title: Heritability of Intraindividual Mean and Variability of Positive and Negative Affect.
abstract: Positive affect (e.g., attentiveness) and negative affect (e.g., upset) fluctuate over time. We examined genetic influences on interindividual differences in the day-to-day variability of affect (i.e., ups and downs) and in average affect over the duration of a month. Once a day, 17-year-old twins in the United Kingdom ( N = 447) rated their positive and negative affect online. The mean and standard deviation of each individual's daily ratings across the month were used as the measures of that individual's average affect and variability of affect. Analyses revealed that the average of negative affect was significantly heritable (.53), but the average of positive affect was not; instead, the latter showed significant shared environmental influences (.42). Fluctuations across the month were significantly heritable for both negative affect (.54) and positive affect (.34). The findings support the two-factor theory of affect, which posits that positive affect is more situational and negative affect is more dispositional.
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Psychology, Simon Fraser University.|2 Child & Family Research Institute, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
authors.forename: Yao
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zheng
authors.affiliation: 3 Medical Research Council Social, Genetic & Developmental Psychiatry Centre, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London.
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Plomin
authors.affiliation: 4 Department of Psychology, Goldsmiths, University of London.
authors.forename: Sophie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: von Stumm
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000339:Affect / Q000502:physiology*; D000368:Aged; D004777:Environment; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007206:Individuality; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010551:Personality / Q000502:physiology; D019655:Quantitative Trait, Heritable; D018433:Twin Studies as Topic; D014429:Twins, Dizygotic / Q000235:genetics*; D014430:Twins, Monozygotic / Q000235:genetics*; D006113:United Kingdom; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: daily diary; heritability; positive and negative affect; twin study; two-factor theory