Genetics and Behavior

Those who study the role of genetics in human behaviour make the assumption that

• All behaviours are the result of a single gene.

• Behaviour is learned.

• Environmental factors play no role in human behaviour.

• Behaviour has a biological origin

The theory that our genes make us vulnerable to certain behaviours that may develop as a result of environmental stimuli is called ...

• Phenotype

• Behavioural genetics model

• Reductionism

• Diathesis Stress Model

The key accomplishment of the Human Genome Project was

• Developing treatments for disorders like schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.

• Determining how many genes humans have and their location on chromosomes.

• Identifying difference in male and female genotypes.

• Identifying the function of all human genes

Which of the following is an example of stigmatization?

• When you find out from a genetic test that you are not the child of the man you call your father.

• When you withdraw from a study of genetics because you are worried about the potential results.

• When you develop a disorder because you know you have the gene.

• When you are not given a job because your genetic code shows that may develop bipolar disorder.

Which of the following is not an ethical concern in genetic research?

• The need to keep the participants' data anonymous.

• All of these are ethical considerations in genetic research.

• The ability of the participants to give informed consent.

• Potential undue stress or harm

What was the key finding of Wilhelm et al's (2009) study on participant attitudes toward genetic testing?

• Participants felt more negative feelings than positive feelings about receiving results that they had the 5HHT allele for depression.

• Participants often felt stigmatized by the results of their genetic tests.

• Participants felt more positive feelings than negative feelings about receiving results that they had the 5HHT allele for depression.

• Participants often were unable to understand the implications of their genetic test results.

Which terms describes what potentially might happen when you get a genetic test result that says that you have a gene related to depression and then you begin to show the symptoms?

• Reactivity

• Self-fulfilling prophecy

• Medical student syndrome

• Placebo effect

Which of the following statements is not true regarding genetic inheritance?

• Genetics is destiny.

• Changes to diet and exercise can potentially help us avoid gene expression of negative traits.

• Stress reduction could play a key role in avoiding gene expression of negative traits.

• Behaviour is often the result of genetic interacting with stimuli from the environment.

The field of epigenetics studies ....

• genetic inheritence in animal samples

• the interaction of genetic inheritence and environmental stimuli

• the inheritence of learned traits

• how genes and behaviour evolve over time

Why is the concordance rate of monozygotous (MZ) twins almost never 100%?

• Even though both twins have all the same genes, those genes are not all expressed.

• It is a myth that monozygotous twins have the same DNA.

• Everyone makes some errors in answering psychological tests; it is just the margin of error.

• This is due to social desirability effect; twins want to have their own identity and therefore do not have population validity