The Ethics of Science

THE ETHICS OF SCIENCE “If anyone still believes that scientific research is a value-free zone, The Ethics of Science will disabuse them. David B.Resnik uses a wealth of actual and hypothetical examples in a clear philosophical discussion that illuminates the range of ethical concerns that scientists need to face. This is one area where philosophical argument can serve a practical need: the more scientists who think carefully about the issues Resnik raises, the better.” Peter Lipton Professor of History and Philosophy of Science University of Cambridge “Science faculty and students—and an interested public—will find The Ethics of Science admirably clear, balanced, and richly comprehensive. Resnik’s clarity shows itself not only in his unpretentious, straight-forwardness, but by being philosophically sophisticated yet avoiding jargon. An extremely useful aspect of the book is that virtually every kind of ethical question that arises in and about science is addressed.” Hans Oberdiek Swarthmore College David B.Resnik is an Associate Professor of Philosophy and the Director of the Center for the Advancement of Ethics at the University of Wyoming. This is his first book. Philosophical Issues in ScienceEdited by W.H.Newton-Smith Balliol College, Oxford Real HistoryMartin Bunzl Brute ScienceHugh LaFollette and Niall Shanks Living in a Technological CultureMary Tiles and Hans Oberdiek The Rational and the SocialJames Robert Brown The Nature of the DiseaseLawrie Reznek The Philosophical Defence of PsychiatryLawrie Reznek Inference to the Best ExaminationPeter Lipton Time, Space and PhilosophyChristopher Ray Mathematics and the Image of ReasonMary Tiles Evil or Ill?Lawrie Reznek The Ethics of Science: An IntroductionDavid B.Resnik THE ETHICS OF SCIENCE An Introduction David B.Resnik London and New York First published 1998 by Routledge 11 New Fetter Lane, London EC4P 4EE This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2005. “To purchase your own copy of this or any of Taylor & Francis or Routledge’s collection of thousands of eBooks please go to www.eBookstore.tandf.co.uk.” Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada by Routledge 29 West 35th Street, New York, NY 10001 © 1998 David B.Resnik All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Resnik, David B., 1962– The ethics of science: an introduction/David B.Resnik. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. 1. Science—Moral and ethical aspects. 2. Research—Philosophy. I. Title. Q175.35.R46 1998 174′.95—dc21 97–40514 ISBN 0-203-97906-0 Master e-book ISBN ISBN 0-415-16697-7 (hbk) ISBN 0-415-16698-5 (pbk) In memory of my grandmother, Muriel Resnik, who encouraged me to write. Contents Acknowledgments ix Chapter 1 Science and Ethics 1 The Baltimore Affair 5 Cloning Research 7 The Debate over Cold Fusion 9 Chapter 2 Ethical Theory and Applications 13 Ethics, Law, Politics, and Religion 13 Moral Theory 16 Moral Choices 21 Relativism 25 Chapter 3 Science as a Profession 31 Science: From Avocation to Profession 31 The Goals of Science 34 The Contemporary Research Environment 37 Communication and Science’s Peer Review System 40 The Scientific Method 44 Chapter 4 Standards of Ethical Conduct in Science 48 Honesty 48 Carefulness 51 Openness 52 Freedom 54 Credit 55 Education 56 vii Social Responsibility 57 Legality 58 Opportunity 59 Mutual Respect 60 Efficiency 60 Respect for Subjects 61 Concluding Remarks 61 Chapter 5 Objectivity in Research 66 Honesty in Research 66 Misconduct in Science 71 Error and Self-deception 72 Bias in Research 75 Conflicts of Interest 76 Openness 52 Data Management 83 Chapter 6 Ethical Issues in Scientific Publication 85 Objectivity in Publication 85 Other Publication Issues 89 Credit Where Credit is Due 91 Intellectual Property 96 Science, the Media, and the Public 101 Chapter 7 Ethical Issues in the Laboratory 108 The Ethics of the Mentor—Mentee Relationship 108 Harassment 109 Reporting Misconduct in Science 110 Teaching vs. Research 111 Ethical Issues in Hiring and Recruitment 112 Sharing and Preserving Resources 115 Research on Human Subjects 117 viii Research on Animal Subjects 123 Chapter 8 The Scientist in Society 130 Social Responsibility 57 Expert Testimony in Court 134 Industrial Science 137 Military Science 143 The Public Funding of Research 148 Other Social, Political, and Moral Issues 151 Postscript: Toward a More Ethical Science 153 Appendix: Case Studies 158 Notes 175 Bibliography 181 Index 193 Acknowledgments I would like to thank the following people for comments on drafts of this book: David Hull, Scott O’Brien, W.H.Newton-Smith, Marshall Thomsen, and several anonymous reviewers. I would also like to thank the following people for comments and criticism: Stephanie Bird, Ron Canterna, Michael Davis, Clark Glymour, Alvin Goldman, Susanna Goodin, Fred Grinnell, Michael Harkin, A.C.Higgins, Dale Jamieson, Audrey Kleinsasser, Helen Longino, Claudia Mills, Kenneth Pimple, Michael Resnik, Geoffrey Sayre McCord, Ed Sherline, Linda Sweeting, Robert Switzer, and my class on ethical issues in scientific research which I taught at the University of Wyoming in the Spring of 1996. I also would like to mention that the National Science Foundation helped to provide partial support for this work through grants SBR-960297, SBR-9511817, SBR-9223819, and AST-9100602. CHAPTER 1 Science and Ethics During the past decade, scientists, laypeople, and politicians have become increasingly aware of the importance of ethics in scientific research. Several trends have contributed to these growing concerns. First, the press has covered stories on ethical issues raised by science, such as the United States (US) government’s secret experiments on human beings during the Cold War, genetic engineering, the Human Genome Project, studies on the genetic basis of intelligence, the cloning of human embryos and animals, and global warming. Second, scientists and government officials have investigated, documented, and adjudicated cases of ethical misconduct and ethically questionable conduct in many aspects of research, and a perceived lack of ethics in science has threatened the stability and integrity of research (PSRCR 1992, Hilts 1996, Hedges 1997). These cases include allegations of plagiarism, fraud, violations of the law, mismanagement of funds, exploitation of subordinates, violations of recombinant DNA regulations, discrimination, conflicts of interests, and problems with the FBI’s crime lab. Despite a growing body of evidence on unethical research, the data still indicate that the frequency of misconduct in science is quite low when compared to the frequency of misconduct in other professions, such as business, medicine, or law (PSRCR 1992).1 A third reason why ethics has become a pressing concern is that science’s increasing interdependence with business and industry has generated ethical conflicts between scientific values and business values (PSRCR 1992, Reiser 1993). These conflicts have raised concerns about the funding of science, peer review, scientific openness, the ownership of knowledge, and the sharing of resources. Universities have expressed concerns about scientists who use their facilities to conduct secret research for private industry or personal economic gain (Bowie 1994). In some cases, universities have fought lengthy court battles with businesses and individuals over patents and intellectual property rights. University administrators also complain that scientists who work for business are spending less time on their other duties, such as education. Scientists in various fields worry that the relationship between science and business will redirect research toward the solution of applied problems and that basic research will suffer. Government watchdogs have objected to allowing companies to profit from publicly funded research (Lomasky 1987). 2 THE ETHICS OF SCIENCE In response to concerns about ethical improprieties and issues in science, various scientific institutions and societies, such as the National Science Foundation (NSF), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the National Academy of Sciences (NAS), and Sigma Xi have commissioned committees to study ethical issues and improprieties in science and make policy recommendations (Sigma Xi 1986, 1993, AAAS 1991, PSRCR 1992, Committee on the Conduct of Science 1994). Additionally, universities, businesses, and scientific societies have sponsored workshops and conferences that address ethical issues in science, scientists have initiated efforts to integrate ethics into the science curriculum at the graduate and undergraduate level of instruction, scholars from various sciences and the humanities have written books and articles about the ethics in research, and new journals have been started that address ethical issues in science (Reiser 1993, Bird and Spier 1995, Garte 1995). Finally, scientific societies and organizations have adopted codes of ethics and have recommended that scientists integrate ethics into the science curriculum (Sigma Xi 1986, US Congress 1990, PSCRC 1992). Despite

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