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Final Conclusion: Disentangling the Micro and the Macro in Bioethics

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Comparative Empirical Bioethics: Dilemmas of Genetic Testing and Euthanasia in Israel and Germany

Part of the book series: SpringerBriefs in Ethics ((BRIEFSETHIC))

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Abstract

Socio-empirically informed, theoretically reflective, and comparative studies of lay moralities and expert bioethics can reveal how individual meanings and cultural scripts are closely interwoven. Abstract norms, social practices, and personal experiences are balanced, adjusted and weighed against each other. Moreover, social science, ethics and political philosophy are already expressed in lay persons’ perceptions and thinking. Emphasizing the local and contextual nature of the problems of bioethics is not enough; it needs to be explored and compared so that shared issues can be elicited. The approach we suggest is useful for heterogeneous, pluralistic contexts that require a reflective juxtaposition of the macro and the micro. Such democratic deliberation can lead to the formulation of socially accepted directions for future practices.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    We say here “typical German discourse,” because as comparative research has indicated, other lay groups (outside of Germany) rarely mention the historical reference to Nazi medicine or Nazi eugenics (Felt et al. 2010). This implies, however, not that eugenic practice is not addressed in other countries, but the reference to historical practice is particularly significant for German debates.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beersheba, Israel

    Aviad E. Raz

  2. University Medical Center, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany

    Silke Schicktanz

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  1. Aviad E. Raz
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  2. Silke Schicktanz
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Correspondence to Aviad E. Raz .

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Raz, A.E., Schicktanz, S. (2016). Final Conclusion: Disentangling the Micro and the Macro in Bioethics. In: Comparative Empirical Bioethics: Dilemmas of Genetic Testing and Euthanasia in Israel and Germany. SpringerBriefs in Ethics. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-32733-4_9

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