Douglas, Heather (2021) Scientific freedom and social responsibility. [Preprint]

Text 2021 Sci Freedom Soc Responsibility Preprint.pdf Download (325kB)

Abstract

Recent statements of the responsibilities of scientists have strengthened the responsibilities of scientists towards the societies in which they pursue their research. Scientists are now expected to do more than treat their experimental subjects ethically and communicate their results. They are also expected to benefit humanity. In a shift from the predominant views of the second half of the 20th century, social responsibility is now yoked to the freedom to pursue scientific research, rather than opposed to such freedom. First I will describe this change and some of its causes. Then I will address the fact that much of our institutional research oversight infrastructure was put in place with a now-outdated understanding of the societal responsibilities and freedoms of scientists. Finally, I will make some recommendations on how to shift the structures we have to be more in tune with the current conceptualization of scientific freedom and social responsibility.

---

Export/Citation:

EndNote | BibTeX | Dublin Core | ASCII/Text Citation (Chicago) | HTML Citation | OpenURL

Social Networking:

Share |

---

Item Type:	Preprint
Creators:	Creators Email ORCID Douglas, Heather dougl239@msu.edu 0000-0003-1068-8948
Keywords:	Scientific responsibility, scientific freedom, responsible conduct of research
Subjects:	General Issues > Science and Policy General Issues > Values In Science
Depositing User:	Prof. Heather Douglas
Date Deposited:	28 Dec 2025 22:55
Last Modified:	28 Dec 2025 22:55
Item ID:	27644
Subjects:	General Issues > Science and Policy General Issues > Values In Science
Date:	2021
URI:	https://philsci-archive.pitt.edu/id/eprint/27644

Monthly Views for the past 3 years

Monthly Downloads for the past 3 years

Plum Analytics

Actions (login required)

View Item