title: Childhood temperament: passive gene-environment correlation, gene-environment interaction, and the hidden importance of the family environment.
abstract: Biological parents pass on genotypes to their children, as well as provide home environments that correlate with their genotypes; thus, the association between the home environment and children's temperament can be genetically (i.e., passive gene-environment correlation) or environmentally mediated. Furthermore, family environments may suppress or facilitate the heritability of children's temperament (i.e., gene-environment interaction). The sample comprised 807 twin pairs (mean age = 7.93 years) from the longitudinal Wisconsin Twin Project. Important passive gene-environment correlations emerged, such that home environments were less chaotic for children with high effortful control, and this association was genetically mediated. Children with high extraversion/surgency experienced more chaotic home environments, and this correlation was also genetically mediated. In addition, heritability of children's temperament was moderated by home environments, such that effortful control and extraversion/surgency were more heritable in chaotic homes, and negative affectivity was more heritable under crowded or unsafe home conditions. Modeling multiple types of gene-environment interplay uncovered the complex role of genetic factors and the hidden importance of the family environment for children's temperament and development more generally.
authors: Department of Psychology, P.O. Box 871104, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287-1104, USA. klemery@asu.edu
authors: Kathryn
authors: K
authors: Lemery-Chalfant
authors: Karen
authors: K
authors: Kao
authors: Gregory
authors: G
authors: Swann
authors: H Hill
authors: HH
authors: Goldsmith
mesh_terms: D002648:Child; D005190:Family / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D059647:Gene-Environment Interaction; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012931:Social Environment; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013694:Temperament / Q000502:physiology*; D014427:Twins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000523:psychology
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