Psychology’s Lee Thompson examines recent findings on genes and academic achievement

Genes don’t just influence your IQ—they determine how well you do in school

Science: A new study of twins found that academic achievement is influenced by genes that affect motivation, personality, confidence and more. “I think this is going to end up being a really classic paper in the literature,” said Lee Thompson, chair of the psychological sciences department, who was not involved in the work. “It’s a really firm foundation from which we can build on.”