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Culture is reducing genetic heritability and superseding genetic adaptation

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 September 2022

Timothy M. Waring Open the ORCID record for Timothy M. Waring [Opens in a new window] ,
Zachary T. Wood Open the ORCID record for Zachary T. Wood [Opens in a new window]  and
Mona J. Xue
Timothy M. Waring
Affiliation:
School of Economics, Mitchell Center for Sustainability Solutions, University of Maine, Orono, ME 04469, USAtimothy.waring@maine.edu; https://timwaring.info/
Zachary T. Wood
Affiliation:
School of Biology and Ecology and Maine Center for Genetics in the Environment, University of Maine, Orono, ME 04469, USAzachary.t.wood@maine.edu; https://ztwood.weebly.com/
Mona J. Xue
Affiliation:
Department of Human Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Peabody Museum, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA. monajixue@gmail.com
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Abstract

Uchiyama et al. reveal how group-structured cultural variation influences measurements of trait heritability. We argue that understanding culture's influence on phenotypic heritability can clarify the impact of culture on genetic inheritance, which has implications for long-term gene–culture coevolution. Their analysis may provide guidance for testing our hypothesis that cultural adaptation is superseding genetic adaptation in the long term.

Type
Open Peer Commentary
Information
Behavioral and Brain Sciences , Volume 45 , 2022 , e179
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Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2022. Published by Cambridge University Press

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