US EPA

7420119 

Journal Article 

Behavioral Epigenetics: The Underpinnings of Political Psychology 

Rabin, JS; , 

2021 

55-96 

10.1007/978-3-030-38270-4_3 

http://link.springer.com/10.1007/978-3-030-38270-4_3
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Following the foundational work of the ENCODE project the definition of a gene has changed, from a specific DNA sequence coding for a protein, to a process dominated by epigenetics. Epigenetics is a regulatory network that activates, or silences genes based on environmental influences. Epigenetics is the interface between the environment and the genome. The relevance of epigenetics to social policy and therefore politics is that all environmental insult factors affect the human body, not just in the present but passed on in the epigenome to future generations. Transgenerational epigenetics can even pass the impact of trauma (such as from the Holocaust) from one generation to the next. Politics and social policy have yet to respond to the impact of epigenetics on health and disease. Psychological/ideological factors blocking acceptance of epigenetic influence on social policy are motivated reasoning, just world view, blaming the victim, and binding values. Both personal responsibility factors (which conservatives espouse) and the interactional influence of the environment (which liberals appreciate) are at work in producing epigenetic outcomes across generations.