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Genetic Genealogy Assessment Guide

Your case has been assigned an assessment level ranging from 1–5, depending on our estimation of how difficult it will be to solve (i.e., result in a list of highly promising candidate subjects) using genetic genealogy (GG), with 1 being the most straightforward and 5 being the most difficult. This assessment is based on the match information currently available and could drastically improve if new matches appear. Parabon will be monitoring your case for these new matches.

Parabon's goal is to be as honest and forthright as possible about how difficult your case will be for GG, and progress updates will be provided after every ~15 hours of research, once the recommendations from the previous report have been completed. The majority of Parabon's solved cases received an assessment of 4, and very few cases receive an assessment better than a 4. The more difficult the case is, the more collaboration will be required with the agency for records research, kinship testing, etc.

Assessment Levels

1. Extremely straightforward
2. Likely straightforward
3. Possibly straightforward, with some potential difficulties
4. Somewhat difficult, potentially requiring agency collaboration
5. Very difficult, requiring significant agency collaboration

1. If your assessment includes a plus sign — e.g., "4+" — this indicates that your case is more promising than most cases at this level.
2. If your assessment includes a minus sign — e.g., "4-" — this indicates that your case is less promising than most cases at this level.
3. If your assessment includes an "e" — e.g., "4e" — this means that the Subject was found to come from an endogamous population (one in which there has historically been a higher than average degree of inter-marrying). Endogamy is the high background relatedness present in small, isolated populations, which increases the amount of DNA shared by distant relatives. This means that many of the matches are likely more distantly related than would be expected from the amount of shared DNA observed, decreasing the informativeness of each match.

Assessment Details

Parabon's assessments are based on the number and degree of relatedness of the matches found during the GG screening process and incorporate our experience with and considerations of working within specific population groups. These assessments are intended as estimates, but they are not guarantees, as it is very difficult to know how challenging a case will be until significant genealogy work is undertaken. All cases come with the caveat that there is a chance the Subject was adopted/abandoned or is of unknown paternity, and the Subject's existence may be unknown to those with whom there is a close genetic relationship. For all cases, until the case is resolved, Parabon will continue to monitor it at no charge in the hope that closer matches will turn up over time as new people join the genetic genealogy databases.

Level 1: Extremely straightforward GG analysis

There is a very close relative (child, parent, or sibling) in a GG database with a discoverable name and family history, so it should be straightforward for Parabon's expert genetic genealogists to determine the identity of the person-of-interest in this case.

Level 2: Likely straightforward GG analysis

There are close relatives (second and/or third degree relatives) in the GG databases who appear to have discoverable names and biological family histories, so it will very likely be straightforward for Parabon's expert genetic genealogists to determine the identity of the person-of-interest in this case.

Level 3: Possibly straightforward GG analysis, with some potential difficulties

There are close relatives (typically first and/or second cousins) in the GG databases, but it may not be straightforward for Parabon's expert genetic genealogists to determine the identity of the person-of-interest in this case, either because 1) the number of unique, potentially informative matches is small, increasing the probability that detailed family information may not be discoverable — e.g., due to adoption — 2) a significant amount of family tree building will be required, and/or 3) one or more of the top/key matches appears to have an adoption or a misattributed paternity affecting the ability to accurately build their family tree.

Level 4: Somewhat difficult GG analysis, potentially requiring agency collaboration

There are distant relatives (e.g., second and/or third cousins) in the GG databases, but significant work will be required to determine the identity of the person-of-interest in this case, and agency collaboration may be required. One of Parabon's expert genetic genealogists will begin GG analysis and build the richest set of family trees possible with our resources. When needed, research will be paused to produce an intermediate report with concrete recommendations to most efficiently advance the case, which may include requesting assistance from the agency — e.g., searching records to which we do not have access, contacting related DNA testers to upload, and/or collecting DNA samples from known relatives of the matches for kinship testing, etc.. Once the agency has completed the action items from that report, GG work will resume, integrating this new information into the analysis, followed by an updated report to continue the collaborative investigation, if necessary.

NOTE: The majority of Parabon's solved cases received an assessment of 4

Level 5: Very difficult GG analysis, requiring extensive agency collaboration

Based on our experience, an extraordinary level of effort will be required to make progress on this case using GG. Either the matches in the GG databases are all very distant, which implies that any common ancestor lived so long ago that there could be many thousands of living descendants, and/or the family trees of the more significant matches do not appear to be traceable, which could be due to factors such as adoption or recent immigration. One of Parabon's expert genetic genealogists will do a deep dive into the matches to more fully determine the amount of genealogical information available and establish the best path forward. The initial results will be delivered in a report with concrete recommendations for how we can collaborate with the agency to continue this research — e.g., asking the agency to search records to which we do not have access, contacting related DNA testers to upload, and/or collecting DNA samples from known relatives of the matches for kinship testing, etc. Once the genealogist determines that enough information is available, either from agency collaboration and/or new matches appearing in the GG databases, GG work will resume, followed by an updated report to continue the collaborative investigation. In the meantime, Parabon will produce a full Snapshot DNA Phenotyping report with a composite of the person-of-interest at no charge to help advance the investigation.