Medical Hypotheses
Volume 56, Issue 2 , Pages 158-159, February 2001

The importance of cultural inheritance

Department of Pharmacology, Christian Medical College and Hospital, Vellore, India

Received 14 December 1999; accepted 22 March 2000.

Abstract 

Cultural inheritance refers to the storage and transmission of information by communication, imitation, teaching and learning. It is transmitted by the brain rather than by genes. However, it does have a genetic basis, the genes involved determining the structure of the brain. Cultural inheritance is considered to be the latest stage in the evolution of heredity. It is thought to have evolved by epigenetic mechanisms from genetic inheritance. This article proposes that cultural inheritance underlies normal behaviour and mental disorders. Copyright 2001 Harcourt Publishers Ltd

THE IMPORTANCE OF CULTURAL INHERITANCE: A HYPOTHESIS

No full text is available. To read the body of this article, please view the PDF online.

To access this article, please choose from the options below

Login to an existing account or Register a new account.

  • Purchase this article for 31.50 USD (You must login/register to purchase this article)

    Online access for 24 hours. The PDF version can be downloaded as your permanent record.

  • Subscribe to this title

    Get unlimited online access to this article and all other articles in this title 24/7 for one year.

  • Claim access now

    For current subscribers with Society Membership or Account Number.

  • Visit SciVerse ScienceDirect to see if you have access via your institution.
 

PII: S0306-9877(00)91131-9

doi:10.1054/mehy.2000.1131

Medical Hypotheses
Volume 56, Issue 2 , Pages 158-159, February 2001

Article Tools