Foundations of Behavior Genetics

Have you interacted with anyone today? For nearly everyone, the answer to that question is “yes.” We tend to live with or around other people, and our lives are greatly impacted by their behaviors. Our behaviors impact their lives too. Broadly speaking, animals act in ways that enhance their survival and reproduction. When those behaviors involve others of the same species, we define them as social behaviors. Social psychology is the subdiscipline of psychology that studies how people impact the thoughts, feelings, and behaviors of others. Of course, humans are not the only animals affected by the behaviors of others. Social behavior can be studied in many species and is sometimes even studied between species such as humans and dogs.