About this episode

The episode explores the influence of genetics on human behavior and its implications for understanding culpability in actions.

How much do our genes determine about our lives, and could they influence traits like risk-taking, antisocial behaviour or even violence? Ian Sample talks to Kathryn Paige Harden, a behavioural geneticist and professor of psychology at the University of Texas at Austin who studies how genetic factors shape human behaviour. In her book Original Sin she explores how nature and nurture combine to influence our likelihood of committing crimes, and asks whether the ‘cause’ of our actions matters for how we think about culpability. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/sciencepod

People in this episode

Host: Ian Sample

Guest: Kathryn Paige Harden

Topics covered

• genetics
• behavior
• crime
• psychology
• nature vs nurture

Keywords

• genes
• behavior
• antisocial
• risk-taking
• violence
• culpability
• nature vs nurture

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: University of Texas at Austin

Books & works: Original Sin

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