Genetics of Greed!

According to Erich Seligmann Fromm ( a German- born American social pychologist) Greed , also known as avarice, is “a bottomless pit which exhausts the person in an endless effort to satisfy the need without ever reaching satifaction”.

In other words, Greed signifies the amelioration of the balance or coordination between “need” and “want”. It is the insatiable desire to possess something like money, power, belongings, status, food etc.

If we analyse events of theft, robbery, violence, treachery, manipulation etc. that happens around us, greed is the most important underlying cause for all such events. Apart from many psychological and / or psycho-social reasons, recently scientists have found that there is a genetic basis too.

The Ruthless gene or Daring gene (as reported by Nature News) is the “Gene Of Greed!” Biologically, this gene produces one of the receptors for the hormone Vasopressin. Scientifically, ruthless gene protein product is known as arginine vasopressin receptor 1A (AVPR1A).

AVPR1A receptors are present all throughout the brain as well as in different other organs like liver, kidney, blood vessels, capillaries etc. In humans, AVPR1A gene is located in Chromosome 12. There are atleast 3 types or versions of this gene that have been identified in human population (called as polymorphism) . These gene variants differ in their lengths. The degree of greediness depends on the presence of one (or all) of these variants. For example, researchers have shown that extremely selfish and greedy people have a shorter version of the ruthless gene (AVPR1a).

Interestingly, these genetic studies and many similar ones gave birth to a naive field called Genoeconomics which relates economics and molecular genetics to understand financial and economic behavior in a particular society.

So do we keep blaming our genes then for being greedy or selfish? Or is it not time to analyse and take a tour of our own mind ? Can we not suppress the ruthless gene expression and make this world a more beautiful place to live in!

Contributed by: Dr. Gargi Roy Goswami