Knowledge of Genetics and Attitudes toward Genetic Testing among College Students in Saudi Arabia

Background: Genetic testing has been gradually permeating the practice of medicine. Health-care providers may be confronted with new genetic approaches that require genetically informed decisions which will be influenced by patients' knowledge of genetics and their attitudes toward genetic test...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Public health genomics 2016-01, Vol.19 (5), p.260-268
Main Authors: Olwi, Duaa, Merdad, Leena, Ramadan, Eman
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescent
Adult
Attitude to Health
Cross-Sectional Studies
Female
Genetic Testing
Genetics - education
Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice
Humans
Male
Needs Assessment
Original Paper
Original Papers
Saudi Arabia
Social Perception
Students - psychology
Surveys and Questionnaires
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Summary:Background: Genetic testing has been gradually permeating the practice of medicine. Health-care providers may be confronted with new genetic approaches that require genetically informed decisions which will be influenced by patients' knowledge of genetics and their attitudes toward genetic testing. This study assesses the knowledge of genetics and attitudes toward genetic testing among college students. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted using a multistage stratified sample of 920 senior college students enrolled at King Abdulaziz University, Saudi Arabia. Information regarding knowledge of genetics, attitudes toward genetic testing, and sociodemographic data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire. Results: In general, students had a good knowledge of genetics but lacked some fundamentals of genetics. The majority of students showed positive attitudes toward genetic testing, but some students showed negative attitudes toward certain aspects of genetic testing such as resorting to abortion in the case of an untreatable major genetic defect in an unborn fetus. The main significant predictors of knowledge were faculty, gender, academic year, and some prior awareness of ‘genetic testing'. The main significant predictors of attitudes were gender, academic year, grade point average, and some prior awareness of ‘genetic testing'. Conclusion: The knowledge of genetics among college students was higher than has been reported in other studies, and the attitudes toward genetic testing were fairly positive. Genetics educational programs that target youths may improve knowledge of genetics and create a public perception that further supports genetic testing.
ISSN:1662-4246
1662-8063
DOI:10.1159/000446511