Environmental and genetic explanations have been given for Black-White racial differences in intelligence and other traits. In science, viable, alternative hypotheses are ideally given equal Bayesian prior weights; but this has not been true in the study of racial differences. This article advocates testing environmental and genetic hypotheses of…

Investigated genetic and environmental contributions to relationship between family and school environment and depressed mood; also potential sex differences in genetic and environment contributions to variation in and covariation between family connectedness, school connectedness, and depressed mood. Subjects were 2,302 adolescent sibling pairs.…

It is argued that behavior genetics should be part of social policy deliberations because behavior genetics studies can reveal which traits are more influenced by shared environments and thus are most malleable through environmental change. This is of particular interest in the case of IQ. (SLD)

Used prospective data to examine the relationship between the family environment and child and adolescent achievement and to determine genetic and environmental contributions to this relationship. Data from 2,108 sibling full- and half-sibling pairs from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth suggest that genetic factors explain about…

IQ scores from five kinship categories of 7- to 12-year-olds were analyzed into genetic and environmental components. The common environmental effects were larger for older children than younger children. Overall, the Genetic and Common Environment Sources each accounted for approximately 40% of the IQ variability in the data. (Author/LMO)

Critiques the "Child Development" special issue on poverty. Argues that the issue understated the variation observed within social class groups and that a confounding of genetic and environmental effects in biological families weakens the case for environmental effects as presented. Concludes that behavior genetic research designs are…

Responds to Huston, McLoyd, and Coll's critique by indicating agreement with many observations about the complexity of poverty and the need for research designs providing stronger causal inferences. Maintains that the authors underestimate contributions that behavior genetic research designs can make toward understanding poverty and that they…

A twin analysis was applied to infants' social behavior in standardized situations that permitted the comparison of social responding to mother and a stranger in different contexts. Twenty-one identical twin pairs and twenty-five fraternal twin pairs were observed in their homes using time-sampled observations of specific behaviors. (Author/SS)

Uses data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth for 1,943 full siblings and 129 half-siblings to study genetic and shared environmental influences on IQ, education, and income. Results suggest that social inequality in the United States has its origins in genetically based traits and in different environmental backgrounds. (SLD)

For pairs of full siblings, half-siblings, and cousins, analyzed maternal ratings of children's behavior problems at three times between ages 4 and 10. Found that nonshared environmental influences were substantial at each age but did not contribute to continuities in children's problem behaviors. Results favor a liability model that relates…

Used data from sibling pairs from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health to examine how parental education moderated the genetic and environmental contributions to variation in verbal IQ. Found that the variance estimate for heritability was greater than that for shared environment for the whole sample. Both estimates were moderated…

Determinants of Schaefer's (1965) three dimensions of perceived parenting (Acceptance vs. Rejection, Psychological Control vs. Psychological Autonomy, and Firm vs. Lax Control) were investigated by administering a shortened Children's Reports of Parental Behavior Inventory to adolescent twins. The sample consisted of 46 pairs of identical twins…

Suggests that each dimension of perceived family environment appears to be influenced by a different combination of underlying factors: acceptance-rejection by genetic and specific environmental factors and restrictiveness-permissiveness by shared and specific environmental factors. (RH)

Whether genetic and environmental effects on academic achievement changed as a function of the quality of children's environment was studied with 1664 pairs of full siblings, 366 pairs of half siblings, and 752 pairs of cousins. Little evidence was found of genotype-environment interactions. (SLD)

Claims little factual evidence exists for proposition that child rearing styles and family environments are formative of personality traits. Contends nonintellectual traits seem to be determined instead by genetic influences and relatively specific environmental influences, most of which are particularly tied to the family or parental treatments.…