Overview

How genomics is revolutionizing the social sciencesFor a century, social scientists have avoided genetics like the plague. But the nature-nurture wars are over. In the past decade, a small but intrepid group of economists, political scientists, and sociologists have harnessed the genomics revolution to paint a more complete picture of human social life than ever before. The Genome Factor describes the astonishing discoveries being made at the scientific frontier where genomics and the social sciences intersect. Dalton Conley and Jason Fletcher reveal that there are real genetic differences by racial ancestry-but ones that don't conform to what we call black, white, or Latino. Genes explain a significant share of who gets ahead in society and who does not, but can also act as engines of mobility that counter social disadvantage. The Genome Factor shows how genomics is transforming the social sciences-and how social scientists are integrating both nature and nurture into a unified, comprehensive understanding of human behavior at both the individual and society-wide levels.

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9780691183169

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An indispensable introduction to one of the most exciting frontiers in the social sciences, by two of its pioneers. The Genome Factor is filled with surprises, insights, and strokes of ingenuity. --Steven Pinker, Harvard University, author of How the Mind Works Too often, the debate over the ethics of genomics takes place behind closed doors--among scientists, doctors, and government officials. Members of the general public are left out or treated as an afterthought rather than placed at the center of the conversation. Scientific research is crucial, but the moral dilemmas raised by The Genome Factor belong to us all. --Amy Dockser Marcus, Wall Street Journal

An indispensable introduction to one of the most exciting frontiers in the social sciences, by two of its pioneers. The Genome Factor is filled with surprises, insights, and strokes of ingenuity. -Steven Pinker, Harvard University, author of How the Mind Works Too often, the debate over the ethics of genomics takes place behind closed doors-among scientists, doctors, and government officials. Members of the general public are left out or treated as an afterthought rather than placed at the center of the conversation. Scientific research is crucial, but the moral dilemmas raised by The Genome Factor belong to us all. -Amy Dockser Marcus, Wall Street Journal

Author Information

Dalton Conley is the Henry Putnam University Professor of Sociology at Princeton University. Jason Fletcher is Professor of Public Affairs, Sociology, Agricultural and Applied Economics, and Population Health Sciences at the University of WisconsinMadison.

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