Search

Uchiyama et al. question heritability estimates in a convincing manner. We offer additional arguments to further bolster their claims, highlighting methodological issues in heritability coefficients' derivation, their misuse in various contexts, and their potential contributions to exacerbating common erroneous intuitions that have been shown to lead to deleterious social phenomena. We conclude that science should move away from using them.

The idea that differentiated selves almost always improve group outcomes is overly simplistic. We argue that it is essential to distinguish between two distinct elements of differentiated selves - identifiability and specialization - and to identify conditions under which they influence group outcomes. Adopting a group-by-situation perspective, in which group and situation variables are considered jointly, is recommended to generate novel hypotheses.

Traditional lay perceptions of genetics are plagued with essentialist biases leading to some unfortunate consequences. Changes in the scientific understanding of heredity in general, and in genotype-phenotype relationships more specifically, provide a vital basis for shifting public understanding of genetics. Facilitating postgenomic literacy among the public has the potential to have translational implications in diminishing deleterious attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors.