Saudino Kimberly J
Psychology Department, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, USA.
J Dev Behav Pediatr. 2005 Jun;26(3):214-23. doi: 10.1097/00004703-200506000-00010.
Most temperament theories presume a biological basis to those behavioral tendencies thought to be temperamental in origin. Behavioral genetic methods can be used to test this assumption. Twin and adoption studies suggest that individual differences in infant and child temperament are genetically influenced. However, behavioral genetics has much more to offer to the study of temperament than simple heritability estimates. The present paper describes some recent findings from behavioral genetics research in temperament that go well beyond the basic nature-nurture question. These findings include the importance of nonshared environmental influences on temperament, genetic continuity and environmental change during development, links between temperament and behavior problems, and harnessing the power of molecular genetics to identify specific genes responsible for genetic influence on early temperament.
大多数气质理论假定,那些被认为源于气质的行为倾向具有生物学基础。行为遗传学方法可用于检验这一假设。双胞胎和收养研究表明,婴幼儿气质的个体差异受遗传影响。然而,行为遗传学对气质研究的贡献远不止于简单的遗传率估计。本文描述了行为遗传学在气质研究方面的一些最新发现,这些发现远远超出了基本的先天与后天问题。这些发现包括非共享环境对气质影响的重要性、发育过程中的遗传连续性和环境变化、气质与行为问题之间的联系,以及利用分子遗传学的力量来识别对早期气质产生遗传影响的特定基因。