Integrating Behavioral and Molecular Genetics

Despite substantial evidence for the heritability of behavioral and psychiatric disorders, complex modes of inheritance have complicated efforts to identify dispositional genes. New strategies to enhance our ability to detect genes involved in complex disorders are needed. Utilizing behavior genetic techniques to inform molecular analyses provides a potentially powerful strategy. Behavior genetic analyses can measure the extent to which different traits are influenced by the same genes; thus, novel phenotypes can be developed for genetic analyses that more accurately reflect the genetic susceptibilities we are trying to detect. Additionally, behavior genetic analyses can elucidate how specific environmental influences interact with dispositional genes. This information can be incorporated in molecular analyses to enhance our ability to detect susceptibility genes. Finally, once vulnerability regions are identified, clinical psychologists will play an important role in translating this knowledge into improved clinical assessment and intervention. Research bridging the gap between clinical psychology and genetics holds the potential to vastly improve our understanding of the etiology and treatment of behavioral and psychiatric disorders. My postdoctoral training proposal is illustrative of this interdisciplinary approach, with specific application to the area of alcohol use and abuse.