Consumer DNA Tests and the Value-Ethics Paradox

“Consumer DNA Tests and the Value-Ethics Paradox” examines the tension between the documented ethical concerns of direct-to-consumer genetic testing and the genuine personal value millions of consumers derive from these services. Drawing on ethnographic research with test users, the article traces how historical disruptions to kinship and cultural identity have created demand for genetic self-knowledge, which companies exploit through promissory marketing and the commodification of biocapital. Rather than resolving this paradox through critique alone, the article proposes collaborative approaches to addressing the commodification of identity in neoliberal society.