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Should We Nudge Informed Consent?

Brooks, Thom

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Abstract

Critics argue that nudge theory manipulates rather than respects the informed consent of patients. Cohen (2013) convincingly argues that this criticism falls short of the mark. But we might go one step further: nudges are not only defensible, there are also inescapable. Cohen’s defence should be more robust and recognize the importance of context and unavoidable framing effects. The question is not whether nudges are acceptable, but rather how they might be better employed to improve informed consent and public policy. This Open Peer Commentary will explain the inevitability of nudging. A respect for informed consent is to respect choices within context. We can improve our efforts to support and improve informed consent, but we cannot act independently of contextual factors. So long as we must choose within context, we are subjected to nudges. We should not ask whether or not to nudge, but how best to nudge instead.

Citation

Brooks, T. (2013). Should We Nudge Informed Consent?. The American Journal of Bioethics, 13(6), 22-23. https://doi.org/10.1080/15265161.2013.781710

Journal Article Type Article
Publication Date May 1, 2013
Deposit Date Feb 28, 2013
Publicly Available Date Apr 12, 2013
Journal American Journal of Bioethics
Print ISSN 1526-5161
Electronic ISSN 1536-0075
Publisher Taylor and Francis Group
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 13
Issue 6
Pages 22-23
DOI https://doi.org/10.1080/15265161.2013.781710

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