Resilience and measured gene-environment interactions.

The past decade has witnessed an exponential growth in studies that have attempted to identify the genetic polymporphisms that moderate the influence of environmental risks on mental disorders. What tends to be neglected in these Gene × Environment (G × E) interaction studies has been a focus on resilience, which refers to a dynamic pattern of positive adaptation despite the experience of a significant trauma or adversity. In this article, we argue that one step toward advancing the field of developmental psychopathology would be for G × E research to consider resilience instead of focusing almost exclusively on mental disorders.