Heritability Is Not Determinism

Heritability estimates (e.g., ~50% for IQ, 30–50% for personality, high for some psychiatric diagnoses) quantify variation explained by genes in a population and do not mean traits are fixed for any individual. Policy and cultural debates should treat heritability as a population statistic that varies by environment, measurement noise, and cohort — not as a verdict on individual potential or moral worth. — Clarifying the population versus individual meaning of heritability would reduce misinterpretation in education, health, and identity debates and prevent policy errors built on genetic fatalism or denial.