Center for Medical Ethics and Health Policy Staff Publications
Language
English
Publication Date
1-1-2024
Journal
AJOB Empirical Bioethics
DOI
10.1080/23294515.2024.2336904
PMID
38588389
PMCID
PMC11458831
PubMedCentral® Posted Date
10-1-2025
PubMedCentral® Full Text Version
Author MSS
Abstract
Background: Investigative genetic genealogy (IGG) is a technique that involves uploading genotypes developed from perpetrator DNA left at a crime scene, or DNA from unidentified remains, to public genetic genealogy databases to identify genetic relatives and, through the creation of a family tree, the individual who was the source of the DNA. As policymakers demonstrate interest in regulating IGG, it is important to understand public perspectives on IGG to determine whether proposed policies are aligned with public attitudes.
Methods: We conducted eight focus groups with members of the public (N = 72), sampled from four geographically diverse US regions, to explore general attitudes and perspectives regarding aspects of IGG practices, applications, and policies. Five major topics were explored in each focus group: when IGG should be used; who should perform IGG; how to approach consent for genetic database users; what systems of oversight should govern IGG practitioners; and whether to notify database users if their data are involved in law enforcement (LE) matching.
Results: Participants were supportive of IGG in most scenarios, especially for cold and violent cases. The favorable attitudes toward IGG were, however, tempered by distrust of law enforcement among some participants. All participants agreed that databases must inform users if IGG is allowed, but they did not agree on how individual database users should be allowed to opt out or whether to notify them if their data are involved in specific investigations. All participants agreed that IGG should be subject to some prescriptive guidelines, regulations, or accountability mechanisms.
Conclusions: These findings suggest broad public support for IGG, and interest in developing systems of accountability for its practice. Our study provides useful insight for policy makers, genomic database stewards, law enforcement, and other stakeholders in IGG's practice, and suggests multiple directions for future research.
Keywords
Humans, Focus Groups, Male, Female, Adult, United States, Public Opinion, Middle Aged, Attitude, Pedigree, Databases, Genetic, Law Enforcement, Forensic Genetics, Genetic Privacy, Informed Consent, Genealogy and Heraldry, Aged, Genotype, Young Adult, investigative genetic genealogy, forensic genetics, focus groups, public perspectives, policy
Published Open-Access
yes
Recommended Citation
Dahlquist, Jacklyn; Robinson, Jill O; Daoud, Amira; et al., "Public Perspectives on Investigative Genetic Genealogy: Findings from a National Focus Group Study" (2024). Center for Medical Ethics and Health Policy Staff Publications. 275.
https://digitalcommons.library.tmc.edu/med_ethics/275