The interplay of social contexts and genetic potentials: cognitive and educational development in the early life course

• Applicants: Professorin Dr. Wiebke Schulz; Professor Dr. Christoph Spörlein
• Subject Area: Empirical Social Research
• Term: since 2023
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 533150512

The family of origin plays an important role in shaping children’s life chances, especially by influencing learning and educational achievement in the early life course. While research has established robust associations between parental behaviors and investments and children’s outcomes, the role of genetic influences, and in particular the interplay of genetic and social pathways remains unclear. We study the intertwined influences of the social and genetic characteristics of the family of origin across various contexts of development in the early life course. The premise of this project is that the family of origin constitutes children’s launching pad which shapes experiences in various contexts in the early life course; the various social and genetic influences interact, creating both opportunities for children and hurdles for development. Genetically sensitive designs allow a better understanding of the heterogeneity of environmental factors, as well as genetic factors and their interaction. We study children’s and adolescents’ development across four contexts: (1) remote learning during the COVID crisis; (2) extra-curricular activities and (3) inequality in educational attainment in rural and urban areas. We use genetically sensitive research designs such as twin studies to quantify the relative importance of genetic and environmental influences, as well as polygenic risk scores which capture an individual’s "genetic potential" for the studied trait or behavior. Integrating insights and methods from the behavior genetics literature enables social scientists to reach a deeper understanding of how cognitive as well as educational achievement develop in the early life course. The proposed research projects will provide innovative insights into the mechanisms behind the interplay of social and genetic advantages, how they foster early achievement, or how they might hinder children’s development.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants