Answer to Question 1
Research demonstrates genetic influences surrounding antisocial personality disorder. There is some twin study evidence indicating that antisocial personality disorder may be an inherited problem since identical twins have higher concordance ratios than fraternal twins. These adoption studies, which separate the influence of genetics and environment, show that adoptees separated from their biological parents who have antisocial personalities raised by non-antisocial parents still exhibited higher rates of antisocial characteristics.
What exactly is inherited is more difficult to determine. Some evidence suggests that antisocial personalities have abnormally low autonomic arousal, which explains both their inability to learn from experience and their tendency to be thrill-seekers. Because they are underaroused under normal circumstances, they are easily bored. Desiring stimulation, they engage in the impulsive, antisocial behaviors that foster arousal. Psychopaths learn more slowly and tire of learning more quickly than nonpsychopaths. Researchers emphasize the fearlessness and thrill-seeking characteristics of antisocial personalities, which they see as stemming from lower autonomic reactivity in situations where nonpsychopaths become fearful and frightened. Even when psychopaths report being fearful, they seem not to be able to produce physiological signs of fear. Combined, the evidence seems strong that psychopaths are less reactive autonomically, although it is still unclear why.
Answer to Question 2
B
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