Evidence-based ethics? On evidence-based practice and the "empirical turn" from normative bioethics

Area of Science:

• Bioethics
• Philosophy of Science
• Medical Ethics

Background:

• The field of bioethics has seen a significant increase in empirical research methods over the past two decades.
• This shift is often viewed as a positive expansion, integrating social scientists and clinical ethicists.
• However, this trend also indicates a declining confidence in traditional normative and analytical approaches within bioethics.

Purpose of the Study:

• To critically evaluate the emerging trend of "Evidence-Based Ethics" within the discipline.
• To argue against the adoption of evidence-based approaches as a solution for resolving moral problems in a pluralistic society.
• To highlight the potential dangers of evidence-based ethics to the core normative mandate of bioethics.

Main Methods:

• Conceptual analysis of the philosophical underpinnings of evidence-based approaches in ethics.
• Critique of the positivist notion that empirical evidence can neutrally adjudicate moral claims.
• Examination of how aggregate or statistically-derived evidence may displace normative discourse.

Main Results:

• Evidence-based ethics, while appearing neutral, risks obscuring normative content through seemingly objective measures.
• The reliance on empirical evidence can lead to a neglect of empirically non-verifiable moral claims and judgments.
• This approach may inadvertently introduce implicit normativity through the presentation of scientific facts.

Conclusions:

• The "empirical turn" in bioethics necessitates a re-evaluation of moral evaluation methods.
• Evidence-based ethics should be rejected as it threatens to replace crucial normative discourse with aggregate data.
• Alternative methods must be found that do not obscure normative content under the guise of neutral, technical measures.