On the genetic and environmental sources of social and political participation in adolescence and early adulthood

Abstract

Political participation (POP), social participation (SOP), and political interest (PI) are important indicators of social status and social inequality. Previous studies on related trait differences yielded genetic and environmental contributions. However, focusing on adult samples, classical twin designs, and convenience samples often restricts parameter estimation and generalizability, and limits the understanding of age differences. We investigated sources of variance in POP, SOP, and PI in late adolescence and early adulthood with an extended twin family design (ETFD). We analyzed data from over 2,000 representative German twin families. Individual environments not shared by family members reflected the major source of variance for all variables, but genetic influences were also pronounced. Genetic effects were mostly higher for young adults, whereas effects of twins’ shared environment were significant in adolescence. Our study deepens the understanding of the interplay between genetic and environmental factors in shaping differences in young persons’ integration in society.

The German Twin Family Panel (TwinLife)

“…Another current research focus in TwinLife is on social and political integration as an indicator of social inequality. In this vein, Kornadt et al (2018) analyzed the genetic and environmental sources of variance in political interest and evaluated political and social participation using a nuclear twin family design (NTFD), a specific form of the ETFD. Hufer et al (2019) further investigated political orientation.…”

Integrating the study of personality and psychopathology in the context of gene‐environment correlations across development

“…Twin studies also provide support for active rGE processes. For example, in an extended twin family study that investigated individual differences in political interest and participation, shared environmental effects were stronger in adolescence, whereas genetic effects were stronger in early adulthood (Kornadt et al, 2018). That is, active rGE influences increased over time, with genetically mediated aspects of personality shaping the environment.…”

The winding roads to adulthood: a twin study

“…However, much less is known about the genetic and environmental aetiology of individual differences in traits especially salient in emerging adulthood, such as identity, aspirations, and relationships. Two exceptions are political orientation and participation (Hufer, Kornadt, Kandler, & Riemann, 2020; Kornadt, Hufer, Kandler, & Riemann, 2018) and religiousness (Koenig, McGue, & Iacono, 2008). Interestingly, these studies generally suggest greater genetic influence and less shared environmental influence in emerging adulthood than in adolescence, especially for political ideology (Hatemi & McDermott, 2012).…”

“…A less obvious possibility is that, despite the heterogeneity of environmental experiences in emerging adulthood, genetic influence on individual differences remains substantial, which is the trend found in the few relevant twin studies of emerging adulthood (Hufer et al, 2020; Koenig et al, 2008; Kornadt et al, 2018). One major mechanism by which genotypes become phenotypes is by affecting how individuals select, modify and create experiences in part on the basis of their genetic propensities.…”