The Good, the Bad and our Genes!

The Good, the Bad, and our Genes. Roll the dice again at a personality test!

We all know that our personality traits are partly defined by a roll of the genetics’ dice and shaped furthermore by education, experiences and environment. Between nature and nurture, this is how we become who we are. What if we could roll the dice again? This is what Tjandra Hutama.and I present to the public with our installation of Action Art/Interactive Art for Sawidji’s ‘Culmination’ Art Exhibition at Santrian Art Gallery – Sanur.  

First, what are we talking about when it comes to personality traits? There are a unique pattern of thoughts, feelings, and behaviors that make us humans so unique from one another. These traits are not only a result of genetics and learning, there are also a consequence of how we perceive the world, interact with others, and react to what happens in our life. Scientists and other philosophers have been debating over centuries about Nature vs. Nurture. So, let’s reflect about this age-old debate…

A Legacy From our Parents DNA

The dilemma here is to quantify how much personality is shaped by nature, meaning genetics, or by nurture, meaning environment. Both play an essential role in shaping what we are, but to varying degrees, to a different combination that is unique to us (even when talking about twins). Genetic influence on personality is dubbed polygenic by scientists, not only because we inherit genes from both our parent’s DNA, but also because it is not determined by a single gene but rather by the combined action of many genes working together.

For example, it cannot be said that there is an “IQ gene” in Dad that would determine the intelligence in his daughters and sons. Or a “good partner in life gene” that would determine the right person to marry among someone’s pretenders! There is this unique combination between Nature and Nurture but, in terms of heritability, there is another chance at play. As “twin and adoption” studies have shown that human personality is 30% to 60% heritable. That means that genetic factors contribute significantly to our personality, to various degrees indeed but also to various combinations of factors and quantity.

Lost in the OCEAN of Possible Characters

According to scientists, there are 5 major personality traits referred to as the “OCEAN traits” coming from genetics.

• Openness: creativity, willingness to try new things, and abstract thinking.
• Conscientiousness: organization, responsibility, and dependability.
• Extroversion: sociability, assertiveness, and energy.
• Agreeableness: compassion, cooperation, and empathy.
• Neuroticism: emotional stability or instability.

But never forget environmental factors because nurture matters too. Our environment—family, upbringing, culture, and life experiences—also shape our personality. Not to forget that we don’t stay the same person from childhood to old age. Traits evolved and are more nuanced than we think. Some personality changes can occur over time due to life events, learning, and personal growth. A constantly moving balance of genes and environment influences shape who we are. It’s a complex interaction between genetic and environmental forces that interact dynamically to construct our personalities throughout our entire lives. It’s never a simple equation.

Genetic Inheritance of Personality Traits

So we understand now that our personality is a multifactorial trait, influenced by both genetic and environmental factors. It’s complex. No single gene dictates specific traits. Instead, a combination of many genes contributes to our personality. And on top of this, it’s variable. Even if a parent possesses certain traits, their child may exhibit different ones due to the mixing and recombination of genetic material. For example, babies are born with early signs of personality, known as temperament. Approximately 20-60% of temperament is influenced by genetics. Science has defined 3 types of temperament which come as follows: Easy: Some babies are adaptable and calm. Difficult: Others are more intense and reactive. Slow-to-warm-up: Some take time to adjust to new situations. 

Another interesting example is how we look at identical twins separated at birth. The story goes like this: imagine two identical twins separated early in life and raised in different environments. Despite their distinct upbringings, they exhibit striking similarities: 1. They’re prone to headaches. 2. They eat the same brand of chocolate bars. 3. They bite their nails. 4. They like skiing. 5. They’re football fans. These resemblances in taste and hobbies trace back to their shared genetic inheritance.

The Role of Chance ‘Dadu Adil’?

While genetics play a significant role, chance factors also come into play due to random combinations. Remember! The specific combination of genes inherited from parents and ancestors is random! So, it induces unpredictable outcomes. A naturally fearful parent may have a brave child, just as short parents may have a tall child. You add the influence of the environment and you have the perfect recipe for an endless diversity of human personalities. A blend of nature (genes) and nurture (environment). Biology lays the land, but life experiences build the house. Making each of us a unique real estate rising from the legacy of our ancestors and the work of our own experiences. The rest belong to self-improvement gurus but it’s a different story!

Hence, our game of chance is based on the local gambling board game “Bola Adil”, sometimes called “Bola Setan”. Which you can find on the streets or in some markets on the island.  However, let’s hear Tjandra Hutama explain more about it. “I thought of a round table with visuals of three repeating geometric shapes: triangles, circles, and square boxes, taken from the arrangement of images from the Bola Adil game, a game commonly found here. This game is led by a “croupier” with a square picture board and a ball as the game media. The Bola Adil game is generally known as a forbidden gambling event for the public because it is mostly played with money bets. It’s a game of chance because the player’s win is influenced by the choice of images pointed out when the previously thrown ball stops.”

A Different Gamble

Together, we thought to present a new type of “genetic gambling” by re-interpreting the symbols and colours in the Bola Adil game. Into an interactive work of a different gamble, a sort of “Dadu Adil”. As a reflection on the self-identity defining fortune. Three dice are included to be thrown by the player to the round board game, where each side of the dice is written with the words “Selfish, Greedy, Mean, Humble, Loving, and Wise”. The result of the roll will be matched with the position on the geometric image: triangles, circles, and square boxes with colours (black, red, yellow, and green). 

Details and meanings are explained on the card given to players at the Culmination exhibition. So, for the time of our collective Sawidji exhibition at Santrian Gallery, roll the dice again to know the unique combination of your personality! Between good, and bad, and your genes, who is the real YOU today?

Eric Buvelot & Tjandra Hutama

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