Researchers interested in understanding mechanisms by which interparental conflict is related to child adjustment have focused on child evaluations of conflict (Davies & Cummings, 1994; Davies & Sturge-Apple, 2007; Fosco et al., 2007; Grych & Fincham, 1990). The findings of this study advance this area of research by further integrating a biological perspective into models of interparental conflict and adolescent adjustment (e.g., Sturge-Apple, Cicchetti, Davies, & Suor, 2012). By incorporating variation in the DRD4 allele we were able to ask questions about “for whom” perceptions of interparental conflict and positivity are salient for threat evaluations. Our findings are consistent with an equifinality conceptualization of risk, in which different pathways may lead to a single outcome (von Bertalanffy, 1968). These findings highlight the need to continue work delineating individual differences, both genotypic and phenotypic, that will illuminate unique pathways to key risk factors for maladjustment. Such work may require broadening environmental assessments (e.g., including positive interparental relations) and including other genetic factors (e.g., haplotypes, genetic risk scores, etc.).
