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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2024 Sep 1.
Published in final edited form as: Am J Med Genet C Semin Med Genet. 2023 Feb 7;193(3):e32035. doi: 10.1002/ajmg.c.32035

Table 3.

Demographic Variation in Responses

Question Level Overall Male Female P-Value Clinician/Clinician-Researcher Researcher P-Value 18–50 >50 P-Value Progressive Independent/Conservative P-Value
Q2 What age group do you belong to? 18–30 1% 0% 2% 0.065 2% 0% 0.93 2% 0% <0.001 2% 0% 0.66
31–40 21% 11% 30% 20% 23% 40% 0% 21% 12%
41–50 31% 26% 35% 28% 34% 58% 0% 33% 25%
51–60 22% 26% 19% 26% 17% 0% 47% 21% 29%
61–70 16% 24% 9% 15% 17% 0% 34% 12% 25%
>70 9% 13% 5% 9% 9% 0% 18% 10% 8%
Q3 What gender do you identify with? Male 47% 47% 47% 1.00 33% 62% 0.008 43% 67% 0.081
Female 53% 53% 53% 67% 38% 57% 33%
Non-binary 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0%
Q4 Please describe the highest education level you reached. Completed high school but did not graduate 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0%
Graduated from high school 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0%
Completed some college but did not graduate 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0%
Graduated from college 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0%
Completed an advanced degree (e.g., Master’s, MD, PhD) 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%
Q5 Where is your professional base? Africa 0% 0% 0% 0.22 0% 0% 0.18 0% 0% 0% 0%
Asia 2% 5% 0% 0% 6% 2% 2% 1.00 2% 4% 1.00
Central America 0% 100% 100% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0%
Europe 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0%
Middle East 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0%
North America 98% 95% 100% 100% 94% 98% 98% 98% 96%
Oceania 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0%
South America 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0%
Caribbean 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0%
Other 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0%
Q6 What best describes your political views? Conservative 4% 5% 3% 0.16 7% 0% 0.060 6% 3% 0.19 0% 12% <0.001
Progressive 67% 57% 78% 57% 81% 75% 59% 100% 0%
Independent 29% 38% 43% 36% 19% 19% 38% 0% 88%
Q7 What best describes what you do professionally? I am predominantly a researcher 43% 44% 43% 0.68 47% 39% 0.71 51% 25% 0.092
I am predominantly a clinician 40% 36% 43% 40% 41% 31% 54%
I spend about the same amount of time doing research and treating patients 17% 21% 14% 14% 20% 18% 21%
Q8 In general, do you consider yourself an “early adopter” of new technologies? Yes 49% 59% 39% 0.061 52% 44% 0.72 49% 49% 0.085 43% 67% 0.16
No 10% 3% 16% 10% 8% 16% 2% 10% 8%
It depends on the product 42% 38% 45% 38% 47% 35% 49% 47% 25%
Q9 Are you active on social media (other than professional sites such as LinkedIn)? Yes 51% 44% 59% 0.19 33% 75% <0.001 60% 41% 0.13 57% 46% 0.46
No 49% 56% 41% 67% 25% 40% 59% 43% 54%
Q10 Do you share your accurate first and last name on your social media account? Yes 86% 82% 88% 0.67 81% 89% 0.65 81% 94% 0.38 93% 82% 0.56
No 14% 18% 12% 19% 11% 19% 6% 7% 18%
Q11 Do you share your date of birth or birthday on your social media account? Yes 28% 24% 31% 0.73 31% 26% 0.74 35% 18% 0.31 29% 18% 0.69
No 72% 76% 69% 69% 74% 65% 82% 71% 82%
Q12 Do you share your political views on your social media account? Yes 44% 35% 50% 0.37 56% 37% 0.34 46% 41% 1.00 46% 45% 1.00
No 56% 65% 50% 44% 63% 54% 59% 54% 55%
Q13 Do you share your religious beliefs on your social media account, if applicable? Yes 21% 29% 15% 0.44 19% 22% 1.00 23% 18% 1.00 18% 36% 0.24
No 79% 71% 85% 81% 78% 77% 82% 82% 64%
Q14 How aware are you of the privacy features offered by your social media account (e.g., limit viewing of your posts to approved contacts, limit targeted advertisements, limit access to location, etc.)? Very aware 14% 6% 19% 0.45 6% 19% 0.30 8% 24% 0.18 14% 18% 0.82
Moderately aware 63% 65% 62% 81% 52% 73% 47% 71% 64%
Slightly aware 21% 29% 15% 12% 26% 15% 29% 11% 18%
Not aware at all 2% 0% 4% 0% 4% 4% 0% 4% 0%
Q15 How much do you use the privacy features on your social media accounts? I always use them 24% 24% 24% 0.94 31% 19% 0.55 20% 29% 0.010 26% 27% 1.00
I use them most of the time 40% 35% 44% 44% 38% 60% 12% 41% 36%
I use them some of the time 17% 18% 16% 6% 23% 8% 29% 19% 18%
I rarely use them 19% 24% 16% 19% 19% 12% 29% 15% 18%
Q16 Please choose the option that best describes your opinion about the following statement: “Privacy is a basic human right”. I strongly agree with this statement 51% 49% 51% 0.61 50% 51% 0.47 51% 50% 0.86 52% 46% 0.62
I moderately agree with this statement 37% 41% 35% 42% 31% 40% 35% 38% 42%
I neither agree nor disagree with this statement 11% 8% 14% 8% 14% 9% 12% 10% 8%
I moderately disagree with this statement 1% 3% 0% 0% 3% 0% 2% 0% 4%
I strongly disagree with this statement 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0%
Q17 Please choose the option that best describes your opinion about the following statement: “New technologies have made it very difficult to protect privacy.” I strongly agree with this statement 38% 41% 36% 0.52 31% 47% 0.16 28% 49% 0.083 51% 25% 0.008
I moderately agree with this statement 45% 44% 45% 48% 42% 58% 32% 43% 42%
I neither agree nor disagree with this statement 13% 10% 16% 19% 6% 12% 15% 6% 25%
I moderately disagree with this statement 2% 5% 0% 2% 3% 2% 2% 0% 8%
I strongly disagree with this statement 1% 0% 2% 0% 3% 0% 2% 0% 0%
Q18 The “right to be forgotten” became an established right in the European Union in 2014. It refers to a person’s right to have links to their personal information removed from Google and other Internet search engines. How do you feel about such a law? I strongly agree with this statement 39% 33% 45% 0.61 35% 44% 0.088 40% 39% 0.50 55% 17% 0.009
I moderately agree with this statement 37% 41% 32% 40% 33% 42% 32% 24% 54%
I neither agree nor disagree with this statement 14% 13% 16% 21% 6% 12% 17% 10% 21%
I moderately disagree with this statement 8% 10% 7% 4% 14% 5% 12% 8% 8%
I strongly disagree with this statement 1% 3% 0% 0% 3% 2% 0% 2% 0%
Q19 Section 230 of the US Communications Decency Act of 1996 protects online platforms from liability based on content posted on them by users. How do you feel about this law? I strongly agree with this statement 8% 13% 5% 0.33 8% 8% 0.029 12% 5% 0.13 4% 21% 0.12
I moderately agree with this statement 12% 15% 9% 4% 22% 16% 7% 16% 4%
I neither agree nor disagree with this statement 31% 23% 39% 42% 17% 37% 24% 24% 33%
I moderately disagree with this statement 36% 38% 32% 31% 42% 26% 46% 41% 33%
I strongly disagree with this statement 13% 10% 16% 15% 11% 9% 17% 14% 8%
Q20 How informed do you consider yourself to be about the impact on mental health of privacy violations? Very informed 5% 8% 2% 0.44 4% 6% 0.70 5% 5% 0.45 2% 12% 0.29
Moderately informed 33% 38% 30% 38% 28% 26% 41% 37% 38%
Slightly informed 44% 36% 50% 44% 44% 49% 39% 47% 33%
Not informed at all 18% 18% 18% 15% 22% 21% 15% 14% 17%
Q21 How concerned are you about the negative effects on mental health of technology related privacy violations? Very concerned 20% 31% 11% 0.004 25% 14% 0.57 23% 17% 0.45 16% 29% 0.098
Moderately concerned 55% 36% 73% 54% 56% 51% 59% 59% 42%
Slightly concerned 23% 31% 14% 19% 28% 26% 20% 24% 21%
Not concerned at all 2% 3% 2% 2% 3% 0% 5% 0% 8%
Q22 DNA profiling has been used to diagnose diseases and solve crimes but also for political surveillance. What best reflects your view? I am not concerned about DNA databases being misused because I live in a democracy. 1% 3% 0% 0.15 2% 0% 0.50 2% 0% 0.95 0% 4% 0.32
Some misuse of DNA databases is unavoidable, but on balance a lot more benefit than harm has come from DNA databases. 25% 28% 20% 21% 31% 23% 27% 24% 33%
I support using DNA databases with strict regulation on who can access them, how long information can be stored, and what the information can be used for. 71% 64% 80% 73% 69% 72% 71% 71% 62%
I do not support using DNA databases for any purposes as the potential harms outweigh the benefits. 2% 5% 0% 4% 0% 2% 2% 4% 0%
Q23 Cases of privacy violations have often pitted an individual’s right to privacy against the right to free speech of the person sharing the private information and the public’s right to know. Which do you think should carry more weight? The person’s right to privacy 37% 41% 32% 0.37 35% 39% 0.73 35% 39% 0.47 35% 42% 0.69
The right to free speech of the person sharing the private information 5% 3% 7% 6% 3% 5% 5% 2% 4%
The public’s right to know 4% 0% 7% 2% 6% 7% 0% 6% 0%
All three are equally important 55% 56% 55% 56% 53% 53% 56% 57% 54%
Q24 Biometric data can be used to digitally identify a person. Examples of biometric data include fingerprints, DNA, retinal scans, iris scans, voice recognition, and facial recognition. How do the privacy risks involved in using facial recognition tools compare with those of other examples of biometric data? The privacy risks with facial recognition are less than with other biometric data 5% 5% 5% 1.00 8% 0% 0.012 5% 5% 0.38 2% 8% 0.20
The privacy risks with facial recognition are about the same as with other biometric data 42% 41% 41% 52% 28% 33% 51% 41% 58%
The privacy risks with facial recognition are more than with other biometric data 35% 36% 34% 23% 50% 40% 29% 45% 25%
It is impossible to tell at this stage 19% 18% 20% 17% 22% 23% 15% 12% 8%
Q25 What best describes your view on this statement: I strongly agree with it 27% 28% 27% 0.96 19% 39% 0.18 26% 29% 0.58 35% 25% 0.13
“Compared to genetic profiling, facial recognition raises more privacy concerns because facial images may be more easily obtained than a DNA sample.” I moderately agree with it 43% 41% 43% 46% 39% 49% 37% 45% 33%
I neither agree nor disagree with it 21% 21% 23% 27% 14% 16% 27% 10% 33%
I moderately disagree with it 8% 10% 7% 8% 8% 9% 7% 10% 8%
I strongly disagree with it 0% 0% 0% 0.85 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0%
Q26 How concerned are you about using facial recognition to unlock personal devices, such as an iPhone? Very concerned 10% 8% 11% 0.33 6% 14% 0.66 9% 10% 0.17 8% 12% 0.79
Moderately concerned 25% 18% 32% 25% 25% 35% 15% 27% 17%
Slightly concerned 38% 46% 30% 42% 33% 30% 46% 37% 42%
Not concerned at all 27% 28% 27% 27% 28% 26% 29% 29% 29%
Q27 How concerned are you about using facial recognition to open personal locks, such as to one’s home? Very concerned 15% 13% 18% 0.69 10% 22% 0.53 19% 12% 0.20 18% 12% 0.36
Moderately concerned 36% 31% 39% 40% 31% 44% 27% 33% 33%
Slightly concerned 29% 33% 25% 29% 28% 21% 37% 33% 21%
Not concerned at all 20% 23% 18% 21% 19% 16% 24% 16% 33%
Q28 How do you feel about using facial recognition to identify conscious patients in medical settings, such as to check them into clinics? I strongly support it 2% 5% 0% 0.30 0% 6% 0.012 0% 5% 0.043 2% 4% 0.33
I moderately support it 23% 21% 25% 15% 33% 28% 17% 27% 17%
I neither support it nor oppose it 43% 51% 36% 56% 25% 33% 54% 43% 50%
I moderately oppose it 25% 18% 30% 25% 25% 35% 15% 18% 29%
I strongly oppose it 7% 5% 9% 4% 11% 5% 10% 10% 0%
Q29 How do you feel about using facial recognition to identify unconscious patients in medical settings? I strongly support it 17% 21% 14% 0.85 12% 22% 0.13 14% 20% 0.57 14% 25% 0.75
I moderately support it 43% 46% 41% 46% 39% 44% 41% 45% 46%
I neither support it nor oppose it 21% 18% 25% 29% 11% 19% 24% 22% 21%
I moderately oppose it 13% 10% 14% 8% 19% 19% 7% 12% 4%
I strongly oppose it 6% 5% 7% 4% 8% 5% 7% 6% 4%
Q30 Differences in facial features are associated with certain diseases and syndromes. What do you think about using computer-aided facial recognition to diagnose diseases based on facial shape and features? I strongly support it 42% 44% 39% 0.43 44% 39% 0.17 28% 56% 0.026 33% 58% 0.059
I moderately support it 38% 44% 34% 33% 44% 51% 24% 41% 38%
I neither support it nor oppose it 13% 8% 18% 19% 6% 16% 10% 18% 0%
I moderately oppose it 5% 5% 5% 4% 6% 2% 7% 4% 4%
I strongly oppose it 2% 0% 5% 0% 6% 2% 2% 4% 0%
Q31 Facebase is a National Institutes of Health-supported library of more than 5,000 three-dimensional facial images of patients with rare genetic disorders that has been used to develop diagnostic algorithms. How familiar are you with Facebase? Very familiar 5% 5% 5% 0.92 0% 11% 0.001 2% 7% 0.34 8% 0% 0.57
Moderately familiar 25% 26% 25% 27% 22% 19% 32% 22% 29%
Slightly familiar 25% 21% 27% 38% 8% 28% 22% 20% 25%
Not familiar at all 45% 49% 43% 35% 58% 51% 39% 49% 46%
Q32 How concerned are you that medical insurance companies may use facial recognition tools to identify individuals with certain diseases and deny coverage or increase its cost based on this information? Very concerned 27% 28% 27% 0.24 27% 28% 0.65 33% 22% 0.024 27% 29% 0.35
Moderately concerned 25% 26% 25% 21% 31% 19% 32% 29% 17%
Slightly concerned 35% 25% 41% 40% 28% 44% 24% 35% 29%
Not concerned at all 13% 21% 7% 12% 14% 5% 22% 10% 25%
Q33 How concerned are you that commercial entities may use facial recognition tools to identify individuals with certain diseases and market specific products to them directly based on this? Very concerned 32% 33% 32% 0.66 33% 31% 0.61 35% 29% 0.73 31% 29% 0.29
Moderately concerned 29% 23% 34% 27% 31% 26% 32% 31% 29%
Slightly concerned 30% 31% 27% 33% 25% 33% 27% 33% 21%
Not concerned at all 10% 13% 7% 6% 14% 7% 12% 6% 21%
Q34 Are you aware that some facial recognition tools have shown lower accuracy rates in minorities? Yes 86% 87% 84% 0.76 92% 78% 0.11 84% 88% 0.76 88% 92% 1.00
No 14% 13% 16% 8% 22% 16% 12% 12% 8%
Q35 Are you aware that some facial recognition tools have shown lower accuracy rates in women? Yes 40% 36% 45% 0.50 46% 33% 0.27 37% 44% 0.66 41% 50% 0.62
No 60% 64% 55% 54% 67% 63% 56% 59% 50%
Q36 Are you aware that some facial recognition tools have shown lower accuracy in older adults? Yes 51% 51% 52% 1.00 58% 42% 0.19 44% 59% 0.20 49% 67% 0.21
No 49% 49% 48% 42% 58% 56% 41% 51% 33%
Q37 Knowing that some facial recognition tools have shown lower accuracy rates in minorities, women and older adults, how concerned are you about this? Very concerned 40% 31% 49% 0.055 30% 53% 0.21 45% 34% 0.38 50% 17% 0.028
Moderately concerned 36% 33% 40% 43% 28% 38% 34% 33% 46%
Slightly concerned 14% 21% 9% 17% 11% 12% 17% 10% 21%
Not concerned at all 10% 15% 2% 11% 8% 5% 15% 6% 17%
Q38 What do you think should be done about the fact that some facial recognition tools have shown lower accuracy rates in minorities and women? This should cause us to significantly slow down the development of clinical facial recognition tools until it is resolved. 24% 18% 30% 0.11 25% 22% 0.89 35% 12% 0.049 29% 8% 0.13
This is a problem that we should address while we continue to develop clinical facial recognition tools. 64% 64% 66% 65% 64% 56% 73% 61% 75%
This problem will resolve itself as the technology naturally gets better over time. 12% 18% 5% 10% 14% 9% 15% 10% 17%
Q39 Facial recognition has been used to scan crowds in concerts to generate tour promotion metrics. How concerned are you about this? Very concerned 31% 23% 39% 0.44 23% 42% 0.17 28% 34% 0.15 35% 17% 0.33
Moderately concerned 30% 31% 30% 29% 31% 35% 24% 31% 29%
Slightly concerned 31% 36% 25% 40% 19% 35% 27% 27% 42%
Not concerned at all 8% 10% 7% 8% 8% 2% 15% 8% 12%
Q40 Facial recognition has been used in shopping centers to measure visit frequency and time spent in stores. How concerned are you about this? Very concerned 36% 23% 48% 0.071 29% 44% 0.55 37% 34% 0.052 41% 21% 0.089
Moderately concerned 27% 28% 27% 29% 25% 37% 17% 24% 29%
Slightly concerned 29% 38% 18% 31% 25% 23% 34% 31% 29%
Not concerned at all 8% 10% 7% 10% 6% 2% 15% 4% 21%
Q41 Facial recognition has been used by law enforcement to solve shoplifting cases. How concerned are you about this? Very concerned 17% 10% 23% 0.055 8% 28% 0.14 23% 10% 0.13 20% 4% 0.12
Moderately concerned 25% 21% 30% 27% 22% 28% 22% 29% 25%
Slightly concerned 37% 51% 23% 40% 33% 26% 49% 35% 33%
Not concerned at all 21% 18% 25% 25% 17% 23% 20% 16% 38%
Q42 Facial recognition has been used by law enforcement to solve murder cases. How concerned are you about this? Very concerned 12% 3% 20% 0.043 4% 22% 0.065 19% 5% 0.032 16% 4% 0.053
Moderately concerned 23% 21% 25% 21% 25% 26% 20% 27% 8%
Slightly concerned 35% 44% 25% 40% 28% 21% 49% 33% 38%
Not concerned at all 31% 33% 30% 35% 25% 35% 27% 24% 50%
Q43 Facial recognition has been used to identify protesters at anti-government protests. How concerned are you about this? Very concerned 49% 44% 55% 0.69 40% 61% 0.29 47% 51% 0.97 51% 38% 0.016
Moderately concerned 23% 23% 23% 27% 17% 23% 22% 31% 17%
Slightly concerned 21% 26% 16% 25% 17% 23% 20% 18% 29%
Not concerned at all 7% 8% 7% 8% 6% 7% 7% 0% 17%
Q44 There are reports that facial recognition can be fooled by 3-D photos. How concerned are you about this? Very concerned 29% 18% 39% 0.22 31% 25% 0.38 33% 24% 0.027 31% 17% 0.14
Moderately concerned 33% 38% 30% 27% 42% 44% 22% 39% 25%
Slightly concerned 32% 36% 27% 28% 25% 21% 44% 27% 50%
Not concerned at all 6% 8% 5% 4% 8% 2% 10% 4% 8%
Q45 The widespread use of facial masks since the COVID-19 pandemic may limit the testing and use of facial recognition technology. What statement best represents your view on this? That’s a good thing. Facial recognition has been developing too fast and before we can fully understand its potential disadvantages. 41% 28% 53% 0.015 38% 44% 0.88 51% 30% 0.086 46% 21% 0.026
That’s too bad, because this will slow down the progress of a promising technology. 18% 15% 21% 19% 17% 19% 18% 10% 33%
The COVID-19 pandemic will ultimately have no effect on facial recognition technology. 41% 56% 26% 43% 39% 30% 52% 44% 46%
Q46 Please choose the option that best describes your opinion about the following statement: “It has become almost impossible to protect privacy anyway, so resisting facial recognition would be pointless.” I strongly agree with this statement 6% 8% 5% 0.40 6% 6% 0.031 0% 12% 0.19 0% 17% 0.027
I moderately agree with this statement 18% 26% 11% 21% 14% 16% 20% 18% 25%
I neither agree nor disagree with this statement 25% 18% 30% 35% 11% 26% 24% 27% 17%
I moderately disagree with this statement 39% 38% 41% 31% 50% 44% 34% 37% 38%
I strongly disagree with this statement 12% 10% 14% 6% 19% 14% 10% 18% 4%
Q47 In June 2020, US lawmakers introduced a bill that would make it illegal for any federal agency or official to “acquire, possess, access, or use” biometric technology, including facial recognition tools. How confident are you that governments can adequately regulate the use of facial technology tools? Very confident 1% 0% 2% 0.14 0% 3% 0.70 0% 2% 0.064 0% 0%
Moderately confident 18% 26% 9% 17% 19% 16% 20% 12% 21% 0.53
Slightly confident 35% 28% 41% 33% 36% 47% 22% 35% 38%
Not confident at all 46% 46% 48% 50% 42% 37% 56% 53% 42%
Q48 Amazon, IBM, Google and Microsoft have all called for, or implemented, a moratorium on facial recognition technology. How confident are you that technology companies can regulate themselves when it comes to the use of facial recognition tools? Very confident 1% 3% 0% 0.86 0% 3% 0.11 0% 2% 0.62 0% 4% 0.078
Moderately confident 8% 8% 9% 10% 6% 12% 5% 2% 12%
Slightly confident 30% 28% 32% 38% 19% 30% 29% 31% 33%
Not confident at all 61% 62% 59% 52% 72% 58% 63% 67% 50%
Q49 Behavioral biometric data are increasingly used to distinguish humans from robots (“bots”) and may become a way to digitally identify a person. Examples of behavioral biometric data include typing cadence, mouse movements, finger movements on trackpads, and how users engage with apps and websites. How do you think the privacy risks of facial recognition compare with those of behavioral biometric data? The privacy risks with facial recognition are less than with behavioral biometric data. 6% 5% 7% 0.73 6% 6% 0.94 7% 5% 0.60 6% 4% 1.00
The privacy risks with facial recognition are about the same as with behavioral biometric data. 49% 54% 45% 50% 47% 53% 44% 53% 54%
The privacy risks with facial recognition are more than with behavioral biometric data. 45% 41% 48% 44% 47% 40% 51% 41% 42%