Non-genetic testing
Thumbs down to the "genetic test"
Add a little obsessive network marketing to the unforgettable traditions of Kirby vacuum cleaners and Amway detergents. Serve it with a sauce of science with a loud name, appealing to the achievements of the modern flourishing science of genetics. What will happen? And you will get a modern business called "Genetic Test" (genetic-test.ru ).
The "genetic test" is, it turns out, "the business of testing human abilities, which is based on the scientific method of fingerprint analysis." As a biologist, a specialist in the study of genetic sequences, I can give the following expert assessment: this practice has nothing to do with genetics or with modern genetic tests and analyses.
What's happening? A special device takes fingerprints, and then the computer gives a description of your personality and gives recommendations: what kind of sports to do, what profession to choose, etc. The method is patented (today you can patent anything, even CD treatment), and the device has a certificate of conformity: apparently, it really knows how to take fingerprints.
The website of the "genetic test" says that the methodology is based on the science of dermatoglyphics, which is a branch of genetics and anthropology. Dermatoglyphics is not a branch of genetics, this discipline studies the signs of patterns on the skin of the palm of the hands and feet of a person. The problem is that dermatoglyphics does not know how to determine temperament, the potential of the nervous system (whatever that means), distinguish between "weak and strong" nervous systems (this is generally some kind of enchanting formulation), the presence of a tendency to alcoholism and cannot give scientifically sound recommendations on what kind of sports to do and which to choose profession, and so on according to the list of promises of the "genetic test".
In principle, it is incorrect to call dermatoglyphic tests genetic: even identical twins, i.e. genetically identical people, may have different patterns on the skin [1]. Moreover, fingerprints may differ between the left and right hand and even between individual fingers. This is due to the fact that not only heredity plays an important role in the formation of prints, but also stochastic, i.e. random processes.
Dermatoglyphics (unlike genetics) cannot even determine a person's gender, let alone temperament. This is a problem for criminology, because such knowledge could greatly facilitate the search for criminals, narrow down the circle of suspects. Even with the use of more modern methods, including the analysis of peptides present on the surface of the skin and transmitted together with fingerprints, the accuracy of determining the sex of a criminal by fingerprints is not great and is about 85% as of 2014. But DNA analysis will allow you to determine the sex of the criminal with absolute accuracy.
As already mentioned, with the help of a dermatoglyphic "genetic test" on the site they promise to determine the propensity to alcoholism. In 2009, an article was published in a peer-reviewed scientific journal comparing the patterns on the skin of 100 alcoholics and 100 healthy people. It turned out that no differences in the patterns on the skin between these groups could be detected [2]. It turns out that it's not even that no one is engaged in dermatoglyphics, but that they are engaged, but at the same time scientists draw fundamentally different conclusions. Thus, the "genetic test" promises to reveal information that cannot be obtained on the basis of dermatoglyphics, according to real scientific publications. Many genetic factors affecting the risk of alcoholism are known, but for their determination it is necessary to conduct DNA analysis, not fingerprints, i.e. the advertised "genetic test", contrary to its name, is not suitable for this
Dermatoglyphics can be used to identify an individual (in criminology), i.e. to understand whether the prints of the conditional Vasya Pupkin correspond to the prints on the crime weapon. The connection of dermatoglyphics with genetics is perhaps this: in some rare genetic diseases, characteristic signs of fingerprints appear. For example, in some forms of ectodermal dysplasia (a serious anomaly with a violation of the development of the skin), there may be no fingerprint lines at all. Similarly, some features of the structure of the imprint lines were found in Down syndrome, in the presence of an extra X or Y chromosome, in the presence of only one X chromosome in women (Turner syndrome), and in some extremely rare and exotic cases. Of course, there may be some associations between the features of fingerprints and genes, but, firstly, is it not easier to look at the genes themselves, and secondly, the promises of the organization clearly do not correspond to what is really known, as we could see by the example of alcoholism. As you can see, I'm not saying that dermatoglyphics is nonsense, I'm saying that even the "genetic test" has a weak relation to dermatoglyphics.
Apparently, for PR purposes, the dermatoglyphic "genetic test" is trying to imitate real genetic tests based on the analysis of DNA sequences. Such tests, indeed, allow, with a number of reservations and restrictions, to determine the predisposition to certain types of diseases, the risk of alcohol dependence when drinking alcohol, the presence of certain mutations that can get to the unborn child and cause him genetic diseases, and so on. But this is a) done using DNA analysis, which the "genetic test" does not do; b) even this does not allow you to determine temperament or recommend professional activity. There are no articles in the PubMed database of scientific publications linking dermatoglyphics and success in any profession or temperament. Those who do not believe can search on their own. The scientific community has not heard of such an application of dermatoglyphics.
As an argument that the technique works, there is not a single article in a peer-reviewed scientific journal on the site (I did not find it). But the following statement is given: "the test results have a high percentage of reliability. People who have been tested claim that the information is 90% the same." A similar argument can be found on the web: "90% of our customers won't lie, will they?"
I am willing to believe that the figure of 90% roughly corresponds to reality. But what's the catch? This is a very well-known psychological effect, which I wrote about earlier, discussing the errors of human thinking. Let's recall the article by psychologist Bertram Forer, written back in 1949, "The error of personal validation: demonstrating excessive credulity in the classroom" [3]. In the original experiment, 39 students were asked to take a psychological test. A week later, the students were seated one by one and handed out the test results, as well as a description of their personality, consisting of 13 statements. Students were asked to evaluate the method of personality diagnosis on a five-point scale and indicate which statements are true. Only five out of 39 students rated their "personality characteristic" below four, and the average number of statements marked as "true" exceeded 10 out of 13. The catch was that all the students were given the same very general description of the personality, which the students soon found out to their own surprise and to the shame of some. That's all. Of course, it is not necessary to give everyone the same description (such a lie will be discovered sooner or later), the main thing is that the descriptions should be sufficiently vague and general.
If someone doubts that the popularity of the "genetic test" and its apparent effectiveness are based on the Forer effect, I suggest the following experiment. First of all, this offer is for those who, according to the "partnership" system, conduct tests with this device themselves (the "partnership" system implies that anyone can purchase the device and open their own point for testing for a fee). I assume that many of these people themselves have not fully figured out what they are dealing with, and do not want to mislead anyone. Dial a group of 15 willing. Let those who wish to provide fingerprints, but do not show them the results (turn the computer screen away from them). Print out all 15 results (no pictures with prints, just text) in random order. Write down the key in your notebook: which participant corresponds to this or that description.
Give each participant all 15 descriptions. Ask them to choose one, the most appropriate description. You should not be present during the selection process, so as not to influence the subjects. Make sure that, as predicted by probability theory, no more than 4 out of 15 people will prefer their own results out of 15 possible ones. After that, if you are an honest person, return their money to the citizens and think about suing the organization that misled you and involved you in a dubious enterprise.
Despite all of the above, the project "genetic test" boasts of great popularity (apparently, tens of thousands of people have passed the test) and the fact that:
"At the forum "Days of Small and Medium–sized businesses of Russia - 2013", held at the All-Russian Exhibition Center in Moscow, according to the results of the competition "The Best innovative Project", the company Genetic-test was recognized as the winner.
In addition, the project received the highest award – the gold medal "Laureate of the VVC". The competition commission, consisting of reputable scientists, representatives of large businesses and support structures, such as the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation, noted the project as having the best scientific, technical, economic and financial indicators."
They also apparently managed to enlist the support of some public figures (for example, Alexander Gordon), whose photos are presented on the site for advertising purposes. From an economic point of view, it is difficult to overestimate the genius of the business plan and the idea of making money: everything is thought out to the smallest detail, because this is such palmistry, only even cooler, because it is easier to distribute devices with automated software than to teach palmists to talk their teeth to customers. And it is technically difficult to put booths with fortune-tellers in every shopping center in the country. It is sad that in our country such nonsense is approved, advertised and no one takes measures to protect consumers.
List of literature:
1. Diagnosis of Twin-Zygosity by Dermatoglyphics V. Sudhakar Rao, MD; Charles A. Greene, MD; Visut Prasarn, MD JAMA. 1977; 237(25):2718
2. Comparative study on dermatoglyphics in alcoholic patients. Devcic S, Mihanovic M, Milicic J, Glamuzina L, Silic A. Coll Antropol. 2009 Dec; 33(4):1311-8.
3. Forer BR: The fallacy of personal validation; a classroom demonstration of gullibility. Journal of abnormal psychology 1949, 44(1):118-123.
PS: there is another discipline that deals with fortune–telling on prints - culiology. Divination on the prints of the buttocks.
Portal "Eternal youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru21.08.2014