These two concepts are widely used today in various fields of knowledge, although their initial use was exclusively related to the field of biology. The definition of "human genotype" first appeared in scientific circulation thanks to the work of Johanson, when in 1909 he used it to denote the complex of hereditary properties of the body. The category "genotype" differs in content from the concepts of genome and gene pool, since it characterizes a separate biological individual, and the genome and gene pool reflect the genetic characteristics of the biological species as a whole.
The concepts of genotype and phenotype also differ. If the genotype characterizes only its own hereditary traits that are characteristic of a single organism, regardless of other factors, the phenotype also reflects properties that include the action of the environment, mediating genetic changes.
In its most general form, the genotype as an integral system differs from the phenotype in the following parameters:
- they have different sources of genetic information (in the genotype it is DNA, in the phenotype information obtained by an external study of the body is recorded);
- as a result, the same genotype can manifest itself as a component of different phenotypes.
In addition, the concept of genotype (as a biological phenomenon) is considered in both broad and narrow meanings. In the narrow sense, this, as already mentioned, is a unique combination of genes, and in the broad sense - the totality of all the signs of heredity that are formed genetically. In this sense, the genotype is manifested through a unique combination of purely individual genetic sets (genomes) of characters received from parents.
Thus, another difference is formed: the genotype and phenotype differ in that the phenotype can change during the life cycle under the influence of external factors, while the genotype will remain unchanged all the time.
As a result, the determination of the genotype can be approached in another way, where it is defined as:
- a combination of genomic characteristics peculiar only to a given individual;
- parameters of specific pairs of alleles (one of two different gene forms) that are contained in a particular genome.
The phenotype is a fixed physico-chemical parameters of the body, which determine not only the biological and biochemical personality, but also behavioral. This term, like the genotype, is used in two interpretations. In a broad sense, the phenotype reflects all the signs of an individual's organism. In a narrower understanding, the phenotype is considered as a criterion for distinguishing between certain types of organisms, for example, tall individuals have one phenotype, and low-growing individuals have another.
In the mid-19th century, during the formation of sociology as a science, one of the most popular concepts for considering society, was G. Spencer's doctrine of organism, the essence of which in its most general form was that Spencer tried to represent society by analogy with a growing human body. The differentiation of human communications was ensured in this doctrine by the unique properties of each nation, its culture, mentality, features of the historical path, the prevailing types of social thinking and behavior, and many others.
This ultimately led to the fact that the concepts of genotype and phenotype have spread in social studies. The simplest version of this interpretation is the allocation of the so-called eastern and western genotypes of society, where the characteristics of social structure and mentality are the determining parameters for distinguishing them. Mental and social culture, historical development, religion and others. The use of genotype and phenotype categories in social spheres made it possible to use them to indicate criteria of a sociocultural character in the study of peoples, races, some, mainly large social groups and communities.