NATURE, NURTURE AND FIRST SEXUAL INTERCOURSE IN THE USA: FITTING BEHAVIOURAL GENETIC MODELS TO NLSY KINSHIP DATA

1999 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 29-41 ◽  
Author(s):  
JOSEPH LEE RODGERS ◽  
DAVID C. ROWE ◽  
MAURY BUSTER
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Influence ◽  
Molecular Genetic ◽  
Environmental Influences ◽  
Self Esteem ◽  
Genetic Influences ◽  
First Sexual Intercourse ◽  
Shared Environmental Influence ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Opposite Sex ◽  
Nationally Representative

Fisher (1930) presented both theoretical and empirical results concerning genetic influences on fertility. Since then, only sparse research has been done on the genetics of fertility, although more sophisticated methodogy and data now exist than were available to Fisher. This paper presents a behavioural genetic analysis of age at first intercourse, accounting for genetic, shared environmental, and selected non-shared environmental influences. The data came from the nationally representative National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY). A newly developed kinship linking procedure was used that identifies links for cousins, half-siblings, full-siblings and twins in the NLSY. The results suggest a genetic influence in the overall dataset, and also among whites and in male–male and opposite-sex pairs. Genetic influences were extremely small or non-existent for blacks and for female–female pairs. Shared environmental influences were small for most subsets of the data, but moderate for female–female pairs. Two specific non-shared environmental influences – self-esteem and locus of control – were ruled out as accounting for any meaningful variance, although other general sources of non-shared environmental influence appear potentially important. Analysis of selected samples from upper and lower tails suggested that genetic influences are important in accounting for both early and late non-virginity. These findings are consistent with work reported by Miller et al. (1999), who used molecular genetic methods. Generally, these findings support the existence of genetic influences and implicate non-shared environmental influences as being important determinants of the timing of loss of virginity among US adolescents and young adults.

scholarly journals WHY DO PEOPLE DIFFER IN THEIR ACHIEVEMENT MOTIVATION? A NUCLEAR TWIN FAMILY STUDY

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 433-450 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lea Klassen ◽  
Eike F. Eifler ◽  
Anke Hufer ◽  
Rainer Riemann
Keyword(s):  
Achievement Motivation ◽  
School Environment ◽  
Environmental Influences ◽  
Twin Studies ◽  
Genetic Influences ◽  
Parental Home ◽  
Nationally Representative ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Home And School

Although many previous studies have emphasized the role of environmental factors, such as parental home and school environment, on achievement motivation, classical twin studies suggest that both additive genetic influences and non-shared environmental influences explain interindividual differences in achievement motivation. By applying a Nuclear Twin Family Design on the data of the German nationally representative of TwinLife study, we analyzed genetic and environmental influences on achievement motivation in adolescents and young adults. As expected, the results provided evidence for the impact of additive genetic variation, non-additive genetic influences, as well as twin specific shared environmental influences. The largest amount of variance was attributed to non-shared environmental influences, showing the importance of individual experiences in forming differences in achievement motivation. Overall, we suggest a revision of models and theories that explain variation in achievement motivation by differences in familial socialization only.

scholarly journals Perceived Family Cohesion Moderates Environmental Influences on Prosocial Behavior in Nigerian Adolescent Twins

2017 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
pp. 226-235 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yoon-Mi Hur ◽  
Jeanette Taylor ◽  
Hoe-Uk Jeong ◽  
Min-Seo Park ◽  
Brett C. Haberstick
Keyword(s):  
Public Schools ◽  
Prosocial Behavior ◽  
Family Environment ◽  
Family Cohesion ◽  
Environmental Influence ◽  
Environmental Influences ◽  
Twin Studies ◽  
Environment Interaction ◽  
Shared Environmental Influence ◽  
Sex Limitation

Research shows that perceived family cohesion is positively related to prosocial behavior in adolescents. In this study, we investigated heritability of prosocial behavior (PB) and perceived family cohesion (FC) among Nigerian twins attending public schools in Lagos State, Nigeria (mean age = 14.7 years, SD = 1.7 years), and explored the issue of whether children's perception of cohesive family environment moderated genetic and environmental influences on (PB). The PB scale of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire and the FC scale of the Family Adaptability and Cohesion Evaluation Scale III were completed by 2,376 twins (241 monozygotic (MZ) male, 354 MZ female, 440 dizygotic (DZ) male, 553 DZ female, and 788 opposite-sex DZ twins). A general sex-limitation and the bivariate genotype by environment interaction (G×E) models were applied to the data. The general sex-limitation model showed no significant sex differences, indicating that additive genetic and non-shared environmental influences were, 38% (95% CI = 31, 46) and 62% (95% CI = 54, 69) for PB and 33% (95% CI = 24, 40) and 67% (95% CI = 60, 76) for FC in both sexes. These estimates were similar to those found in Western and Asian twin studies to date. The correlation between PB and FC was 0.36. The best-fitting bivariate G×E model indicated that FC significantly moderated non-shared environmental influence unique to PB (E×E interaction). Specifically, non-shared environmental contributions to PB were highest when FC was lowest, and decreased as the levels of FC increased. However, genetic variances in PB were stable across all levels of FC. These findings suggest that FC reduces individual differences in PB by changing non-shared environmental experiences rather than genetic factors in PB.

scholarly journals Self‐esteem: a behavioural genetic perspective

2002 ◽  
Vol 16 (5) ◽  
pp. 351-367 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michelle B. Neiss ◽  
Constantine Sedikides ◽  
Jim Stevenson
Keyword(s):  
Psychological Health ◽  
Environmental Influences ◽  
Family Relationship ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Self Esteem ◽  
Genetic Influences ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
Relationship Patterns ◽  
Domain Specific ◽  
Coping With Illness

Self‐esteem, the affective or evaluative appraisal of one's self, is linked with adaptive personality functioning: high self‐esteem is associated with psychological health benefits (e.g. subjective well‐being, absence of depression and anxiety), effective coping with illness, and satisfactory social relationships. Although several pathways have been hypothesized to effect within‐family transmission of self‐esteem (e.g. parenting style, family relationship patterns), we focus in this article on genetic influences. Genetic studies on both global and domain‐specific self‐esteem and on both level and stability of self‐esteem converge in showing that (i) genetic influences on self‐esteem are substantial, (ii) shared environmental influences are minimal, and (iii) non‐shared environmental influences explain the largest amount of variance in self‐esteem. We advocate that understanding of current issues in self‐esteem research will be enriched by including behavioural genetic approaches. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

scholarly journals Social Integration and Sleep Disturbance: A Gene-Environment Interaction Study

Collabra ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
David A. Sbarra
Keyword(s):  
Social Integration ◽  
Sleep Disturbance ◽  
Environmental Influence ◽  
Causal Effect ◽  
Environmental Influences ◽  
The United States ◽  
Environment Interaction ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Shared Environmental Influence ◽  
Low Levels

Objective: Low levels of perceived social integration, or loneliness, are associated with increased risk for a range of poor health outcomes. Sleep disturbance plays a central role in the evolutionary theory of loneliness, which provides a mechanistic account of how low levels of social integration may negatively impact health. No studies, however, have examined whether the association between social integration and sleep disturbance is consistent with a causal effect after accounting for genes that are common to both variables. Method: Using twin data (N = 905 twin pairs) from the nationally-representative Midlife in the United States (MIDUS) survey, I evaluated a series of bivariate twin models exploring whether the phenotypic association between low social integration and sleep disturbance can be explained by shared genetics. In addition, the current study specified a series of quantitative models for studying gene x environment (G X E) interactions to determine whether the genetic and environmental influences on sleep disturbance differ as a function of social integration. Results: The phenotypic association between social integration and sleep disturbance was fully accounted for by genes that are common between the two variables, suggesting that within-twin pair differences in social integration do not exert a causal influence on sleep disturbance. Social integration, however, moderated the non-shared environmental influence on sleep disturbances, with the greatest environmental influences observed at the lowest levels of social integration. Conclusions: The results of this study suggest that an essential feature of the evolutionary model of loneliness may need refinement or elaboration. The moderation findings are discussed in terms of the fit with a stress-buffering model of social support in which environmental influences on sleep disturbance are strongest when social resources are low.

scholarly journals Genetic and Environmental Influence on the Human Functional Connectome

2019 ◽  
Vol 30 (4) ◽  
pp. 2099-2113
Author(s):  
Andrew E Reineberg ◽  
Alexander S Hatoum ◽  
John K Hewitt ◽  
Marie T Banich ◽  
Naomi P Friedman
Keyword(s):  
Resting State ◽  
Environmental Influence ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Genetic Influence ◽  
Genetic Influences ◽  
Imaging Data ◽  
Functional Connections ◽  
Functional Connectome ◽  
Intermediate Phenotypes ◽  
Shared Environmental Influence

Abstract Detailed mapping of genetic and environmental influences on the functional connectome is a crucial step toward developing intermediate phenotypes between genes and clinical diagnoses or cognitive abilities. We analyzed resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging data from two adult twin samples (Nos = 446 and 371) to quantify genetic and environmental influence on all pairwise functional connections between 264 brain regions (~35 000 functional connections). Nonshared environmental influence was high across the whole connectome. Approximately 14–22% of connections had nominally significant genetic influence in each sample, 4.6% were significant in both samples, and 1–2% had heritability estimates greater than 30%. Evidence of shared environmental influence was weak. Genetic influences on connections were distinct from genetic influences on a global summary measure of the connectome, network-based estimates of connectivity, and movement during the resting-state scan, as revealed by a novel connectome-wide bivariate genetic modeling procedure. The brain’s genetic organization is diverse and not as one would expect based solely on structure evident in nongenetically informative data or lower resolution data. As follow-up, we make novel classifications of functional connections and examine highly localized connections with particularly strong genetic influence. This high-resolution genetic taxonomy of brain connectivity will be useful in understanding genetic influences on brain disorders.

A Nuclear Twin Family Study of Self–Esteem

2018 ◽  
Vol 32 (3) ◽  
pp. 221-232 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wiebke Bleidorn ◽  
Anke Hufer ◽  
Christian Kandler ◽  
Christopher J. Hopwood ◽  
Rainer Riemann
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Environmental Influences ◽  
Twin Studies ◽  
Self Esteem ◽  
Personality Psychology ◽  
Gene Environment ◽  
Environmental Component ◽  
Increased Sensitivity ◽  
Nationally Representative ◽  
Twin Families

Twin studies suggest that both genes and environments influence the emergence and development of individual differences in self–esteem. However, different lines of research have emphasized either the role of genes or of environmental influences in shaping self–esteem, and the pathways through which genes and environments exert their influence on self–esteem remain largely unclear. In this study, we used nationally representative data from over 2000 German twin families and a nuclear twin family design (NTFD) to further our understanding of the genetic and environmental influences on individual differences in self–esteem. Compared with classical twin designs, NTFDs allow for finer–grained descriptions of the genetic and environmental influences on phenotypic variation, produce less biased estimates of those effects, and provide more information about different environmental influences and gene–environment correlation that contribute to siblings’ similarity. Our NTFD results suggested that additive and non–additive genetic influences contributed to individual differences in self–esteem as well as environmental influences that are both shared and not shared by twins. The shared environmental component mostly reflected non–parental influences. These findings highlight the increased sensitivity afforded by NTFDs but also remaining limitations that need to be addressed by future behavioural genetic work on the sources of self–esteem. Copyright © 2018 European Association of Personality Psychology

scholarly journals Age at First Sexual Intercourse and Teenage Pregnancy in Australian Female Twins

2007 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 440-449 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary Waldron ◽  
Andrew C. Heath ◽  
Eric Turkheimer ◽  
Robert Emery ◽  
Kathleen K. Bucholz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Intercourse ◽  
Teenage Pregnancy ◽  
Environmental Influences ◽  
Environmental Variation ◽  
Genetic Influences ◽  
Shared Environment ◽  
Heritable Variation ◽  
First Sexual Intercourse ◽  
First Intercourse ◽  
Sexual Onset

AbstractGirls who report first sexual intercourse during their early teen years have much higher rates of teenage pregnancy and childbearing than girls who delay sexual onset until older adolescence. In this study, we examine genetic and environmental influences on variation in teenage pregnancy and covariation with age at first sexual intercourse in two cohorts of Australian female twins. In the older twin cohort, born 1893–1964, we observe substantial heritable variation in teenage pregnancy that is largely shared with heritable variation in age at first sexual intercourse, with shared environment contributintablg little to variation in teenage pregnancy. Genetic influences on teenage pregnancy are smaller and nonsignificant in the younger twin cohort, born 1964–1971, where shared environment contributes much more and overlaps entirely with shared environmental variation in age at first intercourse.

scholarly journals Genetic and environmental factors affecting self-esteem from age 14 to 17: a longitudinal study of Finnish twins

2007 ◽  
Vol 37 (11) ◽  
pp. 1625-1633 ◽  
Author(s):  
ANU RAEVUORI ◽  
DANIELLE M. DICK ◽  
ANNA KESKI-RAHKONEN ◽  
LEA PULKKINEN ◽  
RICHARD J. ROSE ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Longitudinal Study ◽  
Genetic Factors ◽  
Environmental Influences ◽  
Self Esteem ◽  
Genetic Influences ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Twin Data ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
Quantitative Genetic ◽  
Genetic And Environmental Factors

ABSTRACTBackgroundWe analysed genetic and environmental influences on self-esteem and its stability in adolescence.MethodFinnish twins born in 1983–1987 were assessed by questionnaire at ages 14 (n=4132 twin individuals) and 17 years (n=3841 twin individuals). Self-esteem was measured using the Rosenberg global self-esteem scale and analyzed using quantitative genetic methods for twin data in the Mx statistical package.ResultsThe heritability of self-esteem was 0·62 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0·56–0·68] in 14-year-old boys and 0·40 (95% CI 0·26–0·54) in 14-year-old girls, while the corresponding estimates at age 17 were 0·48 (95% CI 0·39–0·56) and 0·29 (95% CI 0·11–0·45). Rosenberg self-esteem scores at ages 14 and 17 were modestly correlated (r=0·44 in boys, r=0·46 in girls). In boys, the correlation was mainly (82%) due to genetic factors, with residual co-variation due to unique environment. In girls, genetic (31%) and common environmental (61%) factors largely explained the correlation.ConclusionsIn adolescence, self-esteem seems to be differently regulated in boys versus girls. A key challenge for future research is to identify environmental influences contributing to self-esteem during adolescence and determine how these factors interact with genetic influences.

Genetic and Environmental Influences on the Frequency of Orgasm in Women

2005 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 27-33 ◽  
Author(s):  
Khytam Dawood ◽  
Katherine M. Kirk ◽  
J. Michael Bailey ◽  
Paul W. Andrews ◽  
Nicholas G. Martin
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Intercourse ◽  
Additive Genetic Variance ◽  
Environmental Influences ◽  
Sexual Contact ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Genetic Influences ◽  
Shared Environment ◽  
Pathway Model ◽  
Opposite Sex ◽  
Best Fit

AbstractThis study reports on genetic and environmental influences on the frequency of orgasm in women during sexual intercourse, during other sexual contact with a partner, and during masturbation. Participants were drawn from the Australian Twin Registry, and recruited from a large, partly longitudinal twin-family study. Three thousand and eighty women responded to the anonymous self-report questionnaire, including 667 complete monozygotic (MZ) pairs and 377 complete dizygotic (DZ) same-sex pairs, 366 women from complete DZ opposite-sex pairs, and 626 women whose co-twins did not participate. Significant twin correlations were found for both MZ and DZ twin pairs for all three items of interest. Age effects were statistically significant for some items. Models incorporating additive genetic, shared and nonshared environmental influences provided the best fit for Items 1 and 3, while a model with additive and nonadditive genetic influences along with nonshared envir-onment fitted the data from Item 2. While an independent pathway model fits the data most par-simoniously, a common pathway model incorporating additive genetic (A), shared environment (C), and unique environment (E) effects cannot be ruled out. Overall, genetic influences account for approximately 31% of the variance of frequency of orgasm during sexual intercourse, 37% of the variance of frequency of orgasm during sexual contact other than during intercourse, and 51% of the variance of frequency of orgasm during masturbation. Following Baker (1996), we speculate that this additive genetic variance might arise from frequency-dependent selection for a variety of female sexual strategies.

Sex differences in the genetic and environmental influences on the development of antisocial behavior

2002 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 395-416 ◽  
Author(s):  
KRISTEN C. JACOBSON ◽  
CAROL A. PRESCOTT ◽  
KENNETH S. KENDLER
Keyword(s):  
Sex Differences ◽  
Antisocial Behavior ◽  
Structural Equation ◽  
Environmental Influence ◽  
Environmental Influences ◽  
Population Based ◽  
Equation Modeling ◽  
Retrospective Reports ◽  
Opposite Sex ◽  
Adult Twins

The present study uses a population-based sample of 6,806 adult twins from same-sex and opposite-sex twin pairs to examine sex differences in the underlying genetic and environmental architecture of the development of antisocial behavior (AB). Retrospective reports of AB during three different developmental periods were obtained: prior to age 15 years (childhood), age 15–17 years (adolescent), and age 18 years and older (adult). Structural equation modeling analyses revealed that there was no evidence for sex-specific genetic or sex-specific shared family environmental influences on the development of AB; that is, the types of genetic and environmental influence were similar for males and females. For both sexes, a model that allowed for genetic influences on adolescent and adult AB that were not shared with childhood AB fit better than a model with a single genetic factor. In contrast, shared environmental influences on adolescent and adult AB overlapped entirely with shared environmental influences on childhood AB. Genetic factors played a larger role in variation in childhood AB among females, whereas shared environmental factors played a larger role among males. However, heritability of AB increased from childhood to adolescence and adulthood for both sexes, and the magnitude of genetic and environmental influences on adolescent and adult AB was approximately equal across sex. We speculate that sex differences in timing of puberty may account for the earlier presence of genetic effects among females.

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