Citation

de Moor MH, Vink JM, van Beek JH, Geels LM, Bartels M, de Geus EJ, Willemsen G, Boomsma DI. Front. Genet. 2011; 2: 76.

Affiliation

Department of Biological Psychology, VU University Amsterdam Amsterdam, Netherlands.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2011, Frontiers Research Foundation)

DOI

10.3389/fgene.2011.00076

PMID

22303371

PMCID

PMC3268629

Abstract

This study examined the heritability of problem drinking and investigated the phenotypic and genetic relationships between problem drinking and personality. In a sample of 5,870 twins and siblings and 4,420 additional family members from the Netherlands Twin Register. Data on problem drinking (assessed with the AUDIT and CAGE; 12 items) and personality [NEO Five-Factor Inventory (FFI); 60 items] were collected in 2009/2010 by surveys. Confirmatory factor analysis on the AUDIT and CAGE items showed that the items clustered on two separate but highly correlated (r = 0.74) underlying factors. A higher-order factor was extracted that reflected those aspects of problem drinking that are common to the AUDIT and CAGE, which showed a heritability of 40%. The correlations between problem drinking and the five dimensions of personality were small but significant, ranging from 0.06 for Extraversion to -0.12 for Conscientiousness. All personality dimensions (with broad-sense heritabilities between 32 and 55%, and some evidence for non-additive genetic influences) were genetically correlated with problem drinking. The genetic correlations were small to modest (between |0.12| and |0.41|). Future studies with longitudinal data and DNA polymorphisms are needed to determine the biological mechanisms that underlie the genetic link between problem drinking and personality.

Language: en