The influence of genes on behaviour

• The influence of genes on behaviour

  > The genetic explanation argues that behavioural characteristics such as intelligence, personality and mental illness are genetically inherited the same way physical characteristics are

  > OCD is due to the inheritance of one or many maladaptive genes eg. SERT

  > Argues the closer the genetic link to someone with OCD, the greater the risk a person would inherit OCD
• The influence of genes on behaviour

  > Genetic probability of sharing a behaviour is measured by concordance rates

  > Twin studies where monozygotic twins have been found to have a concordance of 87% compared to concordance rates of 47% for dizygotic twins for OCD. (Carey and Gottsman)
• Geno type - A genotype is a specific set of genes that an individual has inherited from their biological parents and is unique to them (their genetic make up). Genotypes can give a predisposition to disorders
• Phenotype - The phenotype of an individual is the product of what happens when the genotype interacts with the environment. This is how our genes are expressed through physical, behavioural and psychological characteristics, they are observable traits or behaviours shown by an individual