their liability to seek out particular environmental circumstances (Rutter, et al., 2006). This study’s results are consistent with a more passive gene-environment correlation for females than for males. Passive gene-environment correlation refers to the parents’ genetic liability for ASB which in turn shapes the home environment. Thus, for the women in this study we may be observing greater parental ASB resulting in a more hostile home environment which in turn leads to greater negative peer affiliations. The finding that women were more likely to experience most forms of child maltreatment, to first use heroin with a boyfriend or partner, and to experience ongoing adult violence at the hands of a partner suggests a series of poor relationships and maltreatment that began in early childhood. For the men, there may be a more active gene-environment correlation whereby they are actively selecting more problematic environments and peers during adolescence.
