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Many would like to think that people choose their life partners based on their own volition, but a new study suggests that this might not be the case. In fact, it would seem that couples are often drawn to each other because of their DNA. The study suggests that this is particularly apparent among those with high educational attainments, in that they choose partners with similar talents and intelligence.
The study was a project partly led by researchers from the University of East Anglia, Phys.org reports. According to the results of the study, those who are accomplished in the fields of higher education tended to marry those with similar achievements and have children with them on a genetic level.
It has long been well known that humans tend to choose partners assortatively, which is basically a generalization on choice based on similar traits. However, this was mostly considered a social consciousness instead of one that is embedded in their DNA. This is the first study to present such a correlation, which could have a profound impact on society.
For starters, the researchers argue that this system of choosing mates paves the way for the spread of genetic inequality. Basically, the more couples choose each other and produce offspring based on their similarities, the more disadvantaged the children will be in terms of genetic diversity.
This is a problem for several reasons, one of which is the matter of developing a wide range of genetic differences among the next generation, the Daily Mail reports. Diversity affects everything, from cognitive abilities to resistance to diseases.
Limited genetic differences have led to entire species getting wiped out by a single disease. If humanity isn’t careful about how they widen the gene pool instead of simply focusing on mating with only those who they share similar traits with, a huge chunk of the population is at risk of being wiped out.
