ONLINE FIRST
published on March 13, 2024
Brian K. Steverson, Adriane Leithauser, Tyler Wasson
https://doi.org/10.5840/bpej202431151
Trading In Our Lederhosen for Kilts
The Ethics of Marketing Direct-to-Consumer Genetic Ancestry Testing
The popularity of direct-to-consumer genetic ancestry services has exploded over the past five years, with as many as 250 direct-to-consumer genetic ancestry testing companies currently operating and estimates that 1 in 5 Americans are customers of one or more of those companies. Marketing of genetic ancestry testing has consistently linked the results of DNA testing to a consumer¡¯s racial and ethnic identity, and, because of that, can help consumers find out ¡°who they really are.¡± We argue that the ¡°biologization¡± of race and ethnicity promoted in such marketing violates norms of marketing ethics. In particular, we show that this marketing technique violates a number of the core commitments and values of the American Marketing Association Statement of Ethics.