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Voluntary consent: why a value-neutral concept won't work.

Alan Wertheimer¹

¹Department of Bioethics, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA. Wertheimera@cc.nih.gov

The Journal of Medicine and Philosophy

|May 4, 2012

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

A value-neutral view of voluntariness cannot explain invalid consent. A moralized account is needed, suggesting most concerns about research consent voluntariness are unfounded. This impacts ethical research practices.

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Area of Science:

Philosophy of Science
Bioethics
Moral Philosophy

Background:

The concept of voluntariness in consent is debated, with some viewing it as value-neutral.
A value-neutral approach defines involuntariness based on controlling influences or lack of alternatives.
This perspective faces challenges in explaining the invalidity of consent in various contexts.

Purpose of the Study:

To critically evaluate the value-neutral conception of voluntariness.
To propose and defend a moralized account of voluntariness.
To reassess concerns regarding the voluntariness of consent in research participation.

Main Methods:

Philosophical argumentation and conceptual analysis.
Examination of existing theories of voluntariness.
Application of the proposed moralized account to case studies of consent.

Main Results:

A value-neutral conception of voluntariness is insufficient to account for the invalidity of consent.
A moralized account of voluntariness provides a more robust framework for understanding consent.
The proposed framework suggests that many common concerns about research consent voluntariness may be overstated.

Conclusions:

The prevailing value-neutral understanding of voluntariness requires revision.
A moralized approach to voluntariness is essential for a comprehensive theory of consent.
Re-evaluating voluntariness in research consent may refine ethical oversight and participant protection.