A study recently conducted in the University's psychology department shows that disruptive behavior in children may have genetic origins rather than simply stemming from exposure to factors such as familial interactions.
The study analyzed the connection between conflict within a marriage and children's conduct disorder, said Paige Harden, a psychology graduate student leading the research.
Specifically, the purpose of the study was "to find out... whether it was the marital conflict itself that caused the problem" or whether it was the result of "parents with genetic liabilities" who then pass these genes on to their children," Harden said.
What the researchers found was that behavioral problems do have a genetic component, she said.
The study describes this specific relationship in genetic terms, and examines the effects of marital friction on children's development.
According to the study, "there are not genes 'for' arguing with a spouse, but the process of selecting, shaping, and perceiving social environments involves genetically-influenced behaviors and personality attributes."
The research was conducted by observing samples of identical twins "who differed in their marital conflict," Harden said. Researchers then studied how spars between married partners affected their children.
This "Children of Twins design," as it is referred to in the study, tests the link between frequency of conflict in the marriages of twins and the behavior of the children in each of these different marriages.
"The main point," Harden said, "is to try to pull apart [whether it is] the marital conflict itself or the genes."
Despite the results of this research, however, the study noted that "marital conflict is associated with children's conduct problems, as well as with a number of other environmental and genetic risk indicators, but considerable ambiguity remains regarding the processes underlying these associations."
Education Prof. Robert Pianta emphasized that, while the importance of genetics on behavior is "something that's been suspected all along," it is important not to make speculations about the implications of these results for child-discipline techniques.
"I think it's important to recognize that almost any behavior of some sort has a genetic component to it," Pianta said.
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