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Study estimates selection against education-associated polygenic scores

Political Guyentist · August 1, 20261 min read

BEHAVIOR GENETICS

A study of three generations of Americans found natural selection favoring polygenic scores associated with less education while selecting against scores associated with greater educational attainment. The researchers estimate selection is reducing genetically associated cognitive performance by roughly 0.6 IQ points per generation, although environmental gains can outweigh that small shift.