Behavioral genetics and evolutionary psychology: unified perspective on personality research

Behavioral geneticists and evolutionary psychologists have generally pursued human behavioral analyses with little theoretical or methodological exchange. However, significant benefits might accrue from increased communication between these disciplines. The primary goals of this article are (1) to identify meaningful junctures between behavioral genetics and evolutionary psychology, (2) to describe behavioral genetic research designs and their applications to evolutionary analyses, and (3) to reassess current personality research in light of behavioral genetic and evolutionary concepts and techniques. The five-factor model of personality is conceptualized as subsuming variation in normative species-typical systems with adaptive functions in the human environment of evolutionary adaptation. Considered as universal evolved mechanisms, personality systems are often seen in dynamic conflict within individuals and as highly compartmentalized in their functioning between settings. However, genetically influenced individual differences in personality may also be understood within an evolutionary framework. Studies of the heritability of personality traits indicate broad-sense heritabilities in the 0.40-0.50 range with evidence of substantial nonadditive genetic variation and nonshared environmental influences. Evidence indicates that evolutionary theory (e.g., inclusive fitness theory) predicts patterns of social interaction (e.g., cooperation and bereavement) in relatives. Furthermore, variation in personality may constitute a range of viable strategies matching the opportunities available in the complex niche environment of human societies. Within this wide range of viable strategies, personality variation functions as a resource environment for individuals in the sense that personality variation is evaluated according to the interests of the evaluator (e.g., friendships, coalitions, or mate choice).     

Distinguishing adaptations from by-products.

Comments on the article in which D. M. Buss et al (see record 1998-01669-001) outline the conceptual and evidentiary standards that apply to adaptations, exaptations, and spandrels and their relative use in accounts of human psychological and behavioral outcomes. The present author argues that research to date has almost exclusively used a black box approach that hypothesizes about and documents the output of putative mechanisms without any attempt to demonstrate the engineering characteristics of the psychological processes in question. As such, the conceptual argument for demonstrating specialized adaptations, while sound in logic, is largely unsupported in data. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Behavioral Science and Change.

A conventional wisdom often bandied about is how responsive the behavioral sciences are to change. I contend that this is bordering on a delusion and that clinical psychology training programs epitomize the intransigence in higher education. I am obliquely referring to that anachronism entitled a dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the Doctor of Philosophy degree. The Boulder scientific-practitioner is still very much with us despite some verbalizations that would lead us to believe otherwise. Numerous articles have decried just how archaic this model is, but this insight has not resulted in many actual changes. Most clinical training programs continue to mold their neophytes in this traditional model and then ponder why they produce so few really good scientists or practitioners. Clinical psychology has got to do away with this hydraheaded concept of training and allow the individual student more responsibility for his final course. I would like to see a program in which the student and his doctoral committee could responsibly select between his doing a dissertation, postdoctoral training, a PSiD, etc. Numerous alternatives have been proposed over coffee and drinks, but directors of programs seem to be fearful of trying to implement them. It is disquieting and ironic to note just how many tenets of individual growth are violated in training programs. No wonder psychotherapy is still an art! (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Behavioral medicine and aging.

A brief history of behavioral medicine and aging is followed by a series of perspectives that help to understand how age is used as a variable in this research, the relative importance of age to declines in cognitive functioning, and the impact of behavioral risk indicators on healthy survival. The authors discuss Alzheimer's disease and the role of age in clinical practice. Also discussed are potential problems in age-related research, ways to improve the knowledge base in behavioral medicine and aging, and thoughts about future challenges to enhance work in behavioral medicine and aging. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Behavioral biophysics.

Electromagnetic energy is an important factor in the biophysical analysis of the properties and function of living systems. Due to technical advances in electronics, this energy is now being used as a research tool, both by study of its emission by living organisms and also by applying it to the organism. In this paper, the nature of the energy is sketched. Then, data on fingertip detection of color, neural emission of infrared energy, the use of electron paramagnetic resonance techniques to detect neural activity, brain impedance shifts and behavior, and the influence of UHF energy on behavior are considered. It is concluded that, though these areas are in the embryonic stage of development, most are potentially of great significance in the understanding of the nervous system and behavior. (2 p. ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Personal and contextual influences on househould energy adaptations.

Examined the interactive effects of economic, demographic, structural, and psychological variables on 4 behaviorally distinct types of reported conservation response involving energy efficiency improvements or curtailment of the services that energy provides, using data collected from 478 residential customers in 1980. The causal model assumed that contextual variables (i.e., demographic, economic, and structural) may affect behavior indirectly through personal variables (e.g., attitudes, beliefs, norms) and that between personal variables, causality moves from the general through the specific to reported behavior. A path analysis incorporating these assumptions suggested that although behaviors that are relatively unconstrained for most households (such as temperature settings) are strongly influenced by norms, personal variables have much less influence on more constrained actions (such as major insulation activity). The effect of high and rising fuel prices was stronger in producing economic sacrifice than in producing energy savings. The 15 variables used in analysis and their intercorrelations are appended. (32 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Behavior genetics and parenting theory.

Comments on the A. W. Collins et al article (see record 2000-13816-002) which discusses behavioral genetics and the parenting theory. While the current author agrees with many of the theories put forth by Collins et al, he also points out some errors in their attribution of certain behaviors to parent–child relations. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Molecular genetics. Introduction

While sharing the same techniques as the field at large, diagnostic molecular genetics is unique among the subdisciplines of molecular pathology in many of its aspects, from sample collection to ethical implications of the test results obtained. Yet, despite its many challenges, this branch of DNA diagnostics has already pervaded the practice of medical genetics to an extent unmatched in any other clinical specialty. Genetic disease also presents the most immediately obvious opportunities for extension from DNA-based diagnosis to DNA-based therapy.     

Behavioral contrast and behavioral momentum.

In Exp 1, 5 pigeons were trained to peck a key on multiple schedules of food reinforcement. The reinforcer rate was constant in 1 component and varied between conditions in the alternated component. In the constant component, steady-state response rate and its resistance to both prefeeding and extinction were inversely related to the reinforcer rate in the alternated component. Thus, resistance to both prefeeding and to extinction, like response rate, exhibits behavioral contrast. In Exp 2, a time-out period between schedule components eliminated contrast effects on steady-state response rate but not on resistance to extinction. The resistance-to-change results contradict expectations derived from current quantitative accounts of steady-state operant behavior and suggest instead that resistance to change depends on the contingency between component stimuli and reinforcers. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Behavioral science and social conscience.

Comments on K. B. Clark's (see record 1972-20755-001) contention that people seem unable to exercise power in such a way as to affirm positive human values because of the fragile vulnerability of the ego. The difficulty in advancing behavioral science and applying it to the solution of human problems is discussed in terms of moral values and issues of control. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Behavioral classification project.

To establish an adequate nosology for children's emotional disorders a multidisciplinary team devised strictly behavioral items and administered these and demographic items to 37 clinical and 90 control Ss, 6 through 13 CA, with parent or parent surrogate as respondent. Clinical Ss yielded a larger number of responses to the BCP items. A factor analysis of 142 variables resulted in 10 factors. Comparison of 32 Ss apiece from clinical and control groups, drawn on a stratified random basis, showed more "positive" behaviors in controls and more relative concern over sadistic aggressiveness and social immaturity among control parents. Cluster analysis of standard score profiles of the clinical subsample produced 5 clusters or "types" of children. (38 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Behavioral control pollution.

Argues against G. C. Davison and R. B. Stuart's (see record 1975-30208-001) support for contingency management in institutional and individual therapeutic situations. In focusing on the consent-giving process, Davison and Stuart ignore the effect of "behavioral control pollution." Artificial management of social contingencies could upset the naturally evolved balance on control. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Trichuris ovis and Trichuris globulosa: morphological, biometrical, and genetic studies

We report a 2-year-old girl with a combination of the ectodermal dysplasia, ectrodactyly, cleft lip/palate (EEC) syndrome, distinctive hair abnormalities, scalp dermatitis and atopic disease. To our knowledge, this is the first report of scalp dermatitis in the EEC syndrome. Distinctive structural hair abnormalities shared by the syndromes of ectodermal dysplasia and clefting are helicotrichia, pili torti et canaliculi, and cuticle defects, all of which were observed in the present case. A high incidence of atopic disease in certain subsets of ectodermal dysplasia has been reported. In our patient this manifested as food-induced exacerbation of atopic dermatitis, associated with positive prick tests and significant levels of circulating specific IgE.     

Behavioral medicine: 2002 and beyond.

This article highlights future directions for research and practice in behavioral medicine. Topics addressed include social and environmental issues, the role of technology, translational research, improving and developing interventions, and professional training and retraining. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Behavioral sciences and the federal government.

Examines the changing roles of the behavioral sciences and government leading to their increasing interdependence. Recommendations are presented regarding (a) more effective use of scientific knowledge; (b) "research, education, and training relating to international affairs"; (c) increased representation of scientists in policy-making; and (d) the effect of scientific research on public policy. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Integrating Structural and Behavioral Leadership Strategies.

The nature of organizations and the environments in which they operate have grown increasingly complex. Certain obvious limitations of traditional bureaucratic models of leadership are being widely challenged in the literature. In general, scholars have begun to call for radical changes in the way the authors conceptualize and implement the leadership function in organizations of all sizes and types. One feature of proposed leadership models is the diversification of leadership throughout the organization in ways that empower individuals to recognize and act upon opportunities to contribute to the organization in leadership roles. This article offers some thoughts about conceptualizing this diversification in the context of systems theory. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Individual adaptations and structural change as solutions to social dilemmas.

80 undergraduates, in groups of 6, took "harvests" from a regenerating resource pool so as to maximize their harvests while maintaining the pool. False feedback was provided regarding the other Ss' harvest sizes. One-third of the Ss thought that the others were overusing the resource, one-third thought that the others were underusing it, and the remaining third were led to believe that the others were using the resource optimally. This "use" variable was crossed with a manipulation of the purported homogeneity of the others' behavior: Half the Ss thought that the others took relatively similar harvests (low variance), whereas the other half thought the others' harvests differed greatly (high variance). Results indicate that harvest size increased over time, especially in the underuse, high-variance condition. Ss in the overuse condition who expected that other group members would reciprocate self-restraint (high-trust Ss) decreased their harvest in comparison to low-trust Ss in this condition. As expected, more Ss in the overuse condition voted to give up free access to the resource in favor of a leader than did Ss in the other conditions. Data are also presented regarding the Ss' behavior as the elected leader. (17 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Behavioral teratology of alcohol.

Considerable evidence points to alcohol as a behavioral teratogen in humans, although many methodological problems inherent in the human literature leave unresolved the issue of alcohol's direct vs secondary effects. Evidence from animal studies substantiates alcohol's behavioral teratogenicity and suggests that in utero alcohol exposure produces a developmental delay in the maturation of response inhibition mechanisms in the brain. Although methodological problems still plague some of these studies, the weight of the evidence indicates that alcohol per se rather than factors related to alcohol consumption (e.g., undernutrition and use of other drugs) is responsible for these effects. (3? p ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)