Do Biological Factors, Like Genes, Contribute to a Students Classroom Behavior?

Behavior often is species specific. People are distinctly different from all other species, for example no other mammal would destroy a habitat with callus afterthought. Also no animal period has as complex a mating process as humans. The actions themselves are simple, but the process of getting is complicated. These distinct actions all show that the human species’ has specific behavior.

Behaviors change in response to alterations in biological structures or processes. For example, a brain injury can turn a polite, mild-mannered person into a foul-mouthed, aggressive boor, and we routinely modify the behavioral manifestations of mental illnesses with drugs that alter brain chemistry. In humans, some behaviors run in families. For example, there is a clear familial aggregation of mental illness.

A newly evolving section of Serendip, focusing on the questions

• Why do I behave the way I do? Why do they?  
• Who am I? Who are they?
• How did I/they get to be this way?
• What can I/they/we do about it?

What implications does behavioral genetics research have for society?
[text provided by Joseph McInerney and Mark Rothstein]

"Researchers in the field of behavioral genetics have asserted claims for a genetic basis of numerous physical behaviors, including homosexuality, aggression, impulsivity, and nurturing. A growing scientific and popular focus on genes and behavior has contributed to a resurgence of behavioral genetic determinism—the belief that genetics is the major factor in determining behavior. "

Guide 1.2 Factors Instigating Learning, Behavior, and Emotional Problems