The Ethics of Social Risk Reduction in the Era of the Biological Brain

Schrecker, Ted; Acosta, Lisa; Somerville, Margaret A.; Bursztajn, Harold

doi:10.1016/s0277-9536(00)00281-1

The Ethics of Social Risk Reduction in the Era of the Biological Brain

Schrecker, Ted; Acosta, Lisa; Somerville, Margaret A.; Bursztajn, Harold

Authors

Ted Schrecker

Lisa Acosta

Margaret A. Somerville

Harold Bursztajn

Abstract

In keeping with our transdisciplinary orientation, in this article we try to do several things at once. We address research on preventing mental illness and its relation to existing conceptions of public health, a topic to which insufficient attention has been paid in the era of the biological brain, while using this case study to illustrate the limits of conventional approaches in bioethics. After identifying the crucial need for methodological self-consciousness in prevention research and policy, we explore the implications as they relate to (i) the values embedded in the choice of research designs and strategies, and (ii) contrasting intellectual starting points regarding the biological plausibility of preventing mental illness. We then draw attention to the need for more thoughtful analysis of the appropriate role and limits of economics in making choices about prevention of mental illness.

Citation

Schrecker, T., Acosta, L., Somerville, M. A., & Bursztajn, H. (2001). The Ethics of Social Risk Reduction in the Era of the Biological Brain. Social Science & Medicine, 52(11), 1677-1687. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0277-9536%2800%2900281-1

Journal Article Type	Article
Publication Date	Jun 1, 2001
Deposit Date	Jun 24, 2013
Publicly Available Date	May 12, 2014
Journal	Social science and medicine
Print ISSN	0277-9536
Publisher	Elsevier
Peer Reviewed	Peer Reviewed
Volume	52
Issue	11
Pages	1677-1687
DOI	https://doi.org/10.1016/s0277-9536%2800%2900281-1
Keywords	Mental illness, Prevention, Public health, Methodology, Economics, Ethics.

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Copyright Statement
This is the author’s version of a work that was accepted for publication in Social Science & Medicine. Changes resulting from the publishing process, such as peer review, editing, corrections, structural formatting, and other quality control mechanisms may not be reflected in this document. Changes may have been made to this work since it was submitted for publication. A definitive version was subsequently published in Social Science & Medicine, 52, 11, 2001, 10.1016/S0277-9536(00)00281-1.