–228
Burmeister M, McInnis MG, Zollner S (2008) Psychiatric genetics: progress amid controversy. Nat Rev Genet 9(7):527–540
Busjahn A, Hur YM (2006) Twin registries: an ongoing success story. Twin Res Hum Genet 9(6):705
Caspi A, McClay J, Moffitt TE, Mill J, Martin J, Craig IW et al (2002) Role of genotype in the cycle of violence in maltreated children. Science 297:851–854
Caspi A, Sugden K, Moffitt TE, Taylor A, Craig I, Harrington HL et al (2003) Influence of life stress on depression: moderation by polymorphism in the 5-HTT gene. Science 301:386–389
Chipuer HM, Rovine MJ, Plomin R (1990) Lisrel modeling: genetic and environmental influences on IQ revisited. Intelligence 14(1):11–29
Cloninger CR, Bohman M, Sigvardsson S (1981) Inheritance of alcohol abuse. Cross-fostering analysis of adopted men. Arch Gen Psychiatry 38(8):861–868
Collins LM, Murphy SA, Bierman KL (2004) A conceptual framework for adaptive preventive interventions. Prev Sci 5(3):185–196
Craddock N, O’Donovan MC, Owen MJ (2008) Genome-wide association studies in psychiatry: lessons from early studies of non-psychiatric and psychiatric phenotypes. Mol Psychiatry 13(7):649–653
Currier D, Mann MJ, Oquendo MA, Galfalvy H, Mann JJ (2006) Sex differences in the familial transmission of mood disorders. J Affect Disord 95(1–3):51–60
Devlin B, Daniels M, Roeder K (1997) The heritability of IQ. Nature 388(6641):468–471
Dick DM, Jones K, Saccone N, Hinrichs A, Wang JC, Goate A et al (2006) Endophenotypes successfully lead to gene identification: results from the collaborative study on the genetics of alcoholism. Behav Genet 36(1):112–126
Dierker LC, Avenevoli S, Goldberg A, Glantz M (2004) Defining subgroups of adolescents at risk for experimental and regular smoking. Prev Sci 5(3):169–183
Eaves L, Martin N, Heath A, Schieken R, Meyer J, Silberg J et al (1997) Age changes in the causes of individual differences in conservatism. Behav Genet 27:121–124
Faraone SV, Biederman J (1997) Familial transmission of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and mood disorders. Am J Med Genet 74(6):569
Feldman MW, Lewontin RC (1975) The heritability hang-up. Science 190(4220):1163–1168
Finkel D, McGue M (1997) Sex differences and nonadditivity in heritability of the Multidimensional Personality Questionnaire scales. J Pers Soc Psychol 72:929–938
Flint J, Munafo MR (2007) The endophenotype concept in psychiatric genetics. Psychol Med 37(2):163–180
Freedman DA (2006) Statistical models for causation—what inferential leverage do they provide? Eval Rev 30(6):691–713
Fromm-Reichmann F (1948) Notes on the development of treatment of schizophrenia by psychoanalytic psychotherapy. Psychiatry 11:263–273
Galton F (1865) Heredity talent and character. II. Macmillan’s Mag 12:318–327
Galton F (1869) Hereditary genius: an inquiry into its laws and consequences. MacMillan, London
Galton F (1876) The history of twins, as a criterion for the relative powers of nature and nurture. J Anthropol Inst 5:391–406
Galton F (1883) Inquiries into human faculty and its development. Macmillan, London
Gelernter J, O’Malley S, Risch N, Kranzler HR, Krystal J, Merikangas K et al (1991) No association between an allele at the D2 dopamine receptor gene (DRD2) and alcoholism [see comments]. JAMA 266(13):1801–1807
Gillham NW (2001) A life of Sir Francis Galton: from African exploration to the birth of eugenics. Oxford University Press, Oxford
Goddard HH (1920) Human efficiency and levels of intelligence. Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ
Golub AL, Johnson BD (1998) Alcohol is not the gateway to hard drug abuse. J Drug Issues 28(4):971–984
Goring HHH, Terwilliger JD, Blangero J (2001) Large upward bias in estimation of locus-specific effects from genomewide scans. Am J Hum Genet 69(6):1357–1369
Gottesman II, Gould TD (2003) The endophenotype concept in psychiatry: etymology and strategic intentions. Am J Psychiatry 160(4):636–645
Gottesman II, Shields J (1972) Schizophrenia and genetics: a twin study vantage point. Academic Press, New York
Harada S, Agarwal DP, Goedde HW, Tagaki S, Ishikawa B (1982) Possible protective role against alcoholism for aldehyde dehydrogenase isozyme deficiency in Japan [letter]. Lancet 2(8302):827
Harden KP, Turkheimer E, Loehlin JC (2007) Genotype by environment interaction in adolescents’ cognitive aptitude. Behav Genet 37(2):273–283
Harris JR (1998) The nurture assumption: why children turn out the way they do. Bloomsbury, London
He MG, Ge J, Zheng YF, Huang WY, Zeng JW (2006) The Guangzhou Twin Project. Twin Res Hum Genet 9(6):753–757
Heston LL (1966) Psychiatric disorders in foster home reared children of schizophrenic mothers. Br J Psychiatry 112:819–825
Hicks BM, Krueger RF, Iacono WG, McGue M, Patrick CJ (2004) Externalizing disorders account for the genetic and environmental overlap between nicotine dependence and major depression. Arch Gen Psychiatry 61:922–928
Hicks BM, South SC, DiRago AC, Iacono WG, McGue M (2008) Environmental adversity increases genetic risk for externalizing disorders
Higuchi S, Matsushita S, Murayama M, Tagaki S, Hayashida M (1995) Alcohol and alcohol dehydrogenase polymorphisms and the risk of alcoholism. Am J Psychiatry 152:1219–1221
Hirschhorn JN, Lohmueller K, Byrne E, Hirschhorn K (2002) A comprehensive review of genetic association studies. Genet Med 4:45–61
Hur YM, Shin JS, Jeong HU, Han JY (2006) The South Korean Twin Registry. Twin Res Hum Genet 9(6):838–843
Iacono WG, McGue M, Krueger RF (2007). Minnesota Center for Twin and Family Research. Twin Res Hum Genet (in press)
Iles MM (2008). What can genome-wide association studies tell us about the genetics of common disease? Plos Genet 4(2)
Ioannidis JP, Ntzani EE, Trikalinos TA, Contopoulos-Ioannidis DG (2001) Replication validity of genetic association studies. Nat Genet 29:306–309
Irons DE, McGue M, Iacono WG, Oetting WS (2007) Mendelian randomization: a novel test of the gateway hypothesis. Dev Psychopathol 19:1181–1195
Jackson C, Henriksen L (1997) Do as I say: parent smoking, antismoking socialization, and smoking onset among children. Addict Behav 22(1):107–114
Kandel DB (2002) Stages and pathways of drug involvement: examining the gateway hypothesis. Cambridge University Press, New York
Kandel DB, Yamaguchi K, Chen K (1992) Stages of progression in drug involvement from adolescence to adulthood: further evidence for the gateway theory. J Stud Alcohol 53:447–457
Kaprio J (2006) Twin studies in Finland 2006. Twin Res Hum Genet 9(6):772–777
Kendler KS, Jacobson KC, Gardner CO, Gillespie N, Aggen SA, Prescott CA (2007) Creating a social world—a developmental twin study of peer-group deviance. Arch Gen Psychiatry 64(8):958–965
Keyes MA, Iacono WG, McGue M (2007) Early onset problem behavior, young adult psychopathology, and contextual risk. Twin Res Hum Genet 10(1):45–53
Keyes M, Legrand LN, Iacono WG, McGue M (2008). Parent smoking and adolescent problem behavior: an adoption study of general and specific effects. Am J Psychiatry (in press)
Kidd KK (1993) Associations of disease with genetic markers; deja vu all-over again. Am J Med Genet (Neuropsychaitric Genet) 48:71–73
Koenig LB, McGue M, Krueger RF, Bouchard TJ (2005) Genetic and environmental influences on religiousness: findings for retrospective and current religiousness ratings. J Pers 73(2):471–488
Koenig LB, McGue M, Iacono WG (2008) Stability and change in religiousness during emerging adulthood. Dev Psychol 44(2):532–543
Legrand LS, Keyes MA, McGue M, Iacono WG, Krueger RF (2008) Rural residency reduces the genetic influence on adolescent substance-use and rule-breaking behavior. Psychol Med (in press)
Lerner RM (2006) Another nine-inch nail for behavioral genetics!. Hum Develop 49(6):336–342
Li LM, Gao WJ, Lv J, Cao WH, Zhan SY, Yang HY et al (2006) Current status of the Chinese National Twin Registry. Twin Res Hum Genet 9(6):747–752
Lichtenstein P, Sullivan PF, Cnattingius S, Gatz M, Johansson S, Carlstrom E et al (2006) The Swedish Twin Registry in the third millennium: an update. Twin Res Hum Genet 9(6):875–882
Lykken DT, Bouchard TJ, McGue M, Tellegen A (1990) The Minnesota Twin Family Registry: some initial findings. Acta Genet Med Gemellol 39(1):35–70
Lyons MJ, True WR, Eisen SA, Goldberg J, Meyer JM, Faraone SV et al (1995) Differential heritability of adult and juvenile antisocial traits. Arch Gen Psychiatry 52(11):906–915
Martin NG, Eaves LJ, Heath AC, Jardine R, Feingold LM, Eysenck HJ (1986) Transmission of social attitudes. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 83(12):4364–4368
McCartney K, Harris MJ, Bernieri F (1990) Growing up and growing apart: a developmental meta-analysis of twin studies. Psychol Bull 107(2):226–237
McGue M, Bouchard TJ (1997) Genetic and environmental influences on human behavioral differences. Annu Rev Neurosci 21:1–24
McGue M, Iacono WG (2005) The association of early adolescent problem behavior with adult psychopathology. Am J Psychiatry 162(6):1118–1124
McGue M, Iacono WG (2008) The adolescent origins of substance use disorders. Int J Methods Psychiatr Res 17(S1):S30–S38
McGue M, Lykken DT (1992) Genetic influence on risk of divorce. Psychol Sci 3:368–373
McGue M, Bouchard TJJ, Iacono WG, Lykken DT (1993) Behavioral genetics of cognitive ability: a life span perspective. In: Plomin R, McClearn GE (eds) Nature, nurture and psychology. American Psychological Association, Washington DC, pp 59–76
McGue M, Elkins I, Walden B, Iacono WG (2005) Perceptions of the parent-adolescent relationship: a longitudinal investigation. Dev Psychol 41:971–984
McGue M, Iacono WG, Krueger R (2006) The association of early adolescent problem behavior and adult psychopathology: a multivariate behavioral genetic perspective. Behav Genet 36(4):591–602
McGue M, Keyes M, Sharma A, Elkins I, Legrand L, Johnson W et al (2007) The environments of adopted and non-adopted youth: evidence on range restriction from the Sibling Interaction and Behavior Study (SIBS). Behav Genet 37(3):449–462
Mednick SA, Gabrielli WF, Hutchings B (1984) Genetic influences in criminal convictions: evidence from an adoption cohort. Science 224(4651):891–894
Mendlewicz J, Rainer JD (1977) Adoption study supporting genetic transmission in manic-depressive illness. Nature 268(5618):327–329
Merikangas KR, Stevens DE, Fenton B, Stolar M, O’Malley S, Woods SW et al (1998a) Co-morbidity and familial aggregation of alcoholism and anxiety disorders. Psychol Med 28(4):773–788
Merikangas KR, Stolar M, Stevens DE, Goulet J, Preisig MA, Fenton B et al (1998b) Familial transmission of substance use disorders. Arch Gen Psychiatry 55:973–979
Mischel W (1981) Introduction to personality. Holt, Rinehart and Winston, Austin, TX
Moffitt TE, Caspi A, Rutter M (2005) Strategy for investigating interactions between measured genes and measured environments. Arch Gen Psychiatry 62:473–481
Neale MC, Cardon LR (1992) Methodology for genetic studies of twins and families. Kluwer, Dordrecht, The Netherlands
Neiswanger K, Hill SY, Kaplan BB (1995) Association and linkage studies of the TAQI A1 allele at the dopamine D2 receptor gene in samples of female and male alcoholics [see comments]. Am J Med Genet 60(4):267–271
Noble EP (1998) The D2 dopamine receptor gene: a review of association studies in alcoholism and phenotypes. Alcohol 16(1):33–45
Nuffield Council on Bioethics (2002) Genetics and human behaviour: the ethical context. Nuffield Council on Bioethics, London
Otten R, Engels R, van de Ven MOM, Bricker JB (2007) Parental smoking and adolescent smoking stages: the role of parents’ current and former smoking, and family structure. J Behav Med 30(2):143–154
Pang ZC, Ning F, Unger J, Johnson CA, Wang SJ, Guo Q et al (2006) The Qingdao Twin Registry: a focus on chronic disease research. Twin Res Hum Genet 9(6):758–762
Pato CN, Macciardi F, Pato MT, Verga M, Kennedy JL (1993) Review of the putative association of dopamine D2 receptor and alcoholism: a metaanalysis. Am J Med Genet 48(2):78–82
Pinker S (2002) The blank slate. Penguin, New York
Plomin R, Daniels D (1987) Why are children in the same family so different from one another? Behav Brain Sci 10:1–60
Plomin R, Kennedy JKJ, Craig IW (2006) The quest for quantitative trait loci associated with intelligence. Intelligence 34(6):513–526
Purcell S (2002) Variance components models for gene-environment interaction in twin analysis. Twin Res 6:554–571
Rhea SA, Gross AA, Haberstick BC, Corley RP (2006) Colorado Twin Registry. Twin Res Hum Genet 9(6):941–949
Richardson K, Norgate SH (2006) A critical analysis of IQ studies of adopted children. Hum Dev 49(6):319–335
Risch NJ, Merikangas KR (1996) The future of genetic studies of complex human diseases. Science 273:1516–1517
Rose RJ, Dick DM, Viken RJ, Kaprio J (2001) Gene-environment interaction in patterns of adolescent drinking: regional residency moderates longitudinal influences on alcohol use. Alcohol Clin Exp Res 25(5):637–643
Rowe DC, Jacobson KC, Van den Oord E (1999) Genetic and environmental influences on vocabulary IQ: parental education level as moderator. Child Dev 70(5):1151–1162
Rutter M (2007) Proceeding from observed correlation to causal inference: the use of natural experiments. Perspect Psychol Sci 2(4):377–395
Rutter M, Silberg J (2002) Gene-environment interplay in relation to emotional and behavioral disturbance. Annu Rev Psychol 53:463–490
Rutter M, Pickles A, Murray R, Eaves LJ (2001) Testing hypotheses on specific causal effects on behavior. Psychol Bull 127:291–324
Scarr S, McCartney K (1983) How people make their own environments: a theory of genotype => environment effects. Child Dev 54:424–435
Shanahan MJ, Hofer SM (2005) Social context in gene-environment interactions: retrospect and prospect. J Gerontol 60B:65–76
Sklar P, Smoller JW, Fan J, Ferreira MAR, Perlis RH, Chambert K et al (2008) Whole-genome association study of bipolar disorder. Mol Psychiatry 13(6):558–569
Skytthe A, Kyvik K, Bathum L, Holm N, Vaupel JW, Christensen K (2006) The Danish Twin Registry in the new millennium. Twin Res Hum Genet 9(6):763–771
Smith L, Watson M, Gates S, Ball D, Foxcroft D (2008) Meta-analysis of the association of the Taq1A polymorphism with the Risk of alcohol depedency: a HuGE gene-disease association review. Am J Epidemiol 167(2):125–138
Teasdale TW, Owen DR (1984) Heredity and familial environment in intelligence and educational-level: a sibling study. Nature 309(5969):620–622
Turkheimer E, Haley A, Waldron M, D’Onofrio B, Gottesman II (2003) Socioeconomic status modifies heritability of IQ in young children. Psychol Sci 14:623–628
Uher R, McGuffin P (2008) The moderation by the serotonin transporter gene of environmental adversity in the aetiology of mental illness: review and methodological analysis. Mol Psychiatry 13(2):131–146
Wahlsten D (1990) Insensitivity of the analysis of variance to heredity-environment interaction. Behav Brain Sci 13(1):109
Watson JB (1930) Behaviorism. University of Chicago Press, Chicago
Weedon MN, Lango H, Lindgren CM, Wallace C, Evans DM, Mangino M et al (2008) Genome-wide association analysis identifies 20 loci that influence adult height. Nat Genet 40(5):575–583
Weissman MM, Wickramaratne P, Nomura Y, Warner V, Pilowsky D, Verdeli H (2006) Offspring of depressed parents: 20 years later. Am J Psychiatry 163(6):1001–1008
Wender PH, Rosenthal D, Ketty SS, Schulsinger F, Welner J (1974) Cross-fostering: a research strategy for clarifying the role of genetic and experimental factors in the etiology of schizophrenia. Arch Gen Psychiatry 30:121–128
Zubin J, Spring B (1977) Vulnerability: a new view of schizophrenia. J Abnorm Psychol 86:103–126
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Previously published in Acta Psychologica Sinica 2008, 40(10):1073–1087. doi:10.3724/SP.J.1041.2008.01073. Reprinted with permission of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
This paper is based in part on a presentation given at the 2008 biennial meeting of the Society for Research on Adolescence in Chicago Illinois. Research reported herein was supported in part from the following grants from the U.S. National Institutes of Health: AA09367, AA11886, DA05147, and MH066140.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
McGue, M. The End of Behavioral Genetics?. Behav Genet 40, 284–296 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10519-010-9354-0
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10519-010-9354-0