Which breeding method involves selecting specific characteristics in offspring?

Selective breeding is a method where breeders choose specific traits in offspring to enhance desirable characteristics within a population. This practice allows for purposeful improvement of qualities such as yield, disease resistance, or adaptability in plants and animals. By selecting parents that display the desired traits, breeders can increase the likelihood that these attributes will be passed on to the next generation. This method contrasts with natural breeding, which relies on the natural mating process without deliberate human intervention to select for traits; inbreeding, which focuses on breeding closely related individuals to maintain certain traits but can also increase the risk of genetic disorders; and hybrid breeding, which involves crossing different breeds or varieties to produce offspring with a mix of traits from both parents but does not specifically target particular characteristics for enhancement in the way selective breeding does.