Glenn Roisman, professor at the Institute of Child Development, was quoted in today’s Wall Street Journal discussing differential susceptibility in the article: Nature vs. Nurture: New Science Stirs Debate: How Behavior Is Shaped; Who’s an Orchid, Who’s a Dandelion. The article discusses the research being done to understand how genes and the environment interact to affect behavior, in particular, the work some researchers have done studying a particular variation of the DRD4 gene that helps regulate the neurotransmitter dopamine in the brain. Some researchers say the evidence suggests that those with this variation, who they call orchids, have difficulty when they are in negative learning and home situations, but respond far better to positive improvements in these situations than those without the variation, the dandelions.
However, Roisman offers a caution, “If you’re an orchid you may be an orchid susceptible to specific environmental circumstances, such as parenting, but not peer pressure.” He goes on to say that the research must better distinguish how good or how bad outside influences need to be to have a significant effect on behavior and says that more rigorous study is needed.