Question 1

Gillian and Illeana are in the same grade at the same school, but they participate in different extracurricular activities. Their classes are therefore part of ______________, while their extracurricular activities are part of _____________.

Accepted Answer

Their classes represent a shared environment because they are experiences that Gillian and Illeana have in common. Their extracurricular activities, however, are part of an unshared environment because these are experiences that they do not share, reflecting individual differences in their environments.

Question 2

What is one difference between the recently developed technique known as CRISPR/Cas9, and a (gene) knockout procedure?

Accepted Answer

CRISPR/Cas9 is a versatile tool that allows for both the addition and removal of genes, offering more flexibility compared to traditional gene knockout techniques, which primarily focus on gene removal.

Question 3

Some people can roll their tongues into tubes and some can't. Tongue-rolling ability and inability to tongue roll are two versions of the same gene. Each version is called

Accepted Answer

An allele is a variant form of a gene. In the context of tongue-rolling ability, the ability and inability to roll the tongue are determined by different alleles of the same gene.

Question 4

You go to the zoo and observe one panda helping another in an altruistic way. A veterinarian who is about to go check on the pandas sees that you are interested in them and tells you he frequently sees one helping the other out with no obvious benefit to the one doing the helping. If you found out they were related, what theory could best account for their altruistic behaviour?

Accepted Answer

Kin selection theory explains altruistic behavior among related individuals, suggesting that animals are more likely to perform acts of altruism towards their relatives to increase the chances of their shared genes being passed on to future generations.

Question 5

Research suggests that the environment accounts for only about 50 percent of the variation of the divorce rate. If the remaining 50 percent is affected by genes, we can say that 50 is the ___________ for the likelihood of divorce.

Accepted Answer

The heritability coefficient is a measure that reflects the extent to which genetic differences among individuals contribute to individual differences in a behavior or trait, such as the likelihood of divorce, when the environment is held constant. In this context, stating that 50 percent of the variation is affected by genes implies that the heritability coefficient for the likelihood of divorce is 50.

Question 6

Imagine that a researcher estimates the heritability coefficient for a particular trait is extremely low (i.e. close to, if not actually, zero). Given this, all other things being equal, what would you expect the concordance rate to be like for that trait measured among pairs of twins raised in different environments?

Accepted Answer

If the heritability coefficient for a trait is extremely low, it suggests that genetic factors have little to no influence on the variation of that trait in the population. Therefore, the concordance rate (the rate at which both twins exhibit the trait) for that trait among pairs of twins, whether identical or fraternal, raised in different environments would also be expected to be low, as environmental factors would play a more significant role in the expression of that trait.

Question 7

Despite strides made by the feminist movement, women are more likely than men to leave a full-time career to take care of children. Because most modern stressors and challenges can be handled equally well by males and females, proponents of __________________ would argue that this is due not to genetics but to societal norms.

Accepted Answer

Social influence theory suggests that societal norms and expectations significantly shape behaviors and decisions, such as the choice for women to leave careers for childcare, rather than these decisions being driven by biological or genetic factors.

Question 8

Which of the following is not an example of an adaptation applied to human evolution (discussed in your textbook)?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Which of the following is not an...

Question 9

You are reading a history textbook and come across the term 'Social Darwinism'. What does this idea refer to?

Accepted Answer

Social Darwinism is a theory that applies the concept of "survival of the fittest" from Darwin's theory of natural selection to societies, suggesting that more prosperous societies are superior, often in a genetic or cultural sense. This has been used historically to justify imperialism, racism, and laissez-faire economic policies.

Question 10

Evolutionary theory suggests that several personality traits are found in all humans, because they had adaptive functions. These traits are collectively referred to as the

Accepted Answer

The Five Factor Model, also known as the Big Five, is a widely accepted framework in psychology that outlines five broad dimensions of personality: openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism. These traits are considered universal across human cultures and are thought to have evolved due to their adaptive value in dealing with social and environmental challenges.

Question 11

You are trying to interpret the data from a twin study on happiness that was recently published. The researchers measured self-reported happiness across various sets of twins who were either identical or fraternal, and either raised together or apart. If the results indicate that the identical twins raised together were actually not very similar on self-reported measures of happiness at all, what would this suggest?

Accepted Answer

This suggests that factors beyond shared genetics and environment, like unique individual experiences, play a significant role in determining happiness, as identical twins share both genetics and environment but showed dissimilar happiness levels.

Question 12

Evolutionary theory suggests that males are genetically more likely to be promiscuous than females. Some people use this as a flawed argument that men can't be expected to stay faithful. Those people are relying on the idea of

Accepted Answer

The argument is based on genetic determinism, which is the belief that genes determine behavior, including the propensity for promiscuity and faithfulness, without considering the role of environment or personal choice.

Question 13

The Nazis' attempts to wipe out the Jewish people were rooted in the idea that Jews are somehow less fit human beings and that destroying them would remove them from the gene pool. The idea in question is called

Accepted Answer

Eugenics is the belief in improving the genetic quality of the human population, often by excluding people and groups judged to be inferior, and promoting those judged to be superior. The Nazis' genocidal policies against Jews were indeed rooted in a perverted form of eugenics, where they sought to eliminate what they considered "inferior" genes from the human gene pool.

Question 14

Researchers are interested in how heritable intelligence is. Aamina agrees to participate in a study in which her IQ is compared to both her adoptive and her biological parents' IQs. She is participating in a(n) ___________ study.

Accepted Answer

Aamina's participation in a study comparing her IQ with that of her adoptive and biological parents is an example of an adoption study. Adoption studies are used to help understand the influence of genetics (biological parents) versus environment (adoptive parents) on various traits, including intelligence.

Question 15

Though schizophrenia has a strong genetic basis, there is no schizophrenia gene. The disorder must therefore be passed from parent to child via

Accepted Answer

Schizophrenia is influenced by multiple genes, a concept known as polygenic transmission, rather than a single "schizophrenia gene." This means that the risk of developing schizophrenia is associated with the combined effect of many genes, each contributing a small effect towards the overall risk.

Question 16

You are trying to interpret the data from a twin study on happiness that was recently published. The researchers measured self-reported happiness across various sets of twins who were either identical or fraternal, and either raised together or apart. Which of the following sources of variance would you be unable to make statistical statements about, based on this design?

Accepted Answer

The answer of You are trying to interpret the data...

Question 17

What is the term used to refer to changes in gene function that occur as a result of environmental factors?

Accepted Answer

Epigenetics refers to changes in gene expression caused by mechanisms other than changes in the underlying DNA sequence. These changes can be influenced by various environmental factors.

Question 18

What is one key difference between altruism and cooperation?

Accepted Answer

Cooperation involves mutual benefits for all parties involved, whereas altruism involves a cost to the individual performing the act, with the benefit going to another party.

Question 19

Personality theorists have identified five universal personality traits. Proponents of ____________ theory believe that these traits were useful to our ancestors.

Accepted Answer

Evolutionary personality theory suggests that personality traits have evolved because they were beneficial or advantageous for survival and reproduction, thus explaining why these traits are universal among humans.

Question 20

You are trying to interpret the data from a twin study on happiness that was recently published. The researchers measured self-reported happiness across various sets of twins who were either identical or fraternal, and either raised together or apart. If they found that the identical twins raised together were no more similar to each other on a self-reported measure of happiness than the identical twins raised apart, what would that suggest?

Accepted Answer

This result suggests a strong influence of genetic factors, as identical twins raised together and apart show similar levels of happiness, indicating that their shared genetics, rather than their environment, play a significant role in their happiness.

Quiz 4: Genes, Evolution, and Behaviour

Gillian and Illeana are in the same grade at the same school, but they participate in different extracurricular activities. Their classes are therefore part of __, while their extracurricular activities are part of _.