A twin-family study of alcoholism in women
| Autor: | Kenneth S. Kendler, Michael C. Neale, Ronald C. Kessler, Lindon J. Eaves, Andrew C. Heath |
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| Rok vydání: | 1994 |
| Předmět: |
Adult
Male Alcohol Drinking Dizygotic twin Population Mothers Severity of Illness Index Structural equation modeling Developmental psychology Sex Factors Child of Impaired Parents Severity of illness Diseases in Twins Prevalence Humans Family Genetic Predisposition to Disease Registries Marriage education education.field_of_study Models Genetic Assortative mating Virginia Heritability Polychoric correlation Middle Aged Zygosity Psychiatry and Mental health Alcoholism Female Disease Susceptibility Psychology Clinical psychology |
| Zdroj: | The American journal of psychiatry. 151(5) |
| ISSN: | 0002-953X |
| Popis: | Objective: The authors seek to understand in general the sources of familial resemblance f or alcoholism and in particular how parents transmit the vulnerability to alcoholism to their daughters. Method: The authors interviewed 1,030 pairs offemale same-sex twins of known zygosity from the population-based Virginia Twin Registry and 1,468 oftheir parents. They examined a narrow definition ofalcoholism, requiring tolerance or dependence, and a threshold approach that classified individuals either as unaffected or as suffering from one of three levels of severity of alcohol-related problems. Twin-family structural equation models were f itted to the observed tetrachoric or polychoric correlation matrices by using asymptotic weighted least squares. Results: In the best-fitting model from both diagnostic approaches, 1) the familial resemblance for alcoholism was due to genetic factors, with the heritability of liability estimated at 51 % to 59%; 2) genetic vulnerability to alcoholism was equally transmitted to daughters from their fathers and from their mothers; and 3) alcoholism in parents was not environmentally transmitted to their children. Assortative mating for alcoholism was found only for the broader definitions of illness. Genetic factors that influenced the liability to alcoholism were the same in the parental and twin generation for the narrow definition of alcoholism. When broader definitions were used, these factors, while substantially correlated, were not identical. Conclusions: The transmission of the vulnerability to alcoholism from parents to their daughters is due largely or entirely to genetic factors. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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