Interviews with 23andMe Customers

Image via CrunchBase

DAVIDE at the European Genetics and Anthropology Blog recently posted two interviews (here and here) with customers of 23andMe’s large-scale genome scanning service, one from Finland and one from the U.S.

It’s very interesting to see the responses of these anonymous individuals, particularly since they are from different countries.

For example, both were asked why they decided to purchase the 23andMe test – “Was it to test your ancestry or genetic health risk factors?”  Interestingly, for both individuals ancestry was the motivating factor behind testing.  More support for my conclusion that these companies should strongly promote the ancestral aspects of their products.

Other Questions

Here are a few examples of other questions in the interviews:

Q: How would you rate the accuracy of the scan against what you know about your origins?

Q: Has the information about your ancestry changed how you now identify ethnically or look at certain cultures or world regions? For example, do you now show more interest in Asia knowing that you have some East Asian admixture?

Q: Were you in any way disappointed with the results? For example, were you let down by where you ended up on the genetic maps or who your closest individual matches were?

Q: Looking back, was the experience worth the $399? Will you recommend the test to your family and friends?

If you are thinking about testing at a genome scanning company, be sure to read these interviews to get a feel for the process.

HT: Daniel MacArthur at Genetic Future.