Ian Sample talks to Kathryn Paige Harden. A behavioural geneticist. Professor of psychology at UT Austin.
She asks a question everyone pretends to understand. How much of you is written in your DNA? Could genes drive you toward risk-taking. Or antisocial behavior. Or even violence?
“Original Sin” is the name of her new book. It looks at the messy combo of nature and nurture. And why it might change how we view crime.
Here is the thing. We like simple stories. You choose to be bad. You pay the price. Easy. Clean.
But the science isn’t like that. Harden argues that the line is blurred. Your actions have roots deeper than your willpower. Deeper than your choices.
Does this mean we are doomed by our biology? Maybe. Or maybe we just need to stop blaming people for things they didn’t ask for.
The real debate isn’t about cause and effect. It is about culpability. If the “why” changes does the punishment still make sense?
That is where the uncomfortable truth hides. Not in the crime scene. In the lab. And in the mirror.
Do we want justice or comfort? Usually it is the same thing. But not today. 🧬
