Hope and Despair in Pandora's Box: Perceiving Reproductive Reward and Risk of Genetics Technologies and Information

Abstract

African American and white women (N = 39) were interviewed about reproductive rewards and risks regarding genetics information and technologies. Analysis of their talk reflected several important themes. Emergent “reward” themes included the would-be parents' reproductive decision-making, preparation, and prevention. “Risk” themes, which were more predominant than reward themes, included genetic information as stress producing, “child-designing” as a likely outcome, and the creation of a superior race as probable. Findings are discussed within a Problematic Integration Theory framework.