New results from an UK Twin study: genes are more than an influence on intelligence

Last year I discussed a twin study on 11000 twins in the UK showing the effect genetics have an test results in school. Now there is a new study on 13000 twins in the UK published on PLOSOne. The title makes it already clear: “The high heritability of educational achievement reflects many genetically influenced traits, not just intelligence” (and do note that even intelligence still is influenced by environment too to a great extent).

Let’s examine the abstract:

Because educational achievement at the end of compulsory schooling represents a major tipping point in life, understanding its causes and correlates is important for individual children, their families, and society. Here we identify the general ingredients of educational achievement using a multivariate design that goes beyond intelligence to consider a wide range of predictors, such as self-efficacy, personality, and behavior problems, to assess their independent and joint contributions…