Behavioral Genetics Essay - 2274 Words

Is behavior learned? It is inborn? What of aggression, intelligence, and madness? There is a crucial relationship between the behavior of humans toward their own kind and the view of life they hold. Interest in behavioral genetics depends on wanting to know why people differ. According to Jack R. Vale, in Genes, Environment, and Behavior, recognition of the importance of hereditary influence on behavior represents one of the most dramatic changes in the social and behavioral sciences during the past two decades. A shift began toward the more balanced contemporary view that recognizes genetic as well as environmental influences on behavior. Behavioral genetics lies in its theory and methods, which consider both genetic and†¦show more content†¦However, genetic hypotheses should also be considered. Research in behavioral genetics is directed toward understanding differences in behavior. Methods are employed that consider both genetics and environmental influences, rather than assuming that one or the other is solely important. Behavioral genetics research studies whether individual behavioral differences are influenced by hereditary differences. Then, estimates the relative influences of genetic and environmental factors. Although genetic and environmental influences interact within an individual, this does not imply that the separate effects of genes and environment cannot be untangled when we focus on differences among individuals Controversy arises when nature (inheritance) is combated against nurture (environment). This controversy began with the development of the behavioristic point of view. â€Å"Behaviorism arose as a protest against all form of â€Å"introspective psychology,† which was concerned with mental states such as consciousness and will†(Plomin 3). It led to an environmentalism that rejected the possibility of genetics influences on behavior. The burden of explaining individual differences fell completely to environmental factors. Genetics involve genes, which are chemical structures that control the production of proteins, thereby indirectly affectingShow MoreRelatedPsychiatric Genetics : Psychology And Behavioral Neuroscience Essay2208 Words   |  9 Pages Psychiatric Genetic Studies: Correlations, Ethics, and Counseling. Introduction Psychiatric genetics is a subtopic of behavioral genetics, evolutionary psychology and behavioral neuroscience. The research began with evolutionary psychology, the field of psychology that studies how much human thought and behavior is determined by genetics. 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This is a result of an abnormality of chromosome 15, which is one of the most complex regions of the human DNA system. This disorder affects about one out of every fifteen thousand births in both males and females. It doesn’t particularly reach