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Genes obviously guide our physical development, but they also have a profound impact on our cognitive and social development. Even if genes do not operate in a vacuum, they influence our personality in very different ways -  by determining the reactivity of neurotransmitters, etc-. I believe that any genetic influence will emerge only if certain environmental supports are in place. Therefore, any characteristic that is shaped by genes is also liked to be shaped by the environment. Mental illnesses  are described by modern theorists by using a diathesis-stress model. The diathesis  is the predisposition toward a mental disorder, while the stress is a trigger that turns the risk into an actual disorder.