Do depression and anti-social behavior come from our genes, or do they stem from our childhood experiences? This debate over "nature versus nurture" has swung back and forth over the years as researchers grapple with the causes of mood and behavior problems.
The emerging truth being assembled by psychologists, neuroscientists and sociologisfts is that our genetic inheritance (nature) and our upbringing (nurture) are in a never-ending tangle of causes and effects. Only recently has the science become available to see where these two spheres meet.
A two-day conference sponsored by Duke's Center for Child and Family Policy will bring together an international assembly of some of the leading thinkers on this frontier. "Gene-Environment Interactions in Developmental Psychopathology: So What?" will be held May 18 and 19 at the Sanford Institute for Public Policy. The event is free and open to the public.
"Duke is rapidly becoming the world epicenter of research on gene-environment interactions in psychopathology," says Kenneth Dodge, professor and director of the Center for Child and Family Policy. The conference will discuss how genes and the environment work together to shape an individual, Dodge says.
The first panel on Monday, which includes Duke psychology and neuroscience professor Avshalom Caspi and Ahmad Hariri, who is joining Duke's faculty this summer, will explore the frontiers of basic science. Hariri will share some of his latest work combining brain imaging with genomics in a way that visualizes subtle differences between brains. "This is the hottest work going on right now, the frontier of two fields of biology," Caspi says.
A second panel will explore how understanding gene-environment interactions may be used to improve clinical care and prevention. The final panel on Tuesday, which includes Duke's Jane Costello and Robert Cook-Deegan of Duke's Institute for Genome Sciences and Policy, will ask how social policy might effect change without tilting too far toward social engineering.
Professor Sir Michael Rutter of King's College London, who Caspi calls "the most important child psychologist of the 20th Century," will provide the plenary address before the panels, as well as closing remarks.
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Conference: Gene-Environment Interactions in Developmental Psychopathology: So What? 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday, May 18; 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., Tuesday, May 19 Free and open to the public; registration required. Sanford Institute of Public Policy Information: For a full schedule of events and to register for the conference, go to: tinyurl.com/d3w59f.