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Cultural dynamics add multiple layers of complexity to behavioural genetics

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 September 2022

Laurel Fogarty  and
Nicole Creanza Open the ORCID record for Nicole Creanza [Opens in a new window]
Laurel Fogarty
Affiliation:
Department of Human Behavior, Ecology, and Culture, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, 04103 Leipzig, Germany laurel_fogarty@eva.mpg.de; https://www.eva.mpg.de/ecology/staff/laurel-fogarty/index.html
Nicole Creanza
Affiliation:
Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37212, USA. nicole.creanza@vanderbilt.edu; http://nicolecreanza.com
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Abstract

As emphasized in early cultural evolutionary theory, understanding heritability of human traits – especially, behavioural traits – is difficult. The target article describes important ways that culture can enhance, or obscure, signatures of heritability in genetic studies. Here, we discuss the utility of calculating heritability for behavioural traits influenced by cultural evolution and point to conceptual and technical complications to consider in future models.

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Type
Open Peer Commentary
Information
Behavioral and Brain Sciences , Volume 45 , 2022 , e161
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Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2022. Published by Cambridge University Press

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