Plomin R
Ciba Found Symp. 1982;89:155-67. doi: 10.1002/9780470720714.ch9.
Three recent developments in behavioural genetics are relevant to temperament research. First, the search for genetic influences on temperament has been frustrated by the finding that twin studies using self-report and parental rating instruments detect a genetic influence for all personality traits whereas twin studies using objective assessments rarely find a genetic influence. Secondly, environmental influences salient to temperament appear to operate in such a way as to make members of a family (siblings, for example) as different from one another as are individuals in different families. The importance of such 'E1', or non-shared, environmental influences suggests the need for studies of more than one child per family. Thirdly, adoption studies are needed to complement the extensive research on temperament in twins. In addition to its usefulness in isolating genetic influences, the adoption design can study environmental influence devoid of the confounding effects of hereditary influences; it can also isolate interactions between genotypes and environments. Preliminary results from the Colorado Adoption Project show little relationship between the temperaments of adopted and non-adopted one-year-olds and the personality characteristics of thier parents. Measures of the home and family environment did not relate to infant temperament, and no genotype-environment interaction was detected.
行为遗传学领域最近的三项进展与气质研究相关。首先，对气质的遗传影响的探索受阻于这样一个发现：使用自我报告和父母评定工具的双胞胎研究检测到所有个性特征都有遗传影响，而使用客观评估的双胞胎研究很少发现遗传影响。其次，对气质而言显著的环境影响似乎以这样一种方式起作用，即使得一个家庭中的成员（例如兄弟姐妹）彼此之间像不同家庭中的个体一样存在差异。这种“E1”或非共享环境影响的重要性表明需要对每个家庭的多个孩子进行研究。第三，需要开展收养研究以补充对双胞胎气质的广泛研究。除了在分离遗传影响方面有用之外，收养设计还可以研究不受遗传影响的混杂效应的环境影响；它还可以分离基因型与环境之间的相互作用。科罗拉多收养项目的初步结果显示，收养的和未收养的一岁儿童的气质与他们父母的个性特征之间几乎没有关系。家庭和家庭环境的测量与婴儿气质无关，并且未检测到基因型 - 环境相互作用。
