Nature-nurture debate continues

It’s long been held that for folks suffering from emotional and behavioral conditions such as panic, anxiety, OCD, and so on, the genesis of their disorder could be traced to heredity, or via shaping by their environment, or both. Certain people were deemed to be more genetically vulnerable than others.

Anxiety Insights reports that new studies in the area of gene-by-environment interaction (GXE) surrounding the so-called “genetic vulnerability to adversity” is causing scientists to take another look.

The new thinking is that those with the “vulnerability” gene are not only more likely to be adversely impacted by negative experiences, but also more prone to benefit from positive environments, and they are noted as being more “malleable or plastic”, not just vulnerable.

Long story short – it’s not just vulnerability, it’s that these kinds of folks are more affected by all environmental conditions, both negative and positive.

“Our analysis of many published findings suggests that one potential solution to the nature-nurture controversy is to appreciate the role played by environmental experience and the role played by heredity in shaping who we are may actually differ across people,” said Prof Belsky.

Is it just me, or does it seem like this concept isn’t really breaking any new ground?

If there is a breakthrough here, it would be using this information to expand genetic research and gnome mapping to be able to someday identify the specific hereditary factors at work, which would allow a more tailored therapy approach based on the unique DNA of each individual.

From the article: “This could mirror the trend we are now seeing towards personalized medicine, where an understanding of the genetic make-up of an individual determines the type of drugs used to treat the patient based on their DNA,” said Prof Belsky.

Reframing the Nature-Nurture Debate , via Anxiety Insights