Some people are born with the belief that they are masters of their own lives. Others feel they are at the mercy of fate.
New research shows that part of those feelings are in the genes.
Psychologists have long known that people confident in their ability to control their destinies are more likely to adjust well to growing old than those who feel that they drift on the currents of fate.
Two researchers who questioned hundreds of Swedish twins report that such confidence, or lark of it, is partly genetic and partly drawn from experience.
They also found that the belief in blind luck-a conviction that coincidence plays a big role in life is something learned in life and has nothing to do with heredity.
The research was conducted at the Karolinska Institute-better known as the body that annually awards the Nobel Prize for medicine by Nancy Pedersen of the Institute and Margaret Gatz, a professor of psychology at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles. Their results were recently published in the United States in the Journal of Gerontology.
People who are confident of their ability to control their lives have an "internal locus of control,"and have a better chance of being well adjusted in their old age, said Pedersen.
An "external locus of control," believing that outside forces determine the course of life, has been
"We are trying to understand what makes people different. What makes some people age gracefully and others have a more difficult time?" she said.
The study showed that while people have an inborn predilection toward independence and self-confidence,
Pedersen's studies, with various collaborators, probe the aging process by comparing sets of twins, both identical and fraternal, many of whom were separated at an early age.
The subjects were drawn from a roster first compiled
有些人天生相信他们是自我生命的主宰，其他人则觉得他们受到命运的支配。
一项新的研究发现这些感觉部份来自基因。
心理学家早就知道有信心掌握自己命运的人比那些觉得自己是受命运摆布的人更能适应老化。
两位研究学家在询问了好几百对瑞典的双胞胎后报告说，这种信心，或是信心的缺乏，一部份是与基因有关，另一部份则是来自经验的累积。
他们同时发现，相信盲目运气的人--认为巧合在生命中扮演一个很重要的角色--是在生活过程中学习而来的，与遗传毫无关系。
这项研究是在卡洛林司卡机构里进行的。这个机构亦是每年颁赠诺贝尔医学奖的团体。该研究是由此机构的南西·皮德森与洛杉矶南加大的心理学教授玛格丽特·贾兹所主持，他们这项研究结果最近在美国老年学的期刊上登出。
皮德森说，对自己掌握生命的能力有信心的人有一种‘内在控制的基因位点’，比较能够适应老年期。
她说，相信外在力量决定生命之旅的‘外在控制的基因位点’与晚年沮丧的情绪有关。
她说：‘我们想了解人与人之间相异的原因是什么。是什么原因使有些人安然悠哉地步入晚年，而有些人则比较困难?’
这项研究显示，有人能够拥有天生的自信与独立，而百分之七十有这种个性的人，会受到环境与一生的经验所影响。
皮德森的研究，囊括了许多不同的研究学者，从事双胞胎的比较，并探讨老化的过程。这些同卵及异卵双胞胎有许多都在很小的时候就分开了。
研究对象是由一本三十年前编纂的名册所抽出。这本名册登记有自一八八六年以降，所有在瑞典出生的双胞胎。这份完整的名单—直延续到一九七一年，共行几万五千对双胞胎。
相关单词：genes
genes解释：n.基因( gene的名词复数 )
genes例句：
You have good genes from your parents, so you should live a long time. 你从父母那儿获得优良的基因，所以能够活得很长。 来自《简明英汉词典》
Differences will help to reveal the functions of the genes. 它们间的差异将会帮助我们揭开基因多种功能。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 生物技术的世纪
相关单词：lark
lark解释：n.云雀，百灵鸟；n.嬉戏，玩笑；vi.嬉戏
lark例句：
He thinks it cruel to confine a lark in a cage.他认为把云雀关在笼子里太残忍了。
She lived in the village with her grandparents as cheerful as a lark.她同祖父母一起住在乡间非常快活。
相关单词：genetic
genetic解释：adj.遗传的，遗传学的
genetic例句：
It's very difficult to treat genetic diseases.遗传性疾病治疗起来很困难。
Each daughter cell can receive a full complement of the genetic information.每个子细胞可以收到遗传信息的一个完全补偿物。
相关单词：drawn
drawn解释：v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的
drawn例句：
All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。
相关单词：annually
annually解释：adv.一年一次，每年
annually例句：
Many migratory birds visit this lake annually.许多候鸟每年到这个湖上作短期逗留。
They celebrate their wedding anniversary annually.他们每年庆祝一番结婚纪念日。
相关单词：psychology
psychology解释：n.心理，心理学，心理状态
psychology例句：
She has a background in child psychology.她受过儿童心理学的教育。
He studied philosophy and psychology at Cambridge.他在剑桥大学学习哲学和心理学。
相关单词：locus
locus解释：n.中心
locus例句：
Barcelona is the locus of Spanish industry.巴塞罗那是西班牙工业中心。
Thereafter,the military remained the locus of real power.自此之后，军方一直掌握着实权。
相关单词：gracefully
gracefully解释：ad.大大方方地；优美地
gracefully例句：
She sank gracefully down onto a cushion at his feet. 她优雅地坐到他脚旁的垫子上。
The new coats blouse gracefully above the hip line. 新外套在臀围线上优美地打着褶皱。
相关单词：inborn
inborn解释：adj.天生的，生来的，先天的
inborn例句：
He is a man with an inborn love of joke.他是一个生来就喜欢开玩笑的人。
He had an inborn talent for languages.他有语言天分。
相关单词：predilection
predilection解释：n.偏好
predilection例句：
He has a predilection for rich food.他偏好油腻的食物。
Charles has always had a predilection for red-haired women.查尔斯对红头发女人一直有偏爱。
相关单词：affected
affected解释：adj.不自然的，假装的
affected例句：
She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。
相关单词：roster
roster解释：n.值勤表，花名册
roster例句：
The teacher checked the roster to see whom he would teach this year.老师查看花名册，想了解今年要教的学生。
The next day he put himself first on the new roster for domestic chores.第二天，他把自己排在了新的家务值日表的第一位。
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