When I tell people I work for Boston Paternity, they usually come out with come smart comment like, “Ohhh you find baby’s daddies” or, “Do you do paternity testing for Maury?” I respond by telling people that some of what we do is related to paternity testing, and some of the stories are definitely Maury worthy. But Boston Paternity does more than test paternity. We help individuals and families with all sorts of relationship testing. “Relationship Testing”, as explained in the Ombudsman Annual Report 2009, is broader in scope than previously used terms like “parentage testing” or “paternity testing”. It’s more explanatory than “genetic testing” which describes the process of analyzing genetic markers for purposes other than proving relationships.
Used especially in the context of immigration, relationship testing refers to any test which provides evidence of a family relationship. “DNA testing” is the most accurate form of relationship testing.
Relationship testing includes paternity testing, and also incorporates maternity testing, siblingship testing, grandparentage testing, avuncular testing, and twins testing. The list goes on and on. Relationship DNA testing gives us the capability of proving close as well as distant biological relationships.
Next time someone tells you they work for a DNA testing company, you can come out with some smart comment like, “Ohhh you find baby’s mommies” or, “Do you do avuncular testing for Maury?”
