Doesn't even have to be genetic, could be a matter of nurture as well (yes, I am well aware that this is not guaranteed either).
As for the robots scenario, I'd imagine the robots would be programmed/trained/prompted to act like Stepford spouses or something, so perhaps they'd keep the children around purely because that's what they do.
Nah, he's a dolphin in wolf clothing (if you know you know)