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Science 12 October 1990:
Vol. 250. no. 4978, pp. 223 - 228
DOI: 10.1126/science.2218526
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Articles

Science, Vol 250, Issue 4978, 223-228
Copyright © 1990 by American Association for the Advancement of Science

articles

Sources of human psychological differences: the Minnesota Study of Twins Reared Apart

TJ Bouchard Jr, DT Lykken, M McGue, NL Segal, and A Tellegen

Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis 55455.

Since 1979, a continuing study of monozygotic and dizygotic twins, separated in infancy and reared apart, has subjected more than 100 sets of reared-apart twins or triplets to a week of intensive psychological and physiological assessment. Like the prior, smaller studies of monozygotic twins reared apart, about 70% of the variance in IQ was found to be associated with genetic variation. On multiple measures of personality and temperament, occupational and leisure-time interests, and social attitudes, monozygotic twins reared apart are about as similar as are monozygotic twins reared together. These findings extend and support those from numerous other twin, family, and adoption studies. It is a plausible hypothesis that genetic differences affect psychological differences largely indirectly, by influencing the effective environment of the developing child. This evidence for the strong heritability of most psychological traits, sensibly construed, does not detract from the value or importance of parenting, education, and other propaedeutic interventions.


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Sources of human psychological differences: the Minnesota Study of Twins Reared Apart.
T. Bouchard Jr, D. Lykken, M McGue, N. Segal, and A Tellegen (1990)
Science 250, 223-228
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