Should genetics be used to create social policy? | Kathryn Paige Harden

This interview is an episode from The Well, our new publication about ideas that inspire a life well-lived, created with the John Templeton Foundation.

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More from Kathryn Paige Harden ► Schools ignore genetics—and that’s actually a bad thing https://youtu.be/-xavEnSBeio

Eugenics is the practice of using "planned breeding" for "racial improvement."

Because this idea is repulsive, the predominant response has been "genome blindness” — that is, avoiding any study or discussion of genetic differences between people.

But according to geneticist Paige Harden, this is the wrong solution. Instead, we should identify genetic differences between people — including those that might affect social outcomes — so that we can help provide people with the resources they need to be successful.

Read the video transcript ► https://bigthink.com/the-well/genome-blindness/

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About Kathryn Paige Harden:
Dr. Kathryn Paige Harden is a tenured professor in the Department of Psychology at UT, where she leads the Developmental Behavior Genetics lab and co-directs the Texas Twin Project. She is the author of The Genetic Lottery: Why DNA Matters for Social Equality (Princeton). Dr. Harden received her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Virginia and completed her clinical internship at McLean Hospital/Harvard Medical School.

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