The nature and nurture controversy: contributions from the field of behavioral genetics

Abstract

The nature and nurture controversy has become a recurrent topic in 20" century Psychology and still generates debate. Behavioural genetics has traditionally been the scientific approach usaed for the study of the genetic factors influencing psychological and behavioural characteristics. Althoughithad always been somewhat rejected by psychologists and social researchers, over the last years its findings are becoming accepted. This is due to changes in its research topics, more solid methodologies and interesting contributions in the study of environmental influences.

In thisarticle, the methodological and theoretical foundations of hehavioural genetics are presented, as well as its findings on heredability of psychological characteristics and its most recent contributions to the study of environment: genotype-environment correlations and interactions, the importance ofnonshared environment and genetic influence on environmental measures.