The Doctrine of Double Effect and Medical Ethics: A New Formulation
PDF

Keywords

Doctrine of Double Effect
medical ethics
intention
foresight
Thomas Aquinas

How to Cite

Sharifzadeh, R. (2022). The Doctrine of Double Effect and Medical Ethics: A New Formulation. ETHICS IN PROGRESS, 13(2), 42–56. https://doi.org/10.14746/eip.2022.2.4

Abstract

The standard version of the doctrine of double effect, a significant doctrine in applied ethics particularly medical ethics, not only fails to capture some morally significant components of Aquinas’ view, but it does not resort to proper complementary features in order to accommodate the doctrine to our moral intuitions. We attempt to offer a new formulation of the doctrine incorporating the main components of Aquinas’ view and also to extend the view using some complementary features. We will examine the strength of the formulation applying it into some ethically controversial situations, mainly in medical ethics.

https://doi.org/10.14746/eip.2022.2.4
PDF

References

Anscombe G. E. M. 1967. "Who is Wronged? - Philippa Foot on Double Effect: One Point," The Oxford Review 5:16-17.

Anscombe G. E. M. 1982. "Medalist's Address: Action, Intention and 'Double Effect'," Proceedings of the American Catholic Philosophical Association 56:12-25. https://doi.org/10.5840/acpaproc19825611 DOI: https://doi.org/10.5840/acpaproc19825611

Aquinas T. (13th c). Summa Theologiae, IIa-IIae, q. 64, art. 7. URL: https://www.newadvent.org/summa/3064.htm#article7.

Boyle J. 1977. "Double Effect and a Certain Type of Embryotomy," The Irish Theological Quarterly 44(4):303-318. https://doi.org/10.1177/002114007704400404 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/002114007704400404

Boyle J. 1991a. "Who is Entitled to Double Effect?," The Journal of Medicine and Philosophy 16:475-494. https://doi.org/10.1093/jmp/16.5.475 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/jmp/16.5.475

Boyle J. 1991b. "Further Thoughts on Double Effects: Some Preliminary Responses," The Journal of Medicine and Philosophy 16:565-570.

https://doi.org/10.1093/jmp/16.5.565 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/jmp/16.5.565

Davis N. 1984. "The Doctrine of Double Effect: Problems of Interpretation," Pacific Philosophical Quarterly 65:107-123. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-0114.1984.tb00217.x DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-0114.1984.tb00217.x

Di Nucci E. 2014. "Embryo Loss and Double Effect," Journal of Medical Ethics 39:537-540. https://doi.org/10.1136/medethics-2012-101172 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1136/medethics-2012-101172

Donagan A. 1991. "Moral Absolutism and the Double-Effect Exception: Reflections on Joseph Boyle's 'Who is Entitled to Double Effect?'," The Journal of Medicine and Philosophy 16:495-509. https://doi.org/10.1093/jmp/16.5.495 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/jmp/16.5.495

Foot P. 2003. Virtues and Vices: And Other Essays in Moral Philosophy. New York: Oxford University Press Inc.

Jennings B., Daniel C., & Wolf S. M. 1987. "Public Interest and Common Good," The Hastings Center Report 17(1):3-10. https://doi.org/10.2307/3562447 DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/3562447

Mangan J. 1949. "A Historical Analysis of the Principle of Double Effect," Theological Studies 10:41- 46. https://doi.org/10.1177/004056394901000102 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/004056394901000102

Marquis D. B. 1991. "Four Versions of Double Effect," The Journal of Medicine and Philosophy 16:515-544. https://doi.org/10.1093/jmp/16.5.515 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/jmp/16.5.515

Murphy T. F. 2013. "Double-Effect Reasoning and the Conception of Human Embryos," Journal of Medical Ethics 39:529-32. https://doi.org/10.1136/medethics-2012-100534 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1136/medethics-2012-100534

Quinn W. 1989. "Actions, Intentions, and Consequences: The Doctrine of Doing and Allowing," Philosophical Review 98(3): 287-312. https://doi.org/10.2307/2185021 DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/2185021

Ramirez E. 2017. "Empathy and the Limits of Thought Experiments," Metaphilosophy 48(4):504-526. https://doi.org/10.1111/meta.12249 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/meta.12249

Ross W. D. 2002 (orig. 1930). The Right and the Good. Reprinted with an introduction by P. Stratton-Lake. Oxford: Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/0199252653.001.0001 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/0199252653.001.0001

Schultz R. 2005. Contemporary Issues in Ethics and Information Technology. eBook Edition, IRM Press. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-59140-779-9.ch001 DOI: https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-59140-779-9.ch001

Theron S. 1984. "Two Criticisms of Double Effect," The New Scholasticism 58(1):67-83. https://doi.org/10.5840/newscholas198458139 DOI: https://doi.org/10.5840/newscholas198458139

Thomson J. J. 1976. "Killing, Letting Die, and the Trolley Problem," The Monist 59(2):204-217. https://doi.org/10.5840/monist197659224 DOI: https://doi.org/10.5840/monist197659224

Wolpe P. R. & Saks M. 1996. "Professions and the Public Interest: Medical Power, Altruism, and Alternative Medicine," Contemporary Sociology 25(1):125. https://doi.org/10.2307/2077016 DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/2077016