"What are they going to do with the information?" Latino/Latina and African American perspectives on the Human Genome Project.
New developments in genetic science raise questions regarding their application and implications. Dialogue about these questions has not often included the perspectives of the general population and, in particular, the voices of labeled racial or ethnic groups. In this article, the authors present results from an analysis of data from focus group discussions that engaged African Americans and Latinos/Latinas in a discussion of genetic research and technology. In particular, the authors focus on questions of inequality that arose in those focus groups and their implications for public health professionals interested in addressing pervasive racial disparities in health. In addition, they present strategies for achieving a more equitable distribution of risks and benefits from genetic research and technology suggested by participants in these focus groups.
Schulz
Amy
A
Department of Health Behavior and Health Education, University of Michigan School of Public Health, Ann Arbor 48109-2029, USA. ajschulz@umich.edu
Caldwell
Cleopatra
C
Foster
Sarah
S
D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American / Q000523:psychology*; D000368:Aged; D001294:Attitude to Health / Q000208:ethnology*; D003256:Community Participation / Q000523:psychology*; D018864:Cultural Diversity; D005260:Female; D017144:Focus Groups; D036281:Genetic Research; D006266:Health Education; D006630:Hispanic or Latino / Q000523:psychology*; D016045:Human Genome Project; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011287:Prejudice