Nature and Nurture: An Introduction to Human Behavioral Genetics

by Robert Plomin

* Brief, accessible overview of methods and findings of behavioral genetics written by a leading scholar in the field.

Unlike the encyclopedia, detailed and more advanced behavior genetics books currently available, Nature and Nurture has been written to fill a need for a brief, accessible book that "gives behavioral genetics away" to the interested reader.

Emphasizing both environmental and hereditary influences, Plomin provides a balanced overview of the field with succinct coverage of theory, research, and methods. And throughout, he conveys the excitement the field has generated in providing new ways to look at issues in the social and behavioral sciences.

Genres: Science, Psychology, Nonfiction, Genetics, Academic

176 pages, Paperback

First published February 5, 1996

About the author

Robert J. Plomin (born 1948 in Chicago, Illinois) is an American psychologist best known for his work in twin studies and behavior genetics.
Plomin earned a B.A. in psychology from DePaul University in 1970 and a Ph.D. in psychology in 1974 from the University of Texas, Austin under personality psychologist Arnold Buss. He then worked at the Institute for Behavioral Genetics at the University of Colorado at Boulder. From 1986 until 1994 he worked at Pennsylvania State University, studying elderly twins reared apart and twins reared together to study aging and is currently at the Institute of Psychiatry (King's College London). He has been president of the Behavior Genetics Association, which in 2002 awarded him the Dobzhansky Memorial Award for a Lifetime of Outstanding Scholarship in Behavior Genetics. He was awarded the William James Fellow Award by the Association for Psychological Science in 2004 and the 2011 Lifetime Achievement Award of the International Society for Intelligence Research. Plomin was ranked among the 100 most eminent psychologists in the history of science (in Review of General Psychology, 2002).

Reviews

[ece · Rating 4 out of 5]

"As the pendulum of fashion swings from environmental to biological determinism, it is important that it be caught mid-swing, because behavioral genetic research clearly demonstrates that both nature and nurture are important un human development" summarizes the premise of the book. A nice intro to developmental behavioral genetics.

[Matthias · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an excellent introduction to behavioral genetics. Plomin wrote it specifically for the layman. It also serves as a good refresher for those who may be a little rusty on the basic concepts (like I was).

[Baileyajayi · Rating 3 out of 5]

i branched outside of neuroscience
was okay
was a bit reductionist