Nature, Nurture, and Identical Twins (with David Bessis)

Podcast: EconTalk (LS 69 · TOP 0.05% what is this?)Episode: Nature, Nurture, and Identical Twins (with David Bessis)Pub date: 2026-01-19Get Podcast Transcript →powered by Listen411 - fast audio-to-text and summarizationAre your genes your destiny? Despite famous studies of identical twins that seem to answer in the affirmative, mathematician David Bessis says: Not so fast. He and EconTalk's Russ Roberts take a deep dive into the "twins reared apart" literature, showing how multiple flaws in those studies undercut their claims about heritability. Bessis demonstrates why the natural experiments are never perfect, and why differences across people in a particular time and place are no guarantee of what will happen to any one human being. They also discuss psychologist Eric Turkheimer's three laws of behavior genetics, emphasizing the role of unique experiences in shaping who we become.The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Russ Roberts, which is the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Listen Notes, Inc.