The study of ethical issues and decision-making regarding biological research, medical practice, and life sciences.
Coined in 1970 by American biochemist Van Rensselaer Potter, combining Greek bios (life) + ethics. Potter originally envisioned it as a bridge between biological sciences and human values, though it's now primarily focused on medical ethics.
Bioethics emerged just as medicine gained unprecedented power over life and death—organ transplants, genetic engineering, and life support created moral dilemmas that traditional ethics couldn't address. Every major medical breakthrough now comes with its own bioethical committee to navigate these uncharted moral territories.
Bioethics frameworks have historically centered male perspectives and bodies in medical research; reproductive ethics, contraception, and maternal health were long subordinated. Women and gender minorities remain underrepresented in bioethics committees and scholarship.
When applying bioethics frameworks, explicitly center reproductive justice, gender-diverse health needs, and the historical exclusion of women from medical research and decision-making.
Women bioethicists including Rosemary Tong, Laurie Shrage, and others have developed feminist bioethics to center justice and lived experience, recasting the field.
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