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Book part
Publication date: 16 July 2015

Sara Shostak and Jason Beckfield

This chapter compares interdisciplinary research that engages genomic science from economics, political science, and sociology. It describes, compares, and evaluates concepts and…

Abstract

Purpose

This chapter compares interdisciplinary research that engages genomic science from economics, political science, and sociology. It describes, compares, and evaluates concepts and research findings from new and rapidly developing research fields, and develops a conceptual taxonomy of the social environment.

Methodology/approach

A selection of programmatic and empirical articles, published mostly since 2008 in leading economics, political science, and sociology journals, were analyzed according to (a) the relationship they pose between their discipline and genomic science, (b) the specific empirical contributions they make to disciplinary research questions, and (c) their conceptualization of the “social environment” as it informs the central problematique of current inquiry: gene-environment interaction.

Findings

While all three of the social science disciplines reviewed engage genomic science, economics and political science tend to engage genomics on its own terms, and develop genomic explanations of economic and political behavior. In contrast, sociologists develop arguments that for genomic science to advance, the “environment” in gene-environment interaction needs better theorization and measurement. We develop an approach to the environment that treats it as a set of measurable institutional (rule-like) arrangements, which take the forms of neighborhoods, families, schools, nations, states, and cultures.

Research/implications

Interdisciplinary research that combines insights from the social sciences and genomic science should develop and apply a richer array of concepts and measures if gene-environment research – including epigenetics – is to advance.

Originality/value

This chapter provides a critical review and redirection of three rapidly developing areas of interdisciplinary research on gene-environment interaction and epigenetics.

Details

Genetics, Health and Society
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78350-581-4

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 6 September 2023

Chen Zhu, Timothy Beatty, Qiran Zhao, Wei Si and Qihui Chen

Food choices profoundly affect one's dietary, nutritional and health outcomes. Using alcoholic beverages as a case study, the authors assess the potential of genetic data in…

Abstract

Purpose

Food choices profoundly affect one's dietary, nutritional and health outcomes. Using alcoholic beverages as a case study, the authors assess the potential of genetic data in predicting consumers' food choices combined with conventional socio-demographic data.

Design/methodology/approach

A discrete choice experiment was conducted to elicit the underlying preferences of 484 participants from seven provinces in China. By linking three types of data (—data from the choice experiment, socio-demographic information and individual genotyping data) of the participants, the authors employed four machine learning-based classification (MLC) models to assess the performance of genetic information in predicting individuals' food choices.

Findings

The authors found that the XGBoost algorithm incorporating both genetic and socio-demographic data achieves the highest prediction accuracy (77.36%), significantly outperforming those using only socio-demographic data (permutation test p-value = 0.033). Polygenic scores of several behavioral traits (e.g. depression and height) and genetic variants associated with bitter taste perceptions (e.g. TAS2R5 rs2227264 and TAS2R38 rs713598) offer contributions comparable to that of standard socio-demographic factors (e.g. gender, age and income).

Originality/value

This study is among the first in the economic literature to empirically demonstrate genetic factors' important role in predicting consumer behavior. The findings contribute fresh insights to the realm of random utility theory and warrant further consumer behavior studies integrating genetic data to facilitate developments in precision nutrition and precision marketing.

Details

China Agricultural Economic Review, vol. 15 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1756-137X

Keywords

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