Portrayal of psychiatric genetics in Australian print news media, 1996-2009

Wilde, A; Bonfiglioli, C; Meiser, B; Mitchell, PB; Schofield, PR

Portrayal of psychiatric genetics in Australian print news media, 1996-2009

Wilde, A Bonfiglioli, C

Meiser, B Mitchell, PB Schofield, PR

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Publication Type:: Journal Article
Citation:: Medical Journal of Australia, 2011, 195 (7), pp. 401 - 404
Issue Date:: 2011-10-03

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Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Wilde, A	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Bonfiglioli, C https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9634-7302	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Meiser, B	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Mitchell, PB	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Schofield, PR	en_US
dc.date.issued	2011-10-03	en_US
dc.identifier.citation	Medical Journal of Australia, 2011, 195 (7), pp. 401 - 404	en_US
dc.identifier.issn	0025-729X	en_US
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/19031
dc.description.abstract	Objective: To investigate how Australian print news media portray psychiatric genetics. Design and setting: Content and framing analysis of a structured sample of print news items about psychiatric genetics published in Australian newspapers between 1996 and 2009. Main outcome measures: Identify dominant discourses about aetiology of mental illness, and perceived clinical outcomes and implications of psychiatric genetics research. Results: We analysed 406 eligible items about the genetics of psychiatric disorders. News coverage of psychiatric genetics has steadily increased since 1996. Items attributing the aetiology of psychiatric disorders to gene-environment interactions (51%) outnumbered items attributing only genetic (30%) or only environmental factors (20%). Of items that referred to heritability of mental illness, frames of genetic determinism (78%) occurred more frequently than probabilistic frames (22%). Of frames related to genetic prophesy, genetic optimism frames (78%) were used more frequently than frames of genetic pessimism (22%). Psychosocial and ethical implications of psychiatric genetics received comparatively relatively little coverage (23%). The analysis identified 22 predictions about psychiatric genetic discoveries and the availability of molecular-based interventions in psychiatry, most of which (20/ 22, 91%) failed to manifest by the predicted year. Conclusions: Excessive optimism about the power of genetic technology in psychiatric health care, perceived clinical benefits, and largely unfulfilled predictions about availability of these benefits could encourage unrealistic expectations about future molecular-based treatment options for mental health.	en_US
dc.relation.ispartof	Medical Journal of Australia	en_US
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.5694/mja10.10167	en_US
dc.subject.classification	General & Internal Medicine	en_US
dc.subject.mesh	Humans	en_US
dc.subject.mesh	Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice	en_US
dc.subject.mesh	Mental Disorders	en_US
dc.subject.mesh	Public Policy	en_US
dc.subject.mesh	Public Opinion	en_US
dc.subject.mesh	Mass Media	en_US
dc.subject.mesh	Australia	en_US
dc.subject.mesh	Newspapers as Topic	en_US
dc.title	Portrayal of psychiatric genetics in Australian print news media, 1996-2009	en_US
dc.type	Journal Article
utslib.citation.volume	7	en_US
utslib.citation.volume	195	en_US
utslib.for	2001 Communication and Media Studies	en_US
utslib.for	11 Medical and Health Sciences	en_US
utslib.for	17 Psychology and Cognitive Sciences	en_US
pubs.embargo.period	Not known	en_US
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences/Journalism Program
utslib.copyright.status	open_access
pubs.issue	7	en_US
pubs.publication-status	Published	en_US
pubs.volume	195	en_US

Abstract:

Objective: To investigate how Australian print news media portray psychiatric genetics. Design and setting: Content and framing analysis of a structured sample of print news items about psychiatric genetics published in Australian newspapers between 1996 and 2009. Main outcome measures: Identify dominant discourses about aetiology of mental illness, and perceived clinical outcomes and implications of psychiatric genetics research. Results: We analysed 406 eligible items about the genetics of psychiatric disorders. News coverage of psychiatric genetics has steadily increased since 1996. Items attributing the aetiology of psychiatric disorders to gene-environment interactions (51%) outnumbered items attributing only genetic (30%) or only environmental factors (20%). Of items that referred to heritability of mental illness, frames of genetic determinism (78%) occurred more frequently than probabilistic frames (22%). Of frames related to genetic prophesy, genetic optimism frames (78%) were used more frequently than frames of genetic pessimism (22%). Psychosocial and ethical implications of psychiatric genetics received comparatively relatively little coverage (23%). The analysis identified 22 predictions about psychiatric genetic discoveries and the availability of molecular-based interventions in psychiatry, most of which (20/ 22, 91%) failed to manifest by the predicted year. Conclusions: Excessive optimism about the power of genetic technology in psychiatric health care, perceived clinical benefits, and largely unfulfilled predictions about availability of these benefits could encourage unrealistic expectations about future molecular-based treatment options for mental health.

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http://hdl.handle.net/10453/19031