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Media Coverage of Direct-to-Consumer Genetic Testing

Parrott, Ashley
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1276977244

Abstract Details

2010, MS, University of Cincinnati, Allied Health Sciences : Genetic Counseling.
News media have played a major role in shaping public opinion of scientific developments. Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) genetic testing is a relatively new scientific development gaining attention. A better understanding of media coverage, especially the attitudes and ethical concerns found there, may allow for better understanding of public and consumer attitudes and behavior regarding DTC genetic testing. The purpose of this study was to determine the themes, attitudes, and ethical concerns that are presented by the U.S. news media regarding DTC genetic testing. We identified a sample of 93 news stories published from 2006 to 2009 in print, broadcast and online media using a Lexis-Nexis search with the keywords “Direct-to-Consumer” and “genetic test”. The sample was coded for the attitudes about themes of genetic determinism, analytical and clinical validity, regulation, clinical utility, and cost as well as for the ethical concerns of privacy, discrimination, and the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA). Of news stories that addressed the theme, the majority displayed moderate genetic determinism and were neutral in their view of validity and clinical utility. Stories indicated that insurance and employers were the likely sources of potential discrimination, yet identified the medical record/physicians and DTC companies as the sources most likely to violate the privacy of individual medical information. Stories claimed that a lack of regulation would harm consumers, but the majority of post-GINA stories made no mention of the law or the protections it provided. Attitudes on the cost of DTC genetic tests were rarely provided, although cost figures frequently were included. The results show a broad range of attitudes toward DTC genetic testing and its potential medical and social impacts. The way in which news media presents issues surrounding DTC genetic testing may influence opinion and utilization of those tests. The genetic community should be aware that the public has been exposed to multiple views of DTC genetic testing when discussing these tests with individuals.
John Lynch, PhD (Committee Chair)
Robert Hopkin, MD (Committee Member)
Melanie Myers, PhD (Committee Member)
32 p.
Genetics
direct-to-consumer; genetic test; media coverage

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Parrott, A. (2010). Media Coverage of Direct-to-Consumer Genetic Testing [Master's thesis, University of Cincinnati]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1276977244

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Parrott, Ashley. Media Coverage of Direct-to-Consumer Genetic Testing. 2010. University of Cincinnati, Master's thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1276977244.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Parrott, Ashley. "Media Coverage of Direct-to-Consumer Genetic Testing." Master's thesis, University of Cincinnati, 2010. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1276977244

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

ucin1276977244
328
© 2010, all rights reserved.
This open access ETD is published by University of Cincinnati and OhioLINK.