WEEK 3

Puberty
The period of rapid physical maturation involving

hormonal and bodily changes that takes place primarily in

early adolescence
While puberty is thought of as the most important marker
for the beginning of adolescence, for virtually everyone,
puberty ends long before adolescence is exited

Determinants of Puberty
We do not know precisely what initiates puberty, a

number of complex factors are involved:

Changes in the endocrine system

Weight
Body fat
Leptin

Determinants of Puberty
We do not know if these complex factors are a cause or a

consequence of puberty (Susman & Dorn, 2009)

There is increased interest in the role that birth weight,
rapid weight gain in infancy, obesity, and sociocultural
factors might play in pubertal onset and characteristics

Heredity
Puberty is not an environmental accident
Programmed into the genes of every human being is the
timing for the emergence of puberty (Mueller & others,
2010)
Recently, scientists have begun to conduct molecular

genetic studies in an attempt to identify specific genes

that are linked to the onset and progression of puberty (He
& others, 2010; Paris & others, 2010)

Heredity
Puberty takes place between about 9 and 16 years of age

for most individuals

Environmental factors can also influence its onset and
duration (Belsky & others, 2010)

Hormones
Hormones: Powerful chemical substances secreted by the

endocrine glands and carried throughout the body by the

bloodstream (Divall & Radovick, 2008)
Androgens: The main class of male sex
hormones

Estrogens: The main class of female sex

hormones

Hormones
Testosterone is an androgen
Plays an important role in male pubertal development
Rising testosterone levels are associated with a number of

physical changes in boys:

Development of external genitals

Increase in height

Voice changes (Campbell & Mbizo, 2006; Goji & others, 2009)

Also linked to sexual desire and activity (Cameron, 2004)

Hormones
Estradiol is an estrogen
Plays an important role in female pubertal development
As estradiol levels rise changes in girls occur:

Breast development

Uterine development

Skeletal changes

The identity of hormones that contribute to sexual desire

and activity in adolescents is less clear for girls than it is for

boys (Cameron, 2004)

The Endocrine System

Puberty onset involves the activation of the

hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis

Hypothalamus
Structure in the higher portion of the brain that monitors eating,
drinking and sex
Pituitary gland
The endocrine gland that regulates other glands and secretes FSH
and LH
Thyroid gland
Interacts with the pituitary gland to influence growth and skeletal
maturation
Gonads
The sex glands testes in males, ovaries in females that secrete
sex hormones

Figure 2.2 - The Major Endocrine Glands Involved in

Pubertal Change

Figure 2.3 - The Feedback System of Sex Hormones

LH-RF (luteinizing hormone-releasing

factor) and FSH-RF (follicle- stimulating
hormone-releasing factor) stimulate
pituitary gland
LH (luteinizing hormone) and FSH
(follicle- stimulating hormone)
stimulate gonads
Gonads: testes in males, ovaries in
females

Adrenarche and Gonadarche

Adrenarche involves hormonal changes in the adrenal

glands
These changes occur surprisingly early, from about 6 to 9

years of age in girls and about one year later in boys before
what is generally considered the beginning of puberty
(Dorn & others, 2006)

During adrenarche and continuing through puberty, the

adrenal glands secrete adrenal androgens, such as

dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) (Miller, 2008)

Adrenarche and Gonadarche

Gonadarche
Follows adrenarche by about two years; is the period most

people think of as puberty

Involves the maturation of:

Primary sexual characteristics: Ovaries in females, testes in males

Secondary sexual characteristics: Pubic hair, breast, and genital

development (Dorn & others, 2006)

The hallmark of gonadarche is reactivation of the hypothalamicpituitary-gonadal axis (HPG). . . . The initial activation of the HPG axis
was during the fetal and neonatal period (Dorn & others, 2006, p. 35)

Adrenarche and Gonadarche

In the United States, the gonadarche period begins at

approximately 9 to 10 years of age in non-Latina white girls,

and 8 to 9 years in African American girls (Herman-Giddens,
Kaplowitz, & Wasserman, 2004)
In boys, gonadarche begins at about 10 to 11 years of age

Adrenarche and Gonadarche

Menarche
The first menstrual period
Occurs in mid- to late-gonadarche in girls
Spermarche
The first ejaculation of semen
Occurs in early- to mid-gonadarche in boys

Weight, Body Fat, and Leptin

Higher weight, especially obesity, is linked to earlier

pubertal development (Kaplowitz, 2009)

A body weight of 106 +/- 3 pounds may trigger menarche and

the end of the pubertal growth spurt (Friesch, 1984)

This specific weight target is not well documented (Susman,
2001)

Other scientists have hypothesized that the onset of

menarche is influenced by the percentage of body fat in

relation to total body weight
A minimum of 17 percent of a girls body weight must be

comprised of body fat

As with the weight target, this percentage has not been
consistently verified

Weight, Body Fat, and Leptin

In boys undernutrition may delay puberty (Susman, Dorn, and

Schiefelbein, 2003)
The hormone leptin may signal the beginning and progression

of puberty

Weight at Birth and in Infancy

There is increasing evidence for a link between pubertys

onset and characteristics and birth weight and weight gain

during infancy (Ong, 2010)
Low birth-weight girls experience menarche approximately

5 to 10 months earlier than normal birth-weight girls

Low birth-weight boys are at risk for small testicular

volume during adolescence (Ibanez & de Zegher, 2006)

Weight at Birth and in Infancy

A recent research review concluded that early growth

acceleration soon after birth that reaches a peak in the

first 2 to 4 years of life predicts very early pubertal onset
for girls (Papadimitriou & others, 2010)

Sociocultural and Environmental Factors

Recent research indicates that cultural variations and

early experiences may be related to earlier pubertal onset
Adolescents in developed countries and large urban areas

reach puberty earlier than their counterparts in less

developed countries and rural areas (Graham, 2005)
Children who have been adopted from developing countries

to developed countries often enter puberty earlier than their

counterparts who continue to live in developing countries
(Teilmann & others, 2002)

Sociocultural and Environmental Factors

African American females enter puberty earlier than Latina

and non-Latina females, and African American males enter

puberty earlier than non-Latino males (Biro & others, 2006;
Talpade, 2008)

Early experiences that are linked to earlier pubertal onset

include adoption, father absence, low socioeconomic
status, family conflict, maternal harshness, and child
maltreatment (Arim & others, 2011; Deardorff & others,
2011; Ellis & others, 2011)

Growth Spurt
Because growth slows throughout childhood, puberty

brings forth the most rapid increases in growth since

infancy
Occurs approximately two years earlier for girls (age 9)

than boys (age 11) on average

The peak of pubertal change occurs at 11 years for girls

and 13 years for boys

Girls increase in height about 3 inches per year; boys,

about 4 inches

Growth Spurt
Weight gain follows roughly the same developmental

timetable as height gain

Girls gain an average of 18 pounds in one year at roughly

12 years of age; boys gain an average of 20 pounds at

roughly 13 to 14 years of age

Girls gain hip width while boys gain shoulder width

Growth Spurt
The later growth spurt of boys produces a greater leg

length in boys than in girls

Boys facial structure becomes more angular during
puberty, whereas girls facial structure becomes rounder
and softer

Figure 2.4 - Pubertal Growth Spurt

Sexual Maturation
Male pubertal characteristics develop in this order:
Increased penis and testicle size
Appearance of straight pubic hair
Minor voice change

First ejaculation (spermarche)

Appearance of kinky pubic hair
Onset of maximum growth

Growth of armpit hair

More detectable voice changes
Growth of facial hair

Sexual Maturation
Female pubertal characteristics develop in this order:
Breast development
Growth of pubic hair
Growth of armpit hair
Height gain
Hips become wider than shoulders
First menstruation (menarche)
No voice changes occur that are comparable to those in

pubertal males

Sexual Maturation
There may be wide individual variations in the onset and

progression of puberty
Precocious puberty: The very early onset and rapid
progression of puberty
Characteristics of precocious puberty (Blakemore & others,

2009, p. 58):

Pubertal onset that occurs before the age of 8 in girls and before the age
of 9 in boys (Dorn & Biro, 2011)
Occurs approximately 10 times more often in girls than in boys
Treated by medically suppressing gonadotropic secretions, which
temporarily stops pubertal change (Kaplowitz, 2009)

Secular Trend
Recent analyses call into question blanket statements that

puberty has continued to rise in recent years

A panel of experts recently examined pubertal timing data and

agreed that breast development and menarche occurred earlier

in girls from 1940 to 1994 but that current data are insufficient
to conclude that earlier pubertal development took place for
boys across this time frame (Euling & others, 2008)
A recent research review concluded that puberty does seem to
be occurring only in overweight girls but that obesity delays
puberty onset in boys (Walvoord, 2010)

Psychological Dimensions of Puberty

Body image
Adolescents are preoccupied with their bodies (Lawler &
Nixon, 2010; Markey, 2010)
Gender differences

In general, throughout puberty girls are less happy with their bodies
and have more negative body images than boys (Crespo & others,
2010)
As pubertal change proceeds, girls often become more dissatisfied with
their bodies, probably because their body fat increases (Markey, 2010;
Yuan, 2010)
In contrast, boys become more satisfied as they move through puberty,
probably because their muscle mass increases

Psychological Dimensions of Puberty

Body art
An increasing number of adolescents and college students are obtaining
tattoos and getting parts of their body pierced (Beznos & Coates, 2007;
Mayers & Chiffriller, 2008)
Researchers do not agree whether body art is used to express
individuality and self-expression or rebellion

Psychological Dimensions of Puberty

Hormones and behavior
Hormonal factors are thought to account for at least part of the

increase in negative and variable emotions that characterize

adolescents (Vermeersch & others, 2008)

In boys, higher levels of androgens are associated with violence and

acting-out problems (Van Goozen & others, 1998)

There is also some indication that increased estrogen levels are linked
to depression in adolescent girls (Blakemore, Berenbaum, & Liben,
2009)

Psychological Dimensions of Puberty

Hormonal factors alone are not responsible for adolescent

behavior

Hormonal activity is influenced by many environmental factors,

including parent-adolescent relationships, stress, eating patterns,
sexual activity, and depression can activate or suppress various aspects
of the hormone system (DeRose & Brooks-Gunn, 2008)

Psychological Dimensions of Puberty

Early and late maturation
When adolescents mature earlier or later than their peers, they
often perceive themselves differently (de Rose & others, 2011;
Graber, Nichols, & Brooks-Gunn, 2010; Negriff, Susman, &
Trickett, 2011)

The Berkeley Longitudinal Study found that early-maturing boys

perceived themselves more positively and had more successful peer
relations than did late-maturing boys.

The findings for early-maturing girls were similar but not as strong as for
boys (Jones, 1965)

An increasing number of researchers have found that early

maturation increases girls vulnerability to a number of

problems (de Rose & others, 2011; Graber, Nichols, &
Brooks-Gunn, 2010; Negriff, Susman, & Trickett, 2011)

Are Pubertys Effects

Exaggerated?

Puberty affects some adolescents more strongly than others,

and some behaviors more strongly than others

If we look at overall development and adjustment over the

human life span, puberty and its variations have less

dramatic effects than is commonly thought for most
individuals
Besides the biological influences on adolescent

development, cognitive and social or environmental

influences also shape who we become (de Rose & BrooksGunn, 2008; Sontag & others, 2008)
Singling out biological changes as the dominant influence

during adolescence may not be wise

Health
Adolescence: A critical juncture in health
Adolescence is a critical juncture in the adoption of behaviors

that are relevant to health (Fatusi & Hindin, 2010)

Many of the behaviors that are linked to poor health habits and
early death in adults begin during adolescence
Why might adolescents develop poor health habits?

In adolescence, many individuals reach a level of health, strength, and

energy that they will never match during the remainder of their lives

They also have a sense of uniqueness and invulnerability that convinces

them that they will never suffer from poor health, or if they do, they will
quickly recover

Health
Increasingly, experts recognize that whether or not adolescents

develop health problems depends primarily on their behavior

(Turbin & others, 2006)
Experts goals are to:
Reduce adolescents health-compromising behaviors, such as

drug abuse, violence, unprotected sexual intercourse, and

dangerous driving
Increase adolescents health-enhancing behaviors, such as

exercising, eating nutritiously, wearing seat belts, and getting

adequate sleep

Risk-Taking Behavior
One type of health-compromising behavior that increases in

adolescence is risk taking (Lynn-Lansman & others, 2010;

Rao & others, 2010)
Beginning in early adolescence, individuals seek experiences

that create high intensity feelings . . . adolescents like intensity,

excitement, and arousal

While these patterns of emotional changes are evident to some degree

in most adolescents, it is important to acknowledge the wide range of
individual differences during this period of development (Dahl, 2004, p.
6)

Risk-Taking Behavior
Researchers also have found that the more resources there

are in the community, such as youth activities and adults

as role models, the less likely adolescents are to engage in
risky behavior (Jessor, 1998; Yancey & others, 2010)
Recently, neurobiological explanations of adolescent risktaking have been proposed (Steinberg, 2009)

Risk-Taking Behavior
What can be done to help adolescents satisfy their motivation for

risk taking without compromising their health?

One strategy is to increase the social capital of a community

(Youngblade & others, 2006)

It is important for parents, teachers, mentors, and other responsible
adults to effectively monitor adolescents behavior (Fang, Schinke,
& Cole, 2010)

Health Services
Adolescents underutilize other health-care systems (Hoover &

others, 2010)
Many adolescents dont believe that health-care providers can

help them
Some health-care providers may want to provide better health
care for adolescents but lack adequate training and/or time
during their visit
Of special concern is the low use of health services by older
adolescent males

Health Services
Among the chief barriers to better health care for adolescents

are cost, poor organization and availability of health services,

lack of confidentiality, and reluctance on the part of health
care providers to communicate with adolescents about
sensitive health issues. (Hoover & others, 2010; Lara-Torre,
2008)

Leading Causes of Death

The three leading causes of death in adolescence and

emerging adults are unintentional injuries, homicide,

and suicide (National Vital Statistics Reports, 2010)
Unintentional injuries
Almost half of all deaths from 15 to 24 years of age are due to

unintentional injuries, approximately of them involving

motor vehicle accidents
In about 50% of motor vehicle fatalities involving adolescents,

the driver has a blood alcohol level of 0.10%twice the level

needed to be designated as under the influence in some
states

Leading Causes of Death

Homicide
Homicide is a leading cause of death in adolescents and
emerging adults, especially among African American males
who are three times more likely to be killed by guns than by
natural causes
Suicide
Suicide is the third-leading cause of death in adolescence and
emerging adulthood
Since the 1950s, the adolescent and emerging adult suicide rate
has tripled, although it has declined in recent years (Ash,
2008)

Emerging Adults Health

Emerging adults have more than twice the mortality rate of

adolescents (Park & others, 2008)

Compared to adolescents, emerging adults engage in more

health-compromising behaviors, have more chronic health

problems, are more likely to be obese, and are more likely to
have a mental health disorder (Irwin, 2010)

Few emerging adults stop to think about how their personal

lifestyles will affect their health later in their adult lives

(Sakamaki & others, 2005)

Emerging Adults Health

The negative effects of abusing ones body might now show

up in emerging adulthood, but they probably will surface

later in early adulthood or in middle adulthood (Rathunde &
Csikszentmihalyi, 2006)

Nutrition
Nutrition is an important aspect of health-compromising and

health-enhancing behaviors (Seo & Sa, 2010; Schiff, 2011;

Spruijt-Metz, 2011)
The eating habits of many adolescents are health-

compromising and an increasing number of adolescents have

an eating disorder (Haley, Hedberg, & Leman, 2010;
Thompson, Manore, & Vaughn, 2011)

Parents play an important role in adolescents nutrition

through the food choices they make available to adolescents,

serving as role models for healthy or unhealthy nutrition,
and including adolescents in regular family meals

Nutrition
Schools also can play an important role in adolescents

eating patterns
A special concern in American culture is the amount of fat in
the diet

Exercise
Researchers have found that individuals become less active

as they reach and progress through adolescence (Pate &

others, 2009)
A recent national study of U.S. 9- to 15-year-olds revealed that

almost all 9- and 11-year-olds met the federal governments

moderate to vigorous exercise recommendations per day (a
minimum of 60 minutes a day), but only 31 percent of 15-yearolds met the recommendations on weekdays and only 17
percent met the recommendations on weekends (Nadar &
others, 2008)

Exercise
Ethnic differences in exercise participation rates of U.S.

adolescents also occur and these rates vary by gender

A comparison of adolescents in 28 countries found that U.S.
adolescents exercised less and ate more junk food than
adolescents in most of the other countries (World Health
Organization, 2000)
U.S. adolescents were more likely to eat fried food and less

likely to eat fruits and vegetables than adolescents in most

other countries studied

Exercise
Exercise is linked to a number of positive outcomes in

adolescence (Sund, Larsson, & Wichstrom, 2010)

The benefits of regular exercise include:
A positive effect on weight status (McMurray & others, 2008)

Reduced triglyceride levels, lower blood pressure, a lower

incidence of type II diabetes, and cardiovascular disease

(Butcher & others, 2008; Lobelo & others, 2010)
Physical fitness in adulthood (Mikkelsson & others, 2006)

Exercise
Higher level of task preparation and response inhibition, which

benefit learning and academic achievement (Stroth & others,

2009)
Lower drug use (Delisle & others, 2010)
Positive sleep patterns (Brand & others, 2010)
A possible buffer against the stress and improvement in mental

health and life satisfaction (Butcher & others, 2008)

Improvement in cognitive skills (Best, 2011)

Roles of Families, Schools, and TV/Computers in Adolescent

Exercise
Families
Parents play an important role in influencing adolescents
exercise patterns (Dugan, 2008)
A recent study revealed that 9- to 13-year-olds were more
likely to engage in physical activity during their free time
when the children felt safe, had a number of places to be
active, and had parents who participated in physical activities
with them (Heitzler & others, 2006)

Roles of Families, Schools, and TV/Computers in Adolescent

Exercise
Schools
Some of the blame for the poor physical condition of U.S.
children and adolescents falls on U.S. schools, many of which
fail to provide physical education class on a daily basis (Pate
& others, 2010; Schmottiach & McManama, 2010)

A recent national survey revealed that only 30% of U.S. 9th through 12th
graders participated in PE classes 5 days in an average school week
(Eaton & others, 2008)

Roles of Families, Schools, and TV/Computers in Adolescent

Exercise

Males (33%) were more likely to participate at this level than females
(27%)
Tenth graders were most likely to regularly take a PE class (47%); 11th
(30%), and 12th graders (31%)

Other research studies have found positive benefits for

programs designed to improve the physical fitness of students

(Timperio, Salmon, & Ball, 2004; Veugelers & Fitzgerald,
2005)

Roles of Families, Schools, and TV/Computers in Adolescent

Exercise
TV/Computers
Screen-based activity may be involved in lower levels of
physical fitness in adolescence (Leatherdale, 2010; Rey-Lopez
& others, 2008; Sisson & others, 2010)
A recent study revealed that children and adolescents who
engaged in the highest amount of daily screen-based activity
were less likely to exercise daily (Sisson & others, 2010)
Children and adolescents who engaged in the low physical
activity and high screen-based activity were almost twice as
likely to be overweight as their more active, less sedentary
counterparts

Sports

Sports can have both positive and negative influences on

adolescent development (Adie, Dude, & Ntoumanis,
2010; Busseri & others, 2010)
Potential positive influences
Many sports activities can improve adolescents physical

health and well-being, self-confidence, motivation to excel,

and ability to work with others (Gaudreau & others, 2009)
Adolescents who participated in sports were less likely to
engage in such risk-taking behaviors as truancy, cigarette
smoking, sexual intercourse, and delinquency (Nelson &
Gordon-Larsen, 2006)

Sports
Potential negative influences:
Pressure to achieve and win, physical injuries, distraction
from academic work, and unrealistic expectations for success
as an athlete (Metzl, 2008)
Pressure by parents and coaches to win at all costs,
competition anxiety, and self-centeredness (Smith & Smoll,
1997)
Injuries (Halstead & others, 2010; Stein & Micheli, 2010)
Use of performance-enhancing drugs, such as steroids (Elliot
& others, 2007)

Sports
Coaches who create a performance-oriented motivational

climate that is focused on winning, public recognition, and

performance relative to others (Roberts, Treasure, &
Kavussanu, 1997)
The female athlete triad: disordered eating, amenorrhea, &
osteoporosis (Misra, 2008; Patano, 2009)

Sleep
There has been a surge of interest in adolescent sleep patterns

(Abe, Hagihara, & Nobutomo, 2010; Fakier & Wild, 2010;

McHale & others, 2010)
In a survey conducted by the National Sleep Foundation

(2006):
45% of the adolescents got inadequate sleep on school nights

(less than eight hours)

Adolescents who got inadequate sleep on school nights were

more likely to feel more tired or sleepy, more cranky and

irritable, fall asleep in school, be in a depressed mood, and drank
caffeinated beverages than their counterparts who got optimal
sleep

Sleep
Mary Carskadon and her colleagues have conducted a number

of research studies on adolescent sleep patterns

They found that when given the opportunity adolescents will

sleep an average of 9 hours and 25 minutes a night. Most get

considerably less than 9 hours of sleep, especially during the
week
Carskadon has suggested that early school starting times may

cause grogginess, inattention in class, and poor performance on

tests

Research indicates that sleep patterns change in emerging

adulthood (Kloss & others, 2011; Wolfson, 2010; Galambos,

Howard, & Maggs, 2011)

Evolution, Heredity, and

Environment
The evolutionary perspective
In terms of evolutionary time, humans are relative

newcomers to the earth

As our earliest ancestors left the forest to feed on the

savannahs, and finally to form hunting societies on the open

plains, their minds and behaviors changed

Evolution, Heredity, and

Environment

Natural selection: The evolutionary process that favors

those individuals of a species who are best adapted to
survive and reproduce

Charles Darwins On the Origin of Species (1859)

Adaptive behavior: A modification of behavior that

promotes an organisms survival in the natural habitat
All organisms must adapt to particular places, climates, food

sources, and ways of life in order to survive

Evolution, Heredity, and

Environment
Evolutionary psychology

Emphasizes the importance of adaptation, reproduction, and

survival of the fittest in explaining behavior
The process of natural selection favors those behaviors that increase
organisms reproductive success and their ability to pass their genes
on to the next generation (Enger, Ross, & Bailey, 2009)

Evolutionary developmental psychology

There is growing interest in using the concepts of evolutionary

psychology to understand human development (Buss, 2011; Greve
& Bjorklund, 2009; Hawley, 2011)

Evolution, Heredity, and

Environment
Evaluating evolutionary psychology
Albert Bandura (1998) has criticized the biologizing of
psychology

He rejects what he calls one-sided evolutionism

Evolution gave humans body structures and biological potentialities, not
behavioral dictates

Stephen Jay Gould (1981) concluded, in most domains, human

biology allows a broad range of cultural possibilities

The Genetic Process

Our many traits and characteristics that are genetically

influenced have a long evolutionary history that is retained

in our DNA
The nucleus of each human cell contains chromosomes

threadlike structures that contain DNA

DNA: A complex molecule that contains genetic information
Genes: Short segments of DNA which direct cells to

reproduce themselves and to assemble proteins

Figure 2.13 - Cells, Chromosomes, Genes, and DNA

The Genetic Process

The number of human genes has been revised further

downward to approximately 21,500 (Ensembl Human,

2008)
Each segment of DNA is not translated, in automation-like
fashion, into one and only protein

The Genetic Process

Rather than being an independent source of information,

DNA collaborates with other sources of information to

specify our characteristics (Diamond, 2009; Diamond,
Casey, & Munakata, 2011)
In short, a single gene is rarely the source of a proteins
genetic information, much less of an inherited trait
(Gottlieb, 2007)

Genotype and Phenotype

A persons genetic heritagethe actual genetic

materialis called a genotype

The way an individuals genotype is expressed in
observed and measurable characteristics is called a
phenotype
Phenotypes include physical traits and psychological

characteristics

For each genotype, a range of phenotypes can be

expressed (Brooker, 2011; Hartwell, 2011; Johnson,

2012)

Heredity-Environment
Interaction
Heredity and environment interact to produce development

Behavior genetics: The field that seeks to discover the

influence of heredity and environment on individual

differences in human traits and development (Goldsmith,
2011; Gregory, Ball, & Button, 2011)
To study the influence of heredity on behavior, behavior

geneticists use twin and adoption studies

Identical twins are monozygotic twins

Fraternal twins are dizygotic twins

Heredity-Environment
Correlations
An individuals genes influence the types of environments to

which they are exposed

Three ways that heredity and environment are correlated

(Scarr, 1993):
Passive genotype-environment correlations
Evocative genotype-environment correlations
Active (niche-picking) genotype-environment correlations

Scarr concludes that the relative influence of the three

genotype-environment correlations changes as children

develop from infancy through adolescence

Figure 2.14 - Exploring Heredity-Environment Correlations

Shared and Non-Shared Environmental Experiences

Behavior geneticists emphasize that another way of

analyzing the environments role in heredity-environment

interaction is to consider experiences that adolescents share
in common with other adolescents living in the same home,
as well as experiences that are not shared (Plomin & others,
2009)
Behavior geneticist Robert Plomin (2004) has found that
common rearing, or shared environment, accounts for little of
the variation in adolescents personality or interests

The Epigenetic View

The heredity-environment correlation view

emphasizes how heredity directs the kind of

environmental experiences individuals have
In line with the concept of the collaborative gene, the
epigenetic view emphasizes that development is the
result of an ongoing, bidirectional interchange
between heredity and the environment (Diamond,
2009; Gottlieb, 2007)

Figure 2.15 - Comparison of the Heredity-Environment Correlation and

Epigenetic Views

Gene x Environment (GxE)

Interaction
An increasing number of studies are exploring how

the interaction between heredity and environment

influences development, including interactions that
involve specific DNA sequences (Caspi & others,
2011; Rutter & Dodge, 2011)
This type of research describes GxE interaction: the
interaction of a specific measured variation in DNA
and a specific measured aspect of the environment
(Diamond, 2009; Dodge & Rutter, 2011)

Conclusions About Heredity-Environment Interaction

Heredity and environment operate together
The relative contributions of heredity and environment are not
additive
Nor is it accurate to say that full genetic expression happens
once, around conception or birth

Genes produce proteins throughout the life span, in many different

environments

The emerging view is that many complex behaviors likely

have some genetic loading gives people a propensity for a

specific developmental trajectory (Goldsmith, 2011; Plomin
& others, 2009)