Causes of Variation in Cognition, Behavior, and the Nature-Nurture Interface

A comprehensive set of question-and-answer flashcards covering major concepts from the lecture notes on individual differences in cognition, biosocial criminology, public perceptions of nature versus nurture, gender debates, and sex differences in executive function.

What was the main limitation of the traditional approach in animal cognition research?

It largely ignored inter- and intra-individual variation, making it hard to understand how natural selection shapes cognitive abilities.

Why is repeatability important when measuring individual cognitive performance?

Consistent performance across repeated tests indicates a stable phenotypic trait on which natural selection can act.

Which two common inhibitory-control tasks were found not to correlate at the individual level, challenging test validity?

The detour-reaching task and the A-not-B task.

In humans, roughly what percentage of variance in general intelligence has been linked to resting-state brain network activity?

About 20%.

How can environmental enrichment affect the heritability of cognitive performance in mice?

It can reduce heritability to nearly zero, showing strong environment-gene interactions.

Give an example of how physical environment influences brain anatomy in animals.

Sticklebacks reared in visually restricted tanks developed larger olfactory bulbs and smaller optic tecta, shifting reliance from visual to chemical cues.

What short-term environmental manipulation improved cognitive performance in laboratory mice within 16 days?

Environmental enrichment (e.g., toys, tunnels, running wheels).

How can growing up in larger social groups affect cognition in social species?

It can enhance associative and reversal learning, spatial memory, and inhibitory control.

Define 'cognitive style' in the context of personality.

'Cognitive style' is the consistent way individuals perceive, gather, and act on information, influenced by personality traits.

Give one example where superior cognitive ability was linked to reduced fitness in the wild.

Pheasants that were faster reversal learners had lower survival after release.

Why may stabilizing selection be common for cognitive traits?

Because information processing is energetically costly, extreme high or low cognition can be disadvantageous, favoring intermediate performance.

List the four methodological ‘Multiple’ recommendations for future cognition research.

Multiple tests, multiple internal/external states, multiple traits, and multiple fitness proxies.

What is the key distinction between causation and causes of variation?

Causation identifies necessary factors for any individual’s phenotype, whereas causes of variation identify which factors explain differences among individuals.

Why did factor analysis of Morris water-maze data matter for studying learning?

It revealed non-memory factors (e.g., thigmotaxis) that accounted for more individual variation than memory, exposing subtle genetic effects.

What proportion of variance across a battery of learning tasks was explained by ‘general learning ability’ (GCA) in heterogeneous mice?

Approximately 38%.

State one advantage of using animal models to study causes of behavioral variation.

Animals allow greater experimental control and invasive methods that isolate dominant causes of variation more easily than in humans.

What percentage of variation in antisocial and criminal behavior is estimated to be heritable, according to behavioral genetics?

Up to about 60%.

Describe the MAOA × childhood abuse interaction found in biosocial criminology.

Individuals with low-activity MAOA who experienced childhood abuse were far more likely to develop antisocial behavior and commit violent crime.

Which biological trait is considered one of the strongest predictors of future criminal behavior?

Low resting heart rate (a psychophysiological marker).

Name the four core concepts of Social Learning Theory (SLT).

Differential association, definitions, differential reinforcement, and imitation.

How can genotype influence peer association in SLT?

Through active gene–environment correlation, biologically influenced traits affect the selection of friends and delinquent peers.

Give an example of non-social reinforcement in criminal behavior.

The physiological ‘high’ (arousal) some offenders experience while committing crimes, reinforcing the act independently of social approval.

Why do many people view heavy ‘nature’ explanations for crime as socially dangerous?

They fear it legitimizes inequality, encourages fatalism, reduces accountability, and may lead to discrimination or punitive policies.

What public benefit is often linked to emphasizing ‘nurture’ causes of antisocial behavior?

It supports non-punitive interventions like education and therapy, and shares blame with society rather than solely the individual.

During which period did psychology of gender focus predominantly on sociocultural (nurture) explanations?

Before the 1980s, influenced by the feminist movement.

Which two disciplines drove the resurgence of ‘nature’ explanations for gender differences after the 1980s?

Evolutionary psychology and neuroscience.

How does meta-analysis aid the nature–nurture debate in gender research?

By aggregating data to estimate effect sizes, test moderators, and reveal whether differences vary with context or remain uniform.

What does the ‘biosocial constructionist’ theory propose about gender roles?

Sociocultural division of labor based on physical sex differences shapes gender norms, which interact with biology and reinforce masculine and feminine behaviors.

Define ‘evoked culture’ as used in evolutionary psychology.

Environmentally triggered expression of evolved, inherited behavioral strategies.

Overall, what conclusion did Grissom & Reyes (2019) draw about baseline sex differences in executive function?

There is little evidence for large, consistent sex differences in executive functions.

In decision-making tasks like the Iowa Gambling Task, what strategy difference often explains apparent male advantages?

Women tend to avoid decks with frequent small losses, whereas men tolerate them for larger long-term gains; when loss frequency is controlled, performance equalizes.

Which sex typically shows greater sensitivity to increased task difficulty in attention tasks, according to animal studies?

Females are more adversely affected by escalating task difficulty.

Why might males outperform females in the radial arm maze, yet not in other working memory tasks?

The maze relies on global spatial cues favored by male strategies, not on superior working memory per se.

Give an example of a sex-specific effect of prenatal adversity on attention.

Prenatal glucocorticoid exposure increased inattention mainly in girls, not boys.

What neurotransmitter systems show sex differences relevant to executive function?

Dopamine, serotonin, GABA, and glutamate systems.

Explain Lesson #2 from biology about studying variation using scurvy and PKU.

A trait is labeled ‘environmental’ or ‘genetic’ depending on which factor varies in the population: scurvy varies with diet (vitamin C), PKU varies with the gene mutation.

How can frequency-dependent selection maintain cognitive variation in a population?

When the fitness value of a cognitive strategy depends on how many others in the population use it, preventing fixation of a single optimal trait.

What is meant by ‘domain-generality’ in cognition, and which evidence supports it in humans?

A single underlying factor (‘g’) influences performance across diverse tasks; humans show strong positive correlations among different cognitive tests.

Why is using ‘multiple internal and external states’ recommended in cognition studies?

To test whether cognitive performance rankings remain stable across contexts like hunger or reproductive state, revealing plasticity drivers.

How can low repeatability (R ≈ 0.15–0.28) in cognitive tasks be explained?

Learning effects across trials, motivation changes, or measurement error can reduce apparent consistency across tests.

What is an example of environmental toxins influencing criminal behavior?

Prenatal exposure to lead is linked to later delinquency and violent crime.

How might hormones explain the male–female gap in offending rates?

Higher average testosterone in males is associated with increased aggression and risk-taking behaviors.

What are the four ‘troublesome noise’ factors often confounding cognitive tests?

Motivation, attention, prior experience, and non-cognitive behavioral tendencies.

Why is combining experimental and correlational approaches considered essential?

Experiments reveal causal mechanisms, while correlational studies quantify how much each factor contributes to variation under real-world complexity.

What key public concern arises from deterministic genetic explanations of behavior?

They may foster fatalism and undermine personal or societal efforts to change behavior.

In biosocial criminology, what does ‘differential susceptibility’ refer to?

Genetic variants modulate an individual's sensitivity to social rewards and punishments, altering reinforcement patterns.

What feedback loop can occur between cognition and social environment?

Cognitive ability influences social rank, which in turn shapes experiences that further affect cognitive development.

How does personality potentially produce different ‘cognitive styles’?

Stable behavioral traits lead individuals to prefer distinct information-gathering and decision-making strategies.

What is meant by ‘multivariate selection’ on cognitive traits?

Selection acts simultaneously on multiple, correlated cognitive and non-cognitive traits, affecting evolutionary outcomes.