Ancestry Reimagined: Dismantling the Myth of Genetic Ethnicities

Recent  social and political psychological research indicates that increased  access to ancestry testing has strengthened the notion of genetic  essentialism among some groups, or the idea that our biology ties us to  particular ethnic identities. This can boost a sense of cultural pride  and prosocial behaviors among communities that are perceived to be  similar. In the worst-case scenarios, however, this phenomenon can  contribute to deeper social woes like misinformation, anti-science  agendas, and even social hatred among those who believe in racial  superiority. Using research from both the social sciences and the  genetics literature as support, Ancestry Reimagined establishes  realistic expectations about what we can learn from our DNA as a  foundation for examining the psychological impact of ancestry testing,  including the differences between how this information is perceived  versus its reality. With this book, Dr. Kampourakis flexes his muscles  as an esteemed interdisciplinary science educator and author to  challenge these traditional social constructs, using the current genetic  testing science as a myth busting tool.

Kampourakis argues that  DNA ancestry testing cannot reveal a person's true ethnic identity  because ethnic groups are socially and culturally constructed. In 10  accessible chapters, he explains the assumptions underlying the  scientific study of ancestry, and the resulting paradoxes that are often  overlooked. What the study of human DNA mostly shows is that human DNA  variation is continuous, and it is not possible to clearly delimit  ethnic groups based on DNA data. As a result, we all are members of a  huge, extended family, and not of genetically distinct ethnic groups.  What ancestry tests can provide are probabilistic estimations of  similarities between the test-takers and particular reference  populations. This does not devalue the results of these tests, however,  because they can indeed provide some valuable information to people who  may not know much about their ancestors. In fact, what the tests are  very good at doing is finding close relatives, and this is perhaps why  the whole enterprise should be rebranded as family, not ancestry,  testing. Ultimately, this book reveals that genetic essentialism,  biological ethnic identities, racial superiority, and similar social  constructs are scientifically unsupported.