Genopolitics
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Genopolitics is the study of the genetic basis of political behavior and attitudes. It combines
In 2008,
Twin studies of political attitudes
Psychologists and behavior geneticists began using twin studies in the 1980s to study variation in social attitudes, and these studies suggested that both genes and environment played a role. In particular,
However, this early work did not specifically analyze whether or not political orientations were heritable, and political scientists remained mostly unaware of the heritability of social attitudes until 2005. In that year, the American Political Science Review published a reanalysis of political questions on Martin's social attitude survey of twins in that the suggested liberal and conservative ideology is heritable.[5] The article sparked considerable debate between critics, the authors and their defenders.[6][7][8][9][10][11]
A more recent analysis of multiple twin studies finds that political views are approximately 40 percent heritable. [12]
Twin studies of political behavior
Initial twin studies suggested that predispositions toward espousal of certain political ideas are heritable, but they said little about political behavior (patterns of voting and/or activism) or predispositions toward it. A 2008 article published in the
However, other studies showed that the decision to affiliate with any political party and the strength of this attachment are significantly influenced by genes.[14][15]
Gene association studies
Candidate genes
Scholars therefore recently turned their attention to specific genes that might be associated with political behaviors and attitudes. In the first-ever research to link specific genes to political phenotypes, a direct association was established between voter turnout and monoamine oxidase A (MAO-A) and a gene–environment interaction between turnout and the serotonin transporter (5HTT) gene among those who frequently participated in religious activities.[16] In other research scholars have also found an association between voter turnout and a dopamine receptor (DRD2) gene that is mediated by a significant association between that gene and the tendency to affiliate with a political party.[17][clarification needed] More recent studies show an interaction between friendships and the dopamine receptor (DRD4) gene that is associated with political ideology.[18] Although this work is preliminary and needs replication, it suggests that neurotransmitter function has an important effect on political behavior.
The candidate genes approach to genopolitics received substantial criticism in a 2012 article, published in the American Political Science Review, which argued that many of the candidate genes identified in the above research are associated with innumerable traits and behaviors. The degree to which these genes are associated with so many outcomes thus undermines the apparent important of evidence linking a gene to any particular outcome.[19]
Linkage analysis
Employing a more general approach, researchers used genome-wide linkage analysis to identify chromosomal regions associated with political attitudes assessed using scores on a liberalism-conservativism scale.[20] Their analysis identified several significant linkage peaks and the associated chromosomal regions implicate a possible role for NMDA and glutamate related receptors in forming political attitudes. However, this role is speculative as linkage analysis cannot identify the effect of individual genes.
Other explanations
Associations between genetic markers and political behavior are often assumed to predict a causal connection between the two. Scholars have little incentive to be skeptical of this presumed causal link. Yet it is possible that a confounding factor exists which makes the genetic relationship with politics purely correlative. For instance work on Irish parties, which shows some evidence of a genetic basis for the otherwise inexplicable distinction between the historically two main parties there, is also and more easily explained by socialization.[21]
See also
- Biology and political science, sometimes called biopolitics
- Biology and political orientation
Notes
- Chronicle of Higher Education.
- ^ Biuso, Emily (December 12, 2008). "Genopolitics". New York Times Magazine.
- S2CID 10854801.
- PMID 3459179.
- S2CID 3820911.
- S2CID 56304983.
- S2CID 224481.
- S2CID 12421116. Archived from the original(PDF) on 2014-05-31. Retrieved 2012-07-22.
- S2CID 143243333. Archived from the original(PDF) on 2012-03-08.
- S2CID 55630117.
- S2CID 15466249.
- .
- S2CID 1984498. Archived from the original(PDF) on 2019-11-28. Retrieved 2008-12-16.
- SSRN 1276482.
- S2CID 16489393. Archived from the original(PDF) on 2010-06-16. Retrieved 2008-12-16.
- S2CID 11408064. Archived from the original(PDF) on 2019-11-28. Retrieved 2008-12-16.
- S2CID 203452977. Archived from the original(PDF) on 2019-11-28. Retrieved 2008-12-16.
- ^ Settle, Jaime E.; Christopher T. Dawes; Peter K. Hatemi; Nicholas A. Christakis; James H. Fowler (2008). "Friendships Moderate an Association Between a Dopamine Gene Variant and Political Ideology" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2019-12-10. Retrieved 2008-12-16.
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(help)[clarification needed] - ^ Charney, Evan, and English, William. (2012). Candidate Genes and Political Behavior. American Political Science Review 106(1):1-34.
- doi:10.1017/S0022381610001015. Archived from the original(PDF) on 2015-08-11. Retrieved 2012-07-22.
- S2CID 49524008. Retrieved 18 November 2014.
Further reading
- Fowler, James H.; Darren Schreiber (7 November 2008). "Biology, Politics, and the Emerging Science of Human Nature" (PDF). Science. 322 (5903): 912–914. S2CID 206512952. Archived from the original(PDF) on 25 March 2009. Retrieved 16 December 2008.
- "The Biology of Ideology". Wall Street Journal. May 27, 2008.
- "It's the Genes Stupid". New York Times. Sep 4, 2008.
- "The Genetics of Politics". Scientific American. November 2007.
- "Are Politics Rooted in Your Genes?". CNN. February 11, 2008.
- Carey, Benedict (June 21, 2005). "Some Politics May Be Etched in the Genes". New York Times. Retrieved May 3, 2010.
- Hatemi, P. K.; McDermott, R. (2012). "The genetics of politics: Discovery, challenges, and progress". Trends in Genetics. 28 (10): 525–533. PMID 22951140.
- Byrne, Kevin P.; Eoin O’Malley (2012). "Politics with Hidden Bases: Unearthing the Deep Roots of Party Systems" (PDF). British Journal of Politics and International Relations. 14 (4): 613–629. S2CID 49524008.