title: Familial linkage between neuropsychiatric disorders and intellectual interests.
abstract: From personality to neuropsychiatric disorders, individual differences in brain function are known to have a strong heritable component. Here we report that between close relatives, a variety of neuropsychiatric disorders covary strongly with intellectual interests. We surveyed an entire class of high-functioning young adults at an elite university for prospective major, familial incidence of neuropsychiatric disorders, and demographic and attitudinal questions. Students aspiring to technical majors (science/mathematics/engineering) were more likely than other students to report a sibling with an autism spectrum disorder (p = 0.037). Conversely, students interested in the humanities were more likely to report a family member with major depressive disorder (p = 8.8×10(-4)), bipolar disorder (p = 0.027), or substance abuse problems (p = 1.9×10(-6)). A combined PREdisposition for Subject MattEr (PRESUME) score based on these disorders was strongly predictive of subject matter interests (p = 9.6×10(-8)). Our results suggest that shared genetic (and perhaps environmental) factors may both predispose for heritable neuropsychiatric disorders and influence the development of intellectual interests.
authors.affiliation: Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, United States of America.
authors.forename: Benjamin C
authors.initials: BC
authors.lastname: Campbell
authors.forename: Samuel S-H
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001714:Bipolar Disorder / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics; D002321:Career Choice; D002648:Child; D002659:Child Development Disorders, Pervasive / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics; D016000:Cluster Analysis; D003865:Major Depressive Disorder / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics; D004493:Education; D005190:Family; D008040:Genetic Linkage; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006801:Humans; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics*; D010551:Personality / Q000235:genetics*; D010554:Personality Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics; D013334:Students / Q000523:psychology; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics; D055815:Young Adult