Synopses & Reviews
Building on the best-selling tradition of previous editions,
Principles of Biomedical Ethics, Sixth Edition, provides a highly original, practical, and insightful guide to morality in the health professions. Acclaimed authors Tom L. Beauchamp and James F. Childress thoroughly develop and advocate for four principles that lie at the core of moral reasoning in health care:
respect for autonomy, nonmaleficence, beneficence, and justice. Drawing from contemporary research--and integrating
detailed case studies and
vivid real-life examples and scenarios--they demonstrate how these prima facie principles can be expanded to apply to various conflicts and dilemmas, from how to deliver bad news to whether or not to withhold or withdraw life-sustaining treatments.
Illuminating both theory and method throughout, Principles of Biomedical Ethics, Sixth Edition, considers what constitutes moral character and addresses the problem of moral status: what rights are due to people and animals, and when. It also examines the professional-patient relationship, surveys major philosophical theories--including utilitarianism, Kantianism, rights theory, and Communitarianism--and describes methods of moral justification in bioethics. Ideal for courses in biomedical ethics, bioethics, and health care ethics, the text is enhanced by hundreds of annotated citations and a substantial introduction that clarifies key terms and concepts.
Features of the Sixth Edition:
* Integrates case studies throughout the text, rather than presenting them in an appendix as in previous editions
* A new chapter on moral status (Chapter 3)
* Extensively revised and expanded material on the theory of the common morality (Chapters 1 and 10)
* A reworked discussion of the ethics of care as a form of virtue ethics (Chapter 2)
* Revised and updated treatments of nonmaleficence and beneficence, which take into account recent legal and philosophical literature and discussions (Chapters 5 and 6)
* A new section on vulnerability and exploitation as it applies to justice (Chapter 7)
* A more concise treatment of the principles of biomedical ethics throughout the text, featuring developed, refined, and modified perspectives
Review
"The new sixth edition of Principles of Biomedical Ethics is a welcome event. There is nothing else like it in the field of bioethics. It has easily become over the years the most used, most praised, and most distinguished book in the field. Each edition moves beyond the previous ones in important and nuanced ways. Beauchamp and Childress keep up with the ever-changing terrain of bioethics, and work hard to refine their own arguments. It gets better and better. One can hardly ask for more."--Daniel Callahan, Director, International Program, The Hastings Center
"What is by far the best general book on bioethics has gotten even better. The new material on international justice and virtue ethics is especially valuable. Such a combination of accessibility and rigor is rarely attained."--Allen Buchanan, James B. Duke Professor of Philosophy and James B. Duke Professor of Public Policy Studies, Duke University
"This sixth edition of Principles of Biomedical Ethics reaffirms its undisputed stature as a canonical text for the world's bioethicists. It maintains a standard of scholarship and clarity appealing to neophytes and seasoned scholars, to adherents and critics of its principled approach. It culls the new and the old with precision and adds a new chapter on moral status. Anyone hoping to stay current with the continuing evolution of bioethics must read this update."--Edmund D. Pellegrino, Chairman, President's Council on Bioethics
"The contemporary field of bioethics is unimaginable, absent this text. Principles of Biomedical Ethics provided a paradigmatic approach that shaped the early character of bioethics. It continues to be a source of serious debate regarding the nature of morality and the significance of bioethics. No one can understand the field of bioethics apart from this volume."--H. Tristram Engelhardt, Jr., M.D., Professor, Rice University and Baylor College of Medicine
"Principles of Biomedical Ethics has, over six successive editions, clarified and expanded the concepts, definitions, and arguments that make bioethics a discipline instead of random shards of opinion, sometimes astute, sometimes silly, that pass in the media for ethical commentary on medicine and science. This book is the thesaurus of bioethical discourse."--Albert R. Jonsen, Professor Emeritus, Department of Medical History and Ethics, University of Washington
"The sixth edition of Principles of Biomedical Ethics, which more than any other book has helped to shape the field of biomedical ethics, is even better than the previous five editions. Beauchamp and Childress continue to listen to their critics, of whom I am one, and to change their book accordingly. Although I still have some problems with the theory of principlism, I have nothing but admiration for their comprehensive and detailed discussion of the moral problems that arise in the field of medicine. I plan to use this edition, as I have used previous editions, as one of the primary texts in my course in Philosophy of Medicine."--Bernard Gert, Stone Professor of Intellectual and Moral Philosophy, Dartmouth College
"Like all of its previous incarnations, this new edition of Principles of Biomedical Ethics offers the reader a window onto the cutting edge of contemporary bioethics. Never content to merely recycle, buff, and slap new covers on old material, Beauchamp and Childress have once again rethought fundamental issues and fully engaged with their critics (including me). Beyond merely contributing to the field of bioethics, PBE has helped to define it."--John D. Arras, Porterfield Professor of Bioethics, University of Virginia
"Every new edition of this classic gets better and better. This is essential reading for all students and scholars of bioethics."--Bernard Lo, M.D., Professor of Medicine and Director, Program in Medical Ethics, University of California, San Francisco
"Anyone with an interest in the field, including all those who have already been influenced by previous editions of Principles of Biomedical Ethics--and who in our field hasn't been, directly or indirectly?--should read the sixth edition. They will find the by-now familiar principles treated in new ways and, more importantly, thoughtful examinations of global health and of the relationship of vulnerability and exploitation to the often-neglected principle of justice. This book is now essential reading not only for those who grapple with clinical dilemmas and the challenges of biomedical research but also for anyone working on the frontiers of public health, where global epidemics and routine surveillance raise some of the most difficult issues in bioethics."--Alexander M. Capron, University Professor, University of Southern California, and Former Director, Ethics, Trade, Human Rights and Health Law, World Health Organization
Review
"The authors...have expanded almost every important discussion of theory and principle, and in so doing, have brought much greater clarity and precision to their text. They add new material, reflecting the new problems that medicine and health care face...(AIDS is a prominent example). This third edition is essentially a new book, far better in style and contents than its already satisfactory predecessors." --
Hastings Center Report"Authoritative...Well-written and erudite...Those who read the text...will find their time rewarded by an appreciation for two of the finer analytical minds in biomedical ethics and by knowledge of a remarkable amount of literature." --The Journal of Religion
Synopsis
This edition represents a thorough-going revision of what has become a classic text in biomedical ethics. Major structural changes mark the revision. The authors have added a new concluding chapter on methods that, along with its companion chapter on moral theory, emphasizes convergence across theories, coherence in moral justification, and the common morality. They have simplified the opening chapter on moral norms which introduces the framework of prima facie moral principles and ways to specify and balance them. Together with the shift of advanced material on theory to the back of the book, this heavily revised introductory chapter will make it easier for the wide range of students entering bioethics courses to use this text. Another important change is the increased emphasis on character and moral agency, drawing the distinction between agents and actions. The sections on truth telling, disclosure of bad news, privacy, conflicts of interest, and research on human subjects have also been thoroughly reworked. The four core chapters on principles (respect for autonomy, nonmaleficence, beneficence, and justice) and the chapter on professional-patient relationships retain their familiar structure, but the authors have completely updated their content to reflect developments in philosophical analysis as well as in research, medicine, and health care. Throughout, they have used a number of actual cases to illuminate and to test their theory, method, and framework of principles.
Table of Contents
Each chapter ends with a Conclusion. PART I. MORAL FOUNDATIONS
1. Moral Norms
Normative and Nonnormative Ethics
The Common Morality as Universal Morality
Particular Moralities as Nonuniversal
Moral Dilemmas
A Framework of Moral Norms
Conflicting Moral Norms
2. Moral Character
Moral Virtues
Virtues in Professional Roles
The Virtue of Caring
Five Focal Virtues
Moral Virtues and Action Guides
Moral Ideals
Moral Excellence
3. Moral Status
The Problem of Moral Status
Theories of Moral Status
From Theories to Practical Guidelines
Vulnerable Populations
PART II. MORAL PRINCIPLES
4. Respect for Autonomy
The Nature of Autonomy
The Capacity for Autonomous Choice
The Meaning and Justification of Informed Consent
Disclosure
Understanding
Voluntariness
A Framework of Standards for Surrogate Decision Making
5. Nonmaleficence
The Concept of Nonmaleficence
Distinctions and Rules Governing Nontreatment
Optional Treatments and Obligatory Treatments
Killing and Letting Die
The Justification of Intentionally Arranged Deaths
Protecting Incompetent Patients
6. Beneficence
The Concept of Beneficence
Obligatory Beneficence and Ideal Beneficence
Paternalism: Conflicts Between Beneficence and Autonomy
Balancing Benefits, Costs, and Risks
The Value and Quality of Life
7. Justice
The Concept of Justice
Theories of Justice
Fair Opportunity and Unfair Discrimination
Vulnerability and Exploitation
National Health Policy and the Right to Health Care
Global Health Policy and the Right to Health
Allocating, Setting Priorities, and Rationing
8. Professional-Patient Relationships
Veracity
Privacy
Confidentiality
Fidelity
The Dual Roles of Clinician and Investigator
PART III. THEORY AND METHOD
9. Moral Theories
Criteria for Theory Construction
Utilitarianism
Kantianism
Rights Theory
Communitarianism
Convergence of Theories
10. Method and Moral Justification
Justification in Ethics
Top-Down Models: Theory and Application
Bottom-Up Models: Cases and Analogy
An Integrated Model Using Reflective Equilibrium
Common-Morality Theory
Index