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Gene expression is a dynamic process that is significantly influenced by environmental factors. This interaction underlies the complex nature of biological development and the phenotypic differences observed among individuals, even among those with identical genetic makeups. Factors such as radiation, temperature, behavior, nutrition, and stress play pivotal roles in determining how genes are expressed. The concept of the reaction range is central to understanding this interaction. It posits...
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Parent-child interactions lay the foundation for how we understand relationships throughout life. These interactions are not uniform across families; instead, they are shaped by a range of environmental, emotional, and behavioral factors unique to each caregiver-child dynamic. Social psychologists study these early relationships to understand how patterns formed in infancy influence social functioning and interpersonal behavior in adulthood.Attachment Theory and Early Relational ModelsJohn...
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Updated: Dec 29, 2025

Assessing the Coherence of Parents' Short Narratives Regarding their Child Using the Five-Minute Speech Sample Procedure
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Genes and environment in attachment.

Angelo Picardi1, Eugenia Giuliani2, Antonella Gigantesco1

  • 1Centre for Behavioural Sciences and Mental Health, Italian National Institute of Health, Viale Regina Elena 299, 00161 Rome, Italy.

Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews
|February 5, 2020
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Research on attachment styles shows genetics play a larger role as people develop, but environmental factors also matter. Future studies need more power and better designs to understand gene-environment interactions in attachment.

Keywords:
AttachmentBehavioural geneticsEpigeneticsGene-by-environment interactionMolecular geneticsTwin studies

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Area of Science:

  • Developmental Psychology
  • Behavioral Genetics
  • Molecular Psychiatry

Background:

  • Individual differences in attachment are influenced by genetic and environmental factors.
  • Twin studies indicate a growing role for genetics and decreasing role for shared environment in attachment development.
  • Existing research faces limitations like low statistical power, measurement inconsistencies, and cross-sectional designs.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review the current understanding of genetic and environmental influences on attachment.
  • To identify limitations in existing research and propose future research directions.
  • To explore the potential of epigenetic processes in gene-environment interaction models for attachment.

Main Methods:

  • Review of twin studies on attachment development.
  • Analysis of molecular genetic studies on attachment.
  • Examination of gene-environment interaction research in attachment.

Main Results:

  • Twin study findings suggest increasing genetic influence and decreasing shared environmental influence on attachment over time.
  • Molecular genetic studies on attachment have yielded largely inconclusive and unreplicated findings.
  • Research on genetic effects and gene-environment interactions for attachment is inconsistent and often underpowered.

Conclusions:

  • Further research is needed to identify unshared environmental mechanisms and clarify the role of specific genes and their interactions with the environment in shaping attachment.
  • Epigenetic processes may offer a promising avenue for investigating the complex interplay between genes, environment, and attachment.
  • Robust, well-powered longitudinal studies are crucial for advancing our understanding of attachment development.