Neighborhood Opportunity and Genetic Literacy in a Representative Sample of US Adults

Prev Sci. 2026 Mar 30. doi: 10.1007/s11121-026-01908-0. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Research shows that genetic literacy varies as a function of individual-level factors, but these factors may not account for all observed differences in genetic literacy. We tested the hypothesis that neighborhood opportunity-a structural factor-is associated with genetic literacy. We analyzed nationally representative cross-sectional data on a weighted sample of 606 US adults from the 2024 Measurement of Genetic Literacy Survey. The Genetic Literacy and Comprehension measure assessed genetic literacy ( $\alpha$ = 0.87). The Childhood Opportunity Index 3.0 measured overall neighborhood opportunity and three domains (Education, Health and Environment, Social and Economic resources). Unadjusted and adjusted weighted linear regression models quantified the associations between neighborhood opportunity and genetic literacy. Among the weighted sample (mean age = 48, SD = 18), 52% were female, and 61% were as non-Hispanic White. Very low overall neighborhood opportunity was significantly associated with lower genetic literacy (β = – 0.70, 95% CI: – 1.40 to – 0.04, p = 0.037), adjusting for demographic characteristics, health-related factors, and receipt of genetic testing. We observed a similar pattern for exposure to very low social and economic resources (β = – 0.95, 95% CI: – 1.60 to – 0.31, p = 0.004). There was no evidence of a statistically significant association between the Health and Environment domain and genetic literacy in the final model (β = – 0.13, 95% CI: – 0.64 to – 0.38, p = 0.62). Findings indicate that neighborhood opportunity is associated with genetic literacy. These results reinforce the importance of assessing structural factors along with individual-level characteristics in genetic literacy research.

PMID:41910920 | DOI:10.1007/s11121-026-01908-0