Associate Professor Brendan Zietsch
ARC Future Fellowship & Associate Professor
School of Psychology
+61 7 336 56230
McElwain Building (24A)
Level 4, Room 457
Level 4, Room 457
Researcher biography
Brendan's PhD studies were based in the Genetic Epidemiology Laboratory at QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute, where he investigated the genetics of sexual behaviour. He joined UQ in 2010 on a UQ Postdoctoral Fellowship, followed by an ARC DECRA and then an ARC Future Fellowship.
His work focuses on understanding the evolutionary and genetic underpinnings of human behaviour, in terms of what humans are like in general and what makes individuals differ from one another. Topics include personality, sexual and romantic preferences and choices, mental and physical determinants of attractiveness, sex differences and masculinity/femininity, and evolutionary modelling.
Book Chapters
Grasby, Katrina L., Verweij, Karin J. H., Mosing, Miriam A., Zietsch, Brendan P. and Medland, Sarah E. (2017). Estimating heritability from twin studies. In Robert C. Elston (Ed.), Statistical human genetics: methods and protocols 2nd ed. (pp. 171-194) New York, NY, United States: Humana Press. doi:10.1007/978-1-4939-7274-6_9
Barlow, Fiona Kate, Sherlock, James and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2016). Is prejudice heritable? Evidence from twin studies. The Cambridge handbook of the psychology of prejudice. (pp. 222-238) edited by Chris G. Sibley and Fiona Kate Barlow. Cambridge, United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press. doi: 10.1017/9781316161579.010
Haysom, Hannah J., Verweij, Karin J. H. and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2015). Personality, evolutionary models of. International encyclopedia of the social and behavioral sciences. (pp. 899-905) edited by James D. Wright. Amsterdam, Netherlands: Elsevier. doi: 10.1016/B978-0-08-097086-8.25076-9
Verweij, Karin J. H., Mosing, Miriam A., Zietsch, Brendan P. and Medland, Sarah E. (2012). Estimating heritability from twin studies. Statistical human genetics: methods and protocols. (pp. 151-170) edited by Robert C. Elston, Jaya M. Satagopan and Shuying Sun. New York, United States: Humana Press. doi: 10.1007/978-1-61779-555-8_9
Zietsch, Brendan P. (2011). Explanations for elevated psychiatric vulnerability in nonheterosexuals: Environmental stressors, genetics, and the HPA and HPG axes. Psychiatric Disorders: Worldwide Advances. (pp. 277-300) edited by Toru Uehara. Rijeka, Croatia: Intech Open Access.
Jelinek, H. F., Elston, G.N. and Zietsch, B.P. (2005). Fractal Analysis: Pitfalls and Revelations in Neuroscience. Fractals in Biology and Medicine. (pp. 85-94) edited by Gabriele A. Losa, Danilo Merlini and Theo F. Nonnenmacher. Basel: Birkhauser.
Journal Articles
Zietsch, Brendan P. (2024). Resolving the evolutionary paradox of consciousness. Phenomenology and the Cognitive Sciences, 1-19. doi: 10.1007/s11097-024-09978-7
Felesina, Thomas and Zietsch, Brendan (2024). The Desirable Dad Hypothesis: Male Same-Sex Attraction as the Product of Selection for Paternal Care via Antagonistic Pleiotropy. Archives of Sexual Behavior. doi: 10.1007/s10508-023-02780-7
Kleppesto, Thomas H., Eilertsen, Espen Moen, van Bergen, Elsje, Sunde, Hans Fredrik, Zietsch, Brendan, Nordmo, Magnus, Eftedal, Nikolai Haahjem, Havdahl, Alexandra, Ystrom, Eivind and Torvik, Fartein Ask (2023). Intergenerational transmission of ADHD behaviors: genetic and environmental pathways. Psychological Medicine, 54 (7), 1-9. doi: 10.1017/s003329172300315x
Wainwright, Henry M., Zhao, Amy A.Z., Sidari, Morgan J., Lee, Anthony J., Roberts, Natalie, Makras, Tiah and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2023). Laughter and ratings of funniness in speed-dating do not support the fitness indicator hypothesis of humour. Evolution and Human Behavior, 45 (1), 75-81. doi: 10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2023.09.005
Zietsch, Brendan P., Abdellaoui, Abdel and Verweij, Karin J H (2023). Burt uses a fallacious motte-and-bailey argument to dispute the value of genetics for social science. The Behavioral and brain sciences, 46 e231. doi: 10.1017/S0140525X22002394
Harper, Kaitlyn T. and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2023). Evidence from millions of births refutes the Trivers-Willard hypothesis in humans. Evolution and Human Behavior, 45 (1), 127-128. doi: 10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2023.07.002
Zhao, Amy A.Z., Harrison, Keagan, Holland, Alexander, Wainwright, Henry M., Ceccato, Jo-Maree, Sidari, Morgan J., Lee, Anthony J. and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2023). Objectively measured facial traits predict in-person evaluations of facial attractiveness and prosociality in speed-dating partners. Evolution and Human Behavior, 44 (4), 315-323. doi: 10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2023.05.001
Lee, Anthony J., Jones, Benedict C., Zietsch, Brendan P., Jern, Patrick, Connolly, Henry and Marcinkowska, Urszula M. (2023). No evidence that sociosexual orientation moderates effects of conception probability on women’s preferences for male facial masculinity. Scientific Reports, 13 (1) 10245, 1-6. doi: 10.1038/s41598-023-37404-6
von Pein, Lachlan I., Harper, Kaitlyn T. and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2023). No evidence that religious celibacy confers inclusive fitness benefits: a comment on: ‘Religious celibacy brings inclusive fitness benefits’ Micheletti
et al.
(2022). Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 290 (2001) 20230176. doi: 10.1098/rspb.2023.0176
Harper, Kaitlyn T., Stanley, Fiona, Sidari, Morgan J., Lee, Anthony J. and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2022). The role of accurate self-assessments in optimizing mate choice. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 50 (4), 1461672221135955-596. doi: 10.1177/01461672221135955
Zietsch, Brendan P. (2022). Elevated Psychiatric Risk in Same-Sex Married Individuals: Large-scale Evidence is Consistent with a Substantial Role of Familial Common Causes. Journal of Sex Research, 60 (5), 1-4. doi: 10.1080/00224499.2022.2134285
Arends, Rachel M., Pasman, Joëlle A., Verweij, Karin J.H., Derks, Eske M., Gordon, Scott D., Hickie, Ian, Thomas, Nathaniel S., Aliev, Fazil, Zietsch, Brendan P., van der Zee, Matthijs D., Mitchell, Brittany L., Martin, Nicholas G., Dick, Danielle M., Gillespie, Nathan A., de Geus, Eco J.C., Boomsma, Dorret I., Schellekens, Arnt F.A. and Vink, Jacqueline M. (2021). Associations between the CADM2 gene, substance use, risky sexual behavior, and self-control: A phenome-wide association study. Addiction Biology, 26 (6) e13015, e13015. doi: 10.1111/adb.13015
Zietsch, Brendan P., Sidari, Morgan J., Abdellaoui, Abdel, Maier, Robert, Långström, Niklas, Guo, Shengru, Beecham, Gary W., Martin, Eden R., Sanders, Alan R. and Verweij, Karin J. H. (2021). Author Correction: Genomic evidence consistent with antagonistic pleiotropy may help explain the evolutionary maintenance of same-sex sexual behaviour in humans. Nature Human Behaviour, 5 (9), 1259-1259. doi: 10.1038/s41562-021-01210-9
Zietsch, Brendan P., Sidari, Morgan J., Abdellaoui, Abdel, Maier, Robert, Långström, Niklas, Guo, Shengru, Beecham, Gary W., Martin, Eden R., Sanders, Alan R. and Verweij, Karin J. H. (2021). Genomic evidence consistent with antagonistic pleiotropy may help explain the evolutionary maintenance of same-sex sexual behaviour in humans. Nature Human Behaviour, 5 (9), 1251-1258. doi: 10.1038/s41562-021-01168-8
van Eijk, Liza and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2021). Testing the extreme male brain hypothesis: is autism spectrum disorder associated with a more male-typical brain?. Autism Research, 14 (8), 1597-1608. doi: 10.1002/aur.2537
van Eijk, Liza, Zhu, Dajiang, Couvy-Duchesne, Baptiste, Strike, Lachlan T., Lee, Anthony J., Hansell, Narelle K., Thompson, Paul M., de Zubicaray, Greig I., McMahon, Katie L., Wright, Margaret J. and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2021). Are Sex Differences in Human Brain Structure Associated With Sex Differences in Behavior?. Psychological Science, 32 (8) 095679762199666, 1-15. doi: 10.1177/0956797621996664
Driebe, Julie C., Sidari, Morgan J., Dufner, Michael, von der Heiden, Juliane M., Bürkner, Paul C., Penke, Lars, Zietsch, Brendan P. and Arslan, Ruben C. (2021). Intelligence can be detected but is not found attractive in videos and live interactions. Evolution and Human Behavior, 42 (6), 507-516. doi: 10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2021.05.002
Zietsch, Brendan P., Walum, Hasse, Lichtenstein, Paul, Verweij, Karin J. H. and Kuja-Halkola, Ralf (2021). When theory cannot explain data, the theory needs rethinking. Invited replies to: Orzack SH, Hardy ICW. 2021, and Lehtonen J. 2021. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 288 (1947) rspb.2021.0304, 20210304. doi: 10.1098/rspb.2021.0304
Ganna, Andrea, Verweij, Karin J. H., Nivard, Michel G., Maier, Robert, Wedow, Robbee, Busch, Alexander S., Abdellaoui, Abdel, Guo, Shengru, Sathirapongsasuti, J. Fah, Lichtenstein, Paul, Lundstrom, Sebastian, Langstrom, Niklas, Auton, Adam, Harris, Kathleen Mullan, Beecham, Gary W., Martin, Eden R., Sanders, Alan R., Perry, John R. B., Neale, Benjamin M. and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2021). Response to comment on "Large-scale GWAS reveals insights into the genetic architecture of same-sex sexual behavior". Science, 371 (6536) eaba5693, eaba5693. doi: 10.1126/science.aba5693
Zietsch, Brendan P., Sidari, Morgan J., Murphy, Sean C., Sherlock, James M. and Lee, Anthony J. (2021). For the good of evolutionary psychology, let's reunite proximate and ultimate explanations. Evolution and Human Behavior, 42 (1), 76-78. doi: 10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2020.06.009
Kupfer, Tom R., Sidari, Morgan J., Zietsch, Brendan P., Jern, Patrick, Tybur, Joshua M. and Wesseldijk, Laura W. (2021). Why are some people more jealous than others? Genetic and environmental factors. Evolution and Human Behavior, 43 (1), 26-33. doi: 10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2021.08.002
Zietsch, Brendan P. and Sidari, Morgan J. (2020). The Kinsey scale is ill-suited to most sexuality research because it does not measure a single construct. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 117 (44), 27080-27080. doi: 10.1073/pnas.2015820117
van Eijk, Liza, Hansell, Narelle K., Strike, Lachlan T., Couvy-Duchesne, Baptiste, de Zubicaray, Greig I., Thompson, Paul M., McMahon, Katie L., Zietsch, Brendan P. and Wright, Margaret J. (2020). Region-specific sex differences in the hippocampus. NeuroImage, 215 116781, 116781. doi: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2020.116781
Verweij, Karin J. H. and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2020). Nick Martin's contributions to human sexuality research. Twin Research and Human Genetics, 23 (2), 1-4. doi: 10.1017/thg.2020.42
Sidari, Morgan J., Lee, Anthony J., Murphy, Sean C., Sherlock, James M., Dixson, Barnaby J. W. and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2020). Preferences for sexually dimorphic body characteristics revealed in a large sample of speed daters. Social Psychological and Personality Science, 12 (2), 225-236. doi: 10.1177/1948550619882925
Zietsch, Brendan P, Walum, Hasse, Lichtenstein, Paul, Verweij, Karin J H and Kuja-Halkola, Ralf (2020). No genetic contribution to variation in human offspring sex ratio: a total population study of 4.7 million births. Royal Society of London. Proceedings B. Biological Sciences, 287 (1921) 20192849, 20192849. doi: 10.1098/rspb.2019.2849
Lee, Anthony J., Sidari, Morgan J., Murphy, Sean C., Sherlock, James M. and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2020). Sex differences in misperceptions of sexual interest can be explained by sociosexual orientation and men projecting their own interest onto women. Psychological Science, 31 (2), 095679761990031-192. doi: 10.1177/0956797619900315
Ganna, Andrea, Verweij, Karin J. H., Nivard, Michel G., Maier, Robert, Wedow, Robbee, Busch, Alexander S., Abdellaoui, Abdel, Guo, Shengru, Sathirapongsasuti, J. Fah, Lichtenstein, Paul, Lundstrom, Sebastian, Langstrom, Niklas, Auton, Adam, Harris, Kathleen Mullan, Beecham, Gary W., Martin, Eden R., Sanders, Alan R., Perry, John R. B., Neale, Benjamin M. and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2019). Response: Genome studies must account for history. Science, 366 (6472), 1461-1462. doi: 10.1126/science.aaz8941
Yengo, Loic, Sidari, Morgan, Verweij, Karin J. H., Visscher, Peter M., Keller, Matthew C. and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2019). No evidence for social genetic effects or genetic similarity among friends beyond that due to population stratification: A reappraisal of Domingue et al (2018). Behavior Genetics, 50 (1), 67-71. doi: 10.1007/s10519-019-09979-2
Zietsch, Brendan P. (2019). More evidence and context are needed to evaluate the possibility that scent perception is part of the same-sex sexual behavior story. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 50 (6), 2313-2315. doi: 10.1007/s10508-019-01562-4
Abdellaoui, Abdel, Hugh-Jones, David, Yengo, Loic, Kemper, Kathryn E., Nivard, Michel G., Veul, Laura, Holtz, Yan, Zietsch, Brendan P., Frayling, Timothy M., Wray, Naomi R., Yang, Jian, Verweij, Karin J. H. and Visscher, Peter M. (2019). Genetic correlates of social stratification in Great Britain. Nature Human Behaviour, 3 (12), 1332-1342. doi: 10.1038/s41562-019-0757-5
Ganna, Andrea, Verweij, Karin J. H., Nivard, Michel G., Maier, Robert, Wedow, Robbee, Busch, Alexander S., Abdellaoui, Abdel, Guo, Shengru, Sathirapongsasuti, J. Fah, Lichtenstein, Paul, Lundström, Sebastian, Långström, Niklas, Auton, Adam, Harris, Kathleen Mullan, Beecham, Gary W., Martin, Eden R., Sanders, Alan R., Perry, John R. B., Neale, Benjamin M. and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2019). Large-scale GWAS reveals insights into the genetic architecture of same-sex sexual behavior. Science, 365 (6456) , eaat7693, eaat7693-+. doi: 10.1126/science.aat7693
Strike, Lachlan T., Hansell, Narelle K., Thompson, Paul M., de Zubicaray, Greig I., McMahon, Katie L., Zietsch, Brendan P. and Wright, Margaret J. (2019). Absolute and relative estimates of genetic and environmental variance in brain structure volumes. Brain Structure and Function, 224 (8), 2805-2821. doi: 10.1007/s00429-019-01931-8
Zietsch, Brendan P. and Sidari, Morgan J. (2019). A critique of life history approaches to human trait covariation. Evolution and Human Behavior, 41 (6), 527-535. doi: 10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2019.05.007
Mitchell, Brittany L., Campos, Adrian I., Rentería, Miguel E., Parker, Richard, Sullivan, Lenore, McAloney, Kerrie, Couvy-Duchesne, Baptiste, Medland, Sarah E., Gillespie, Nathan A., Scott, Jan, Zietsch, Brendan P., Lind, Penelope A., Martin, Nicholas G. and Hickie, Ian B. (2019). Twenty-Five and Up (25Up) Study: A New Wave of the Brisbane Longitudinal Twin Study. Twin Research and Human Genetics, 22 (03) PII S1832427419000276, 154-163. doi: 10.1017/thg.2019.27
Arslan, Ruben C., Willführ, Kai P., Frans, Emma M., Verweij, Karin J. H., Bürkner, Paul-Christian, Myrskylä, Mikko, Voland, Eckart, Almqvist, Catarina, Zietsch, Brendan P. and Penke, Lars (2018). Erratum: Reply to Woodley of Menie et al (Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences (2018) 285 (20181427) DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2018.0092). Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 285 (1884) 20181427. doi: 10.1098/rspb.2018.1427
Kelly, Ashleigh J., Dubbs, Shelli L., Barlow, Fiona Kate and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2018). Male and female nipples as a test case for the assumption that functional features vary less than nonfunctional byproducts. Adaptive Human Behavior and Physiology, 4 (4), 344-353. doi: 10.1007/s40750-018-0096-1
Jern, Patrick, Kärnä, Antti, Hujanen, Janna, Erlin, Tatu, Gunst, Annika, Rautaheimo, Helmi, Öhman, Emilia, Roberts, Craig and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2018). A high-powered replication study finds no effect of starting or stopping hormonal contraceptive use on relationship quality. Evolution and Human Behavior, 39 (4), 373-379. doi: 10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2018.02.008
Couvy-Duchesne, Baptiste, O'Callaghan, Victoria, Parker, Richard, Mills, Natalie, Kirk, Katherine M., Scott, Jan, Vinkhuyzen, Anna., Hermens, Daniel F., Lind, Penelope A., Davenport, Tracey A., Burns, Jane M., Connell, Melissa, Zietsch, Brendan P., Scott, James, Wright, Margaret J., Medland, Sarah E., McGrath, John, Martin, Nicholas G., Hickie, Ian B. and Gillespie, Nathan A. (2018). Nineteen and Up study (19Up): Understanding pathways to mental health disorders in young Australian twins. BMJ Open, 8 (3) e018959, 1-13. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2017-018959
Arslan, Ruben C., Willführ, Kai P., Frans, Emma M., Verweij, Karin J. H., Bürkner, Paul-Christian, Myrskylä, Mikko, Voland, Eckart, Almqvist, Catarina, Zietsch, Brendan P. and Penke, Lars (2018). Relaxed selection and mutation accumulation are best studied empirically: reply to Woodley of Menie. Royal Society of London. Proceedings B. Biological Sciences, 285 (1873) 20180092, 1-3. doi: 10.1098/rspb.2018.0092
Sherlock, James M and Zietsch, Brendan P (2017). Longitudinal Relationships Between Parents' and Children's Behavior Need Not Implicate the Influence of Parental Behavior and May Reflect Genetics: Comment on Waldinger and Schulz (2016). Psychological science, 29 (1), 154-157. doi: 10.1177/0956797617717041
Zietsch, Brendan P (2017). Reasons for Caution About the Fraternal Birth Order Effect. Archives of sexual behavior, 47 (1), 47-48. doi: 10.1007/s10508-017-1086-2
Jern, Patrick, Verweij, Karin J. H., Barlow, Fiona Kate and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2017). Reported associations between receptor genes and human sociality are explained by methodological errors and do not replicate. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 114 (44), E9185-E9186. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1710880114
Arslan, Ruben C., Willfuehr, Kai P., Frans, Emma M., Verweij, Karin J. H., Buerkner, Paul-Christian, Myrskylae, Mikko, Voland, Eckart, Almqvist, Catarina, Zietsch, Brendan P. and Penke, Lars (2017). Older fathers' children have lower evolutionary fitness across four centuries and in four populations. Proceedings of the Royal Society B-Biological Sciences, 284 (1862) 20171562, 20171562. doi: 10.1098/rspb.2017.1562
Lee, Anthony J., Hibbs, Courtney, Wright, Margaret J., Martin, Nicholas G., Keller, Matthew C. and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2017). Assessing the accuracy of perceptions of intelligence based on heritable facial features. Intelligence, 64, 1-8. doi: 10.1016/j.intell.2017.06.002
Arden, Rosalind and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2017). An all-positive correlation matrix is not evidence of domain-general intelligence. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 40 e197, e197. doi: 10.1017/S0140525X16001990
Lee, Anthony J., Wright, Margaret J., Martin, Nicholas G., Keller, Matthew C. and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2017). Facial trustworthiness is associated with heritable aspects of face shape. Adaptive Human Behavior and Physiology, 3 (4), 351-364. doi: 10.1007/s40750-017-0073-0
Robinson, Matthew R., Kleinman, Aaron, Graff, Mariaelisa, Vinkhuyzen, Anna A. E., Couper, David, Miller, Michael B., Peyrot, Wouter J., Abdellaoui, Abdel, Zietsch, Brendan P., Nolte, Ilja M., van Vliet-Ostaptchouk, Jana V., Snieder, Harold, The LifeLines Cohort Study, Genetic Investigation of Anthropometric Traits (GIANT) consortium, Medland, Sarah E., Martin, Nicholas G., Magnusson, Patrik K. E., Iacono, William G., McGue, Matt, North, Kari E., Yang, Jian and Visscher, Peter M. (2017). Genetic evidence of assortative mating in humans. Nature Human Behaviour, 1 (1) 0016, 0016. doi: 10.1038/s41562-016-0016
Sherlock, James M. and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2017). The link between deprivation and its behavioural constellation is confounded by genetic factors. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 40 e343. doi: 10.1017/S0140525X17001121
Sherlock, James M., Sidari, Morgan J., Harris, Emily Ann, Barlow, Fiona Kate and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2016). Testing the mate-choice hypothesis of the female orgasm: disentangling traits and behaviours. Socioaffective Neuroscience & Psychology, 6 (1), 31562. doi: 10.3402/snp.v6.31562
Sherlock, James M., Verweij, Karin J. H., Murphy, Sean C., Heath, Andrew C., Martin, Nicholas G. and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2016). The role of genes and environment in degree of partner self-similarity. Behavior Genetics, 47 (1), 1-11. doi: 10.1007/s10519-016-9808-0
Maciejewski, Dominique F., Renteria, Miguel E., Abdellaoui, Abdel, Medland, Sarah E., Few, Lauren R., Gordon, Scott D., Madden, Pamela A. F., Montgomery, Grant, Trull, Timothy J., Heath, Andrew C., Statham, Dixie J., Martin, Nicholas G., Zietsch, Brendan P. and Verweij, Karin J. H. (2016). The association of genetic predisposition to depressive symptoms with non-suicidal and suicidal self-injuries. Behavior Genetics, 47 (1), 1-8. doi: 10.1007/s10519-016-9809-z
Zietsch, Brendan P. (2016). Individual differences as the output of evolved calibration mechanisms: does the theory make sense in view of empirical observations?. Current Opinion in Psychology, 7, 71-75. doi: 10.1016/j.copsyc.2015.08.014
Sherlock, James M., Zietsch, Brendan P., Tybur, Joshua M. and Jern, Patrick (2016). Correction: The quantitative genetics of disgust sensitivity (vol 16, pg 43, 2016). Emotion, 16 (1), 51-51. doi: 10.1037/emo0000141
Sherlock, James M., Zietsch, Brendan P., Tybur, Joshua M. and Jern, Patrick (2016). The quantitative genetics of disgust sensitivity. Emotion, 16 (1), 43-51. doi: 10.1037/emo0000101
Lee, Anthony J., Mitchem, Dorian G., Wright, Margaret J., Martin, Nicholas G., Keller, Matthew C. and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2016). Facial averageness and genetic quality: Testing heritability, genetic correlation with attractiveness, and the paternal age effect. Evolution and Human Behavior, 37 (1), 61-66. doi: 10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2015.08.003
Lee, Anthony J., Brooks, Robert C., Potter, Katrina J. and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2015). Pathogen disgust sensitivity and resource scarcity are associated with mate preference for different waist-to-hip ratios, shoulder-to-hip ratios, and body mass index. Evolution and Human Behavior, 36 (6), 480-488. doi: 10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2015.07.002
Haysom, Hannah J., Mitchem, Dorian G., Lee, Anthony J., Wright, Margaret J., Martin, Nicholas G., Keller, Matthew C. and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2015). A test of the facultative calibration/reactive heritability model of extraversion. Evolution and Human Behavior, 36 (5), 414-419. doi: 10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2015.03.002
Zietsch, Brendan P., Lee, Anthony J., Sherlock, James M. and Jern, Patrick (2015). Variation in Women's Preferences Regarding Male Facial Masculinity Is Better Explained by Genetic Differences Than by Previously Identified Context-Dependent Effects. Psychological Science, 26 (9), 1440-1448. doi: 10.1177/0956797615591770
Mitchem, Dorian G., Zietsch, Brendan P., Wright, Margaret J., Martin, Nicholas G., Hewitt, John K. and Keller, Matthew C. (2015). No relationship between intelligence and facial attractiveness in a large, genetically informative sample. Evolution and Human Behavior, 36 (3), 240-247. doi: 10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2014.11.009
Hansell, Narelle K., Halford, Graeme S., Andrews, Glenda, Shum, David H. K., Harris, Sarah E., Davies, Gail, Franic, Sanja, Christoforou, Andrea, Zietsch, Brendan, Painter, Jodie, Medland, Sarah E., Ehli, Erik A., Davies, Gareth E., Steen, Vidar M., Lundervold, Astri J., Reinvang, Ivar, Montgomery, Grant W., Espeseth, Thomas, Pol, Hilleke E. Hulshoff, Starr, John M., Martin, Nicholas G., Le Hellard, Stephanie, Boomsma, Dorret I., Deary, Ian J. and Wright, Margaret J. (2015). Genetic basis of a cognitive complexity metric. PLoS One, 10 (4) e0123886, 1-19. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0123886
Zietsch, Brendan P., de Candia, Teresa R. and Keller, Matthew C. (2015). Evolutionary behavioral genetics. Current Opinion in Behavioral Sciences, 2, 73-80. doi: 10.1016/j.cobeha.2014.09.005
Zietsch, Brendan P., Westberg, Lars, Santtila, Pekka and Jern, Patrick (2015). Genetic analysis of human extrapair mating: heritability, between-sex correlation, and receptor genes for vasopressin and oxytocin. Evolution and Human Behavior, 36 (2), 130-136. doi: 10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2014.10.001
Mosing, Miriam A., Verweij, Karin J. H., Madison, Guy, Pedersen, Nancy L., Zietsch, Brendan P. and Ullén, Fredrik (2015). Did sexual selection shape human music? Testing predictions from the sexual selection hypothesis of music evolution using a large genetically informative sample of over 10,000 twins. Evolution and Human Behavior, 36 (5), 359-366. doi: 10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2015.02.004
Lee, Anthony J. and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2014). Women's pathogen disgust predicting preference for facial masculinity may be specific to age and study design. Evolution and Human Behavior, 36 (4), 249-255. doi: 10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2014.12.001
Verweij, Karin J. H., Burri, Andrea V. and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2014). Testing the prediction from sexual selection of a positive genetic correlation between human mate preferences and corresponding traits. Evolution and Human Behavior, 35 (6), 497-501. doi: 10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2014.06.009
Abdellaoui, Abdel, Verweij, Karin J. H. and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2014). No evidence for genetic assortative mating beyond that due to population stratification. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 111 (40) e4137, E4137-E4137. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1410781111
Verweij, Karin J. H., Abdellaoui, Abdel, Veijola, Juha, Sebert, Sylvain, Koiranen, Markku, Keller, Matthew C., Jarvelin, Marjo-Ritta and Zietsch, Brendan .P. (2014). The association of genotype-based inbreeding coefficient with a range of physical and psychological human traits. PLoS One, 9 (7) e103102, e103102.1-e103102.6. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0103102
Lee, Anthony J., Dubbs, Shelli L., Von Hippel, William, Brooks, Robert C. and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2014). A multivariate approach to human mate preferences. Evolution and Human Behavior, 35 (3), 193-203. doi: 10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2014.01.003
Zietsch, Brendan P., Kuja-Halkola, Ralf, Wallum, Hasse and Verweij, Karin J. H. (2014). Perfect genetic correlation between number of offspring and grandoffspring in an industrialized human population. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 111 (3), 1032-1036. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1310058111
Lee, Anthony J., Mitchem, Dorian G., Wright, Margaret J., Martin, Nicholas G., Keller, Matthew C. and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2014). Genetic factors that increase male facial masculinity decrease facial attractiveness of female relatives. Psychological Science, 25 (2), 476-484. doi: 10.1177/0956797613510724
Mitchem, Dorian G., Purkey, Alicia M., Grebe, Nicholas M., Carey, Gregory, Garver-Apgar, Christine E., Bates, Timothy C., Arden, Rosalind, Hewitt, John K., Medland, Sarah E., Martin, Nicholas G., Zietsch, Brendan P. and Keller, Matthew C. (2013). Estimating the sex-specific effects of genes on facial attractiveness and sexual dimorphism. Behavior Genetics, 44 (3), 270-281. doi: 10.1007/s10519-013-9627-5
Zietsch, Brendan P. and Santtila, Pekka (2013). No direct relationship between human female orgasm rate and number of offspring. Animal Behaviour, 86 (2), 253-255. doi: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2013.05.011
Verweij, K. J. H., Yang, J., Lahti, J., Veijola, J., Hintsanen, M., Pulkki-Raback, L., Heinonen, K., Pouta, A., Pesonen, A. -K., Widen, E., Taanila, A., Isohanni, M., Miettunen, J., Palotie, A., Penke, L., Service, S. K., Heath, A. C., Montgomery, G. W., Raitakari, O., Kaehoenen, M., Viikari, J., Raeikkoenen, K., Eriksson, J. G., Keltikangas-Jaervinen, L., Lehtimaeki, T., Martin, N. G., Jaervelin, M. -R., Visscher, P. M., Keller, M. C. and Zietsch, B. P. (2013). Correction: Maintenance of variation in human personality: testing evolutionary models by estimating heritability due to common causal variants and investigating the effect of distant inbreeding (vol 66, pg 3238, 2012). Evolution, 67 (5), 1537-1537. doi: 10.1111/evo.12095
Lee, Anthony J., Dubbs, Shelli L., Kelly, Ashleigh J., von Hippel, William, Brooks, Robert C. and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2013). Human facial attributes, but not perceived intelligence, are used as cues of health and resource provision potential. Behavioral Ecology, 24 (3), 779-787. doi: 10.1093/beheco/ars199
Keller, Matthew C., Garver-Apgar, Christine E., Wright, Margaret J., Martin, Nicholas G., Corley, Robin P., Stallings, Michael C., Hewitt, John K. and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2013). The genetic correlation between height and IQ: shared genes or assortative mating?. PLoS Genetics, 9 (4) e1003451, e1003451.1-e1003451.10. doi: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1003451
Zietsch, Brendan P. and Santtila, Pekka (2012). Confusion in the science of evolution and orgasm: a reply to Wallen, Myers and Lloyd. Animal Behaviour, 84 (5), E5-E7. doi: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2012.08.016
Verweij, Karin J. H., Burri, Andrea V. and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2012). Evidence for genetic variation in human mate preferences for Sexually Dimorphic Physical Traits. Plos One, 7 (11 Article No.e49294) e49294, e49294-1-e49294-4. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0049294
Verweij, Karin J. H., Yang, Jian, Lahti, Jari, Veijola, Juha, Hintsanen, Mirka, Pulkki-Raback, Laura, Heinonen, Kati, Pouta, Anneli, Pesonen, Anu-Katriina, Widen, Elisabeth, Taanila, Anja, Isohanni, Matti, Miettunen, Jouko, Palotie, Aarno, Penke, Lars, Service, Susan K., Heath, Andrew C., Montgomery, Grant W., Raitakari, Olli, Kahonen, Mika, Viikari, Jorma, Raikkonen, Katri, Eriksson, Johan G., Keltikangas-Jarvinen, Liisa, Lehtimaki, Terho, Martin, Nicholas G., Jarvelin, Marjo-Riitta, Visscher, Peter M., Keller, Matthew C. and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2012). Maintenance of genetic variation in human personality: testing evolutionary models by estimating heritability due to common causal variants and investigating the effect of distant inbreeding. Evolution, 66 (10), 3238-3251. doi: 10.1111/j.1558-5646.2012.01679.x
Zietsch, Brendan P., Verweij, Karin J. H. and Burri, Andrea V. (2012). Heritability of preferences for multiple cues of mate quality in humans. Evolution, 66 (6), 1762-1772. doi: 10.1111/j.1558-5646.2011.01546.x
Verweij, Karin J. H., Zietsch, Brendan P., Liu, Jimmy Z., Medland, Sarah E., Lynskey, Michael T., Madden, Pamela A. F., Agrawal, Arpana, Montgomery, Grant W., Heath, Andrew C. and Martin, Nicholas G. (2012). No association of candidate genes with cannabis use in a large sample of Australian twin families. Addiction Biology, 17 (3), 687-690. doi: 10.1111/j.1369-1600.2011.00320.x
Zietsch, B. P., Verweij, K. J. H., Heath, A. C., Madden, P. A. F., Martin, N. G., Nelson, E. C. and Lynskey, M. T. (2012). Do shared etiological factors contribute to the relationship between sexual orientation and depression?. Psychological Medicine, 42 (3), 521-532. doi: 10.1017/S0033291711001577
Lee, Anthony J. and Zietsch, Brendan P. (2011). Experimental evidence that women's mate preferences are directly influenced by cues of pathogen prevalence and resource scarcity. Biology Letters, 7 (6), 892-895. doi: 10.1098/rsbl.2011.0454
Zietsch, Brendan P. and Santtila, Pekka (2011). Genetic analysis of orgasmic function in twins and siblings does not support the by-product theory of female orgasm. Animal Behaviour, 82 (5), 1097-1101. doi: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2011.08.002
Zietsch, Brendan P., Miller, Geoffrey F., Bailey, J. Michael and Martin, Nicholas G. (2011). Female orgasm rates are largely independent of other traits: Implications for "female orgasmic disorder" and evolutionary theories of orgasm. Journal of Sexual Medicine, 8 (8), 2305-2316. doi: 10.1111/j.1743-6109.2011.02300.x
Zietsch, Brendan P., Verweij, Karin J. H., Heath, Andrew C. and Martin, Nicholas G. (2011). Variation in human mate choice: Simultaneously investigating heritability, parental influence, sexual imprinting, and assortative mating. The American Naturalist, 177 (5), 605-616. doi: 10.1086/659629
Powell, Joseph E. and Zietsch, Brendan P (2011). Predicting sensation seeking from dopamine genes: Use and misuse of genetic prediction. Psychological Science, 22 (3), 413-415. doi: 10.1177/0956797610397669
Zietsch, Brendan P., Verweij, Karin J. H., Bailey, J. Michael, Wright, Margaret J. and Martin, Nicholas G. (2011). Sexual orientation and psychiatric vulnerability: A twin study of neuroticism and psychoticism. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 40 (1), 133-142. doi: 10.1007/s10508-009-9508-4
Verweij, Kjh, Zietsch, BP, Medland, SE, Gordon, SD, Benyamin, B, Nyholt, DR, McEvoy, BP, Sullivan, PF, Heath, AC, Madden, PAF, Henders, AK, Montgomery, GW, Martin, NG and Wray, NR (2010). A genome-wide association study of Cloninger’s temperament scales: Implications for the evolutionary genetics of personality. Biological Psychology, 85 (2), 306-317. doi: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2010.07.018
Verweij, Karin J. H., Zietsch, Brendan P., Lynskey, Michael T., Medland, Sarah E., Neale, Michael C., Martin, Nicholas G., Boomsma, Dorret I. and Vink, Jacqueline M. (2010). Genetic and environmental influences on cannabis use initiation and problematic use: A meta-analysis of twin studies. Addiction, 105 (3), 417-430. doi: 10.1111/j.1360-0443.2009.02831.x
Zietsch, B. P., Verweij, K. J. H., Bailey, J. M., Wright, M. J. and Martin, N. G. (2010). Genetic and environmental influences on risky sexual behaviour and its relationship with personality. Behavior Genetics, 40 (1), 12-21. doi: 10.1007/s10519-009-9300-1
Mosing, Miriam A., Zietsch, Brendan P., Shekar, Sri N., Wright, Margaret J. and Martin, Nicholas G. (2009). Genetic and environmental influences on optimism and its relationship to mental and self-rated health: A study of aging twins. Behavior Genetics, 39 (6), 597-604. doi: 10.1007/s10519-009-9287-7
Verweij, K. J. H., Zietsch, B. P., Bailey, J. M. and Martin, N. G. (2009). Shared aetiology of risky sexual behaviour and adolescent misconduct : Genetic and environmental influences. Genes, Brain And Behavior, 8 (1), 107-113. doi: 10.1111/j.1601-183X.2008.00456.x
Zietsch, Brendan P., Morley, Katherine I., Shekar, Sri N., Verweij, Karin J. H., Keller, Matthew C., Macgregor, Stuart, Wright, Margaret J., Bailey, J. Michael and Martin, Nicholas G. (2008). Genetic factors predisposing to homosexuality may increase mating success in heterosexuals. Evolution and Human Behavior, 29 (6), 424-433. doi: 10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2009.07.002
Verweji, Karin J. H., Shekar, Sri N., Zietsch, Brendan P., Eaves, Lindon J., Bailey, J. Michael, Boomsma, Dorret I. and Martin, Nicholas G. (2008). Genetic and environmental influences on individual differences in attidues toward homosexuality: An Australian twin study. Behavior Genetics, 38 (3), 257-265. doi: 10.1007/s10519-008-9200-9
Zietsch, Brendan P., Hansen, Jonathan L., Hansell, Narelle K, Geffen, Gina M., Martin, Nicholas G. and Wright, Margaret J. (2007). Common and specific genetic influences on EEG power bands delta, theta, alpha, and beta. Biological Psychology, 75 (2), 154-164. doi: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2007.01.004
Elston, Guy N., Benavides-Piccione, Ruth, Elston, Alejandra, Zietsch, Bendan, DeFelipe, Javier, Manger, Paul, Casagrande, Vivien and Kaas, Jon H. (2006). Specializations of the granular prefrontal cortex of primates: Implications for cognitive processing. Anatomical Record Part A-Discoveries In Molecular Cellular And Evolutionary Biology, 288A (1), 26-35. doi: 10.1002/ar.a.20278
Elston, G.N. and Zietsch, B. (2005). Fractal analysis as a tool for studying specialization in neuronal structure: The study of the evolution of the primate cerebral cortex and human intellect. Advances in Complex Systems, 8 (2&3), 217-227. doi: 10.1142/S0219525905000476
Zietsch, B and Elston, GN (2005). Fractal analysis of pyramidal cells in the visual cortex of the galago (Otolemur garnetti): Regional variation in dendritic branching patterns between visual areas. Fractals-complex Geometry Patterns And Scaling In Nature And Society, 13 (2), 83-90. doi: 10.1142/S0218348X05002829
Conference Papers
Ganna, A., Beecham, G., Day, F., Martin, E., Meier, R., Neale, B., Nivard, M., Perry, J., Sanders, A., Verweij, K., Wedow, R. and Zietsch, B. (2019). Insights from the largest genetic study of sexual orientation. 51st Conference of the European Society of Human Genetics (ESHG) in conjunction with the European Meeting on Psychosocial Aspects of Genetics (EMPAG), Milan, Italy, 16-19 June, 2018. London, United Kingdom: Nature Publishing Group.
Wedow, Robbee, Abdellaoui, Abdel, Beecham, Gary, Day, Felix, Ganna, Andrea, Guo, Shengru, Maier, Robert, Martin, Eden, Neale, Benjamin, Nivard, Michel, Perry, John, Sanders, Alan, Verweij, Karin and Zietsch, Brendan (2018). Results from the largest genetic study of sexual orientation. 48th Annual Meeting of the Behavior Genetics Association (BGA), Boston, Massachusetts, 20-23 June 2018 . New York, NY, United States: Springer.
Zietsch, Brendan, Abdellaoui, Abdel, Bailey, Drew, Walker, Robert and Verweij, Karin (2017). Reproductive success versus fitness: testing the genetic correlation between number of children and grandchildren in a range of preindustrial societies. 47th Annual Meeting of the Behavior-Genetics-Association (BGA), Oslo Norway, Jun 28-Jul 01, 2017. NEW YORK: SPRINGER.
Sherlock, James, Verweij, Karin, Murphy, Sean, Heath, Andrew, Martin, Nicholas and Zietsch, Brendan (2016). The role of genes and environment in degree of partner self-similarity. 46th Annual Meeting of the Behavior-Genetics-Association, Brisbane Australia, Jun 20-23, 2016. NEW YORK: SPRINGER.
Zietsch, Brendan, Lee, Anthony, Mitchem, Dorian, Wright, Margaret, Martin, Nicholas and Keller, Matthew (2016). Facial averageness and genetic quality: testing heritability, genetic correlation with attractiveness, and the paternal age effect. 46th Annual Meeting of the Behavior Genetics Association, Brisbane Australia, 20-23 June, 2016. New York, NY, United States: Springer.
Zietsch, Brendan, Kuja-Halkola, Ralf, Walum, Hasse and Verweij, Karin (2014). Are there genetic influences unique to second generation reproductive success?. 44th Annual Meeting of the Behavior-Genetics-Association, Charlottesville Va, Jun 18-21, 2014. NEW YORK: SPRINGER.
Mitchem, Dorian, Purkey, Alicia, Grebe, Nicholas, Carey, Greg, Garver-Apgar, Christine, Bates, Timothy, Arden, Rosalind, Hewitt, John, Medland, Sarah, Martin, Nick G., Zietsch, Brendan and Keller, Matthew (2013). Estimating the sex-specific effects of genes on facial attractiveness and sexual dimorphism. 43rd Annual Meeting of the Behavior-Genetics-Association, Marseille France, Jun 28-Jul 02, 2013. NEW YORK: SPRINGER.
Zietsch, Brendan, Lee, Anthony, Mitchem, Dorian, Wright, Margaret, Martin, Nicholas and Keller, Matthew (2013). Genetic analysis of male and female twins does not support 'indirect benefits' account of masculine male face shape. 43rd Annual Meeting of the Behavior-Genetics-Association, Marseille France, 28 June-02 July 2013. New York, NY United States: Springer New York LLC. doi: 10.1007/s10519-013-9623-9
Verweij, Karin, Burri, Andrea and Zietsch, Brendan (2012). Behavioural genetic analyses of mate preferences and preferred traits: Testing models of mate choice and sexual selection. 42nd Annual Meeting of the Behavior-Genetics-Association, Edinburgh Scotland, Jun 22-25, 2012. NEW YORK: SPRINGER.
Zietsch, Brendan and Verweij, Karin (2012). Maintenance of genetic variation in human personality: Testing evolutionary models by estimating heritability due to common causal variants and investigating the effect of distant inbreeding. 42nd Annual Meeting of the Behavior-Genetics-Association, Edinburgh Scotland, Jun 22-25, 2012. NEW YORK: SPRINGER.
Verweij, Karin, Medland, Sarah, Lynskey, Michael, Zietsch, Brendan, Heath, Andrew, Boomsma, Dorret and Martin, Nicholas G. (2011). The genetic etiology of cannabis use. 41st Annual Meeting of the Behaviour-Genetics-Association, Newport Ri, Jun 06-09, 2011. NEW YORK: SPRINGER.
Verweij, Kjh, Zietsch, BP, Lynskey, MT, Heath, AC and Martin, NG (2010). Examining the relationship between sexual orientation and depression: overlapping genetic and early environmental influences. 40th Annual Meeting of Behavior-Genetics-Association, Pennsylvania PA, MAY, 2009.
Zietsch, B. P., Verweij, K. J. H., Bailey, J. M., Wright, M. J. and Martin, N. G. (2010). Psychiatric vulnerability in nonheterosexuals. The 40th Annual Behavior Genetics Association meeting, Seoul, Korea, 2-5 June 2010. New York, NY, U.S.A.: Springer New York. doi: 10.1007/s10519-010-9392-7
Zietsch, Brendan P., Verweij, Karin J. H., Bailey, J. Michael, Wright, Margaret J. and Martin, Nicholas G. (2009). Investigating the association between sexual orientation and mental health via endophenotypes neuroticism and psychoticism: A twin study. 39th Annual Meeting of the Behavior-Genetics-Association, Mineapolis Mn, Jun 17-20, 2009. NEW YORK: SPRINGER.
Verweij, K. J. H., Zietsch, B. P., Bailey, J. M. and Martin, N. G. (2009). Shared etiology of risky sexual behaviour and adolescent misconduct: Genetic and environmental influences. 39th Annual Meeting of the Behavior-Genetics-Association, Mineapolis Mn, Jun 17-20, 2009. NEW YORK: SPRINGER.
Jelinek, HF, Elston, N and Zietsch, B (2005). Fractal analysis: Pitfalls and revelations in neuroscience. 4th International Symposium on Fractals in Biology and Medicine, Ascona Switzerland, Mar 10-13, 2004. BASEL: BIRKHAUSER VERLAG AG. doi: 10.1007/3-7643-7412-8_8
Thesis
Brendan Zietsch (2009). The genetic etiology of human sexuality. PhD Thesis, School of Psychology, The University of Queensland.