Interaction of Heredity & Environment (College Board AP® Psychology): Flashcards
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Define heritability.
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Cards in this collection (22)
Define heritability.
Heritability is the degree of variance among individuals for a trait that is attributable to genetic differences.
How much DNA do dizygotic twins share?
Dizygotic (DZ) twins share approximately 50% of their DNA, the same as any other sibling pair.
True or False?
Twin studies use random assignment to the MZ or DZ condition.
False.
Twin studies are non-experimental, since researchers cannot randomly assign participants to be MZ or DZ twins.
Joseph (2004) found that MZ twins showed a concordance rate of ________ for schizophrenia, compared to 7.4% in DZ twins.
Joseph (2004) found that MZ twins showed a concordance rate of 40.4% for schizophrenia, compared to 7.4% in DZ twins.
Define family study.
A family study compares how often a trait appears among relatives of different genetic relatedness to test for a genetic basis.
What risk of schizophrenia did Gottesman (1991) find for siblings of an affected individual?
Gottesman (1991) found that siblings of a person with schizophrenia have approximately a 9% risk of developing it themselves.
True or False?
Family studies can fully separate genetic from environmental influences on behavior.
False.
Family members share environments as well as genes, so family studies alone cannot distinguish genetic from environmental causes.
Define adoption study.
An adoption study compares adopted individuals to their biological and adoptive families to separate the effects of heredity from environment.
What percentage of Tienari et al.'s adoptees developed schizophrenia?
In Tienari et al. (2000), 6.7% of adoptees with a biological mother with schizophrenia were also diagnosed with the disorder, compared to 2% of control adoptees.
Natural selection is the process by which traits that improve survival and reproduction are passed on to future generations, while harmful traits gradually ________________ from the population.
Natural selection is the process by which traits that improve survival and reproduction are passed on to future generations, while harmful traits gradually disappear from the population.
Define eugenics.
Eugenics is a discredited belief that misapplied evolutionary ideas to claim some human groups are genetically superior to others.
How might mate selection increase reproductive success, according to the evolutionary perspective?
The evolutionary perspective proposes that selecting mates based on indicators of health and genetic fitness increases the likelihood of producing healthy offspring.
Define nature-nurture debate.
The nature-nurture debate explores whether behavior is primarily shaped by heredity, by the environment, or by some combination of both.
Which psychological perspective takes the most strongly nurture-oriented stance?
The behavioral perspective takes the most strongly nurture-oriented stance, proposing that behavior is learned through classical and operant conditioning.
True or False?
The biological and evolutionary perspectives are nurture-oriented.
False.
The biological and evolutionary perspectives are nature-oriented; the behavioral and sociocultural perspectives are nurture-oriented.
Define diathesis-stress model.
The diathesis-stress model proposes that a genetic vulnerability to a disorder is only expressed when combined with sufficient environmental stress.
What does environmentality refer to?
Environmentality refers to the degree to which a trait's expression is caused by environmental factors.
True or False?
MZ twins show 100% concordance for most psychological traits and disorders.
False.
MZ twins share 100% of their DNA, but concordance rates for most psychological traits remain well below 100%, showing environment also matters.
Define interactionist position.
The interactionist position holds that heredity and environment interact to shape behavior, and that neither operates in isolation.
What is a risk of extreme nature-based positions on behavior?
Extreme nature-based positions can lead to deterministic or discriminatory conclusions, such as historical eugenics claims about genetic superiority.
What is a risk of extreme nurture-based positions on behavior?
Extreme nurture-based positions can underestimate real biological contributors to behavior, leading to treatments that ignore genetic causes.
What does the sociocultural perspective emphasize in explaining behavior?
The sociocultural perspective emphasizes how cultural norms, social relationships, and shared values shape behavior and mental processes.
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