ABSTRACT
The classic genetic approaches of family, twin, and adoptionstudies have provided considerable evidence that genetic influencesplay an important role in the development of child behaviorand cognition. There have also been remarkable advances inthe application of molecular methods in medicine, togetherwith technological progress in mapping and sequencing the human genome. As a result, many are now persuaded that the time isright to focus on the identification of genes that may giverise to childhood psychiatric and
behavioral disorders. Expectationsaroused by work in this area are high, so that molecular geneticstrategies now have a pivotal role in research aimed at elucidatingboth the biological basis (nature) and environmental basis (nurture) of childhood behavioral and neurodevelopmental disorders,with the hope of major developments in prevention and treatment.In this review we focus on contemporary approaches to genediscovery in complex disorders and describe how they have beenapplied in child psychiatry and psychology.
