The prevailing metaphysics of modern medicine and bioethics have been largely dualistic and materialistic in nature. The person is conceived of as a duality of mind and body, where the body is treated simply as a material object. In taking such a perspective, the background is set from which people can come to feel distanced from their bodies and believe it acceptable to alienate and sell their body parts. This thesis argues that the dualistic (and to a lesser extent the materialistic) conceptions of the person have contributed significantly to the objectification and commodification of the body. A most disturbing example of this is the patenting of human genetic material. / In place of the dualistic metaphysic, an embodiment perspective is proposed that treats the person as a unique individual who is inseparably unified in mind, body, and soul. This view can help address the problem of patenting and commercialisation as it avoids the difficulties raised by the application of property language to the body. The body is not simply an object that can be bought or sold, but is an integral part of a person's identity. This does not mean that medical research must be prohibited, but simply that an individual's cells and any derivative cell lines should not be subject to patents. Above all, an embodiment perspective forces the medical and technological establishment, and society in general, to accept that people are unique unified individuals who cannot be objectified, commodified, or alienated from their bodies and selves.

This thesis considers the rationalization of health care in Canada. It focuses on the conflicting roles modern physicians play in our system, acting as both patient advocate and social agent. It begins by tracing the origin of both of these duties. It then examines the ethical, professional, and legal issues which arise in the limited circumstances where front-line physicians must participate in the rationing of health care. It offers a framework for resolving the double agent dilemma and states five interlocking recommendations which are the building blocks of the resolution.

This research compares the ethical values of public relations and political public relations practitioners. The study hypothesizes that a difference exists in the two groups' approach to ethical decision-making.A Q-study was completed by twenty-three midwest members of the Public Relations Society of America and the American Association of Political Consultants. The results identified two groups: one, a group of "communitarians" who relied on personal standards for ethical decision-making but believed the community-the public and the mediainfluenced those standards; and two, a group of "individualists" who relied on personal standards for ethical decision-making and were not influenced by the public, media, religion or law.This research determined that a significant difference did not exist in approach to ethical decision-making between political public relations and traditional public relations practitioners. All of the participants relied primarily on personal standards when making ethical decisions and no participants put personal advancement or pragmatism ahead of ethical decision-making. / Department of Journalism

This thesis attempts to answer the following question: Is it ever morally permissible to use a minor child as a tissue or organ donor for the benefit of a family member? Those sceptical of using minors as tissue or organ donors for the benefit of a sick family member will highlight two points: the donor will be subject to risks that are not counterbalanced by possible medical benefits, and the minor cannot consent to the procedure herself. / This thesis will present a review of the medical risks associated with bone marrow and kidney donations, as well as a review of the common law dealing with donations by minors and incompetent persons. The final chapter then makes a case for the permissibility of minor donation based on the interests of the family.

Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) was first recognized in Guangdong Province, China, in November 2002. Subsequent to its introduction to Hong Kong in mid-February 2003, the virus spread to more than 30 countries infecting over 8,000 individuals across five continents. Toronto was particularly affected and SARS's outbreak there resulted in the emergence of five ethical issues in the following areas: isolation and quarantine, privacy and personal information, professional duty of care, collateral damage and the WHO's SARS-related Travel Advisory for Toronto. In what follows each of these issues will be explored in depth.

This thesis critically reviews medical journal literature on the physician-patient interview. The review focuses on literature which is written by and for physicians, in Canadian and American, English language medical journals. Articles, essays and letters to the editor are examined as a cultural exchange amongst physicians that both shapes and is shaped by the values of the medical profession. Chapter One presents literature concerning physician-patient communication in general. The following Chapters Two, Three and Four ("The Physician as Medical Interpreter," "Physician and Patient: in Conflict and in Silence," and "The Patient as Narrator,") focus on themes in the medical journal literature written by physicians on the clinical interview. These Chapters examine the values, explicit and implicit, of this literature. The values are examined for possible epistemological origins in traditional medical ethics, philosophical bioethics, contemporary social movements for the dignity and rights of the individual, and other sources. Thematic shifts in these values over the past twenty years, and the sources of these shifts, are also examined. Finally, the Conclusion evaluates the significance of this literature for the development of a medical morality.

This thesis examines the emotion-based strategies employed by activists for the purpose of persuading individuals to participate directly in social movements. In particular, the emphasis is placed on getting people involved in ‘altruistic’ mobilisation; a descriptive utilised in order to distinguish these movements from previous research done in which a tangible material gain is presented as an inducement for participation. The thesis investigates the animal rights movement as it pertains to the issue of animal vivisection, and endeavours to identify the linguistic strategies employed by these activists with the goal of understanding how to facilitate ‘altruistic’ movements more generally. A textual analysis, which was consistent with Halliday’s (2004) systemic functional linguistics, was conducted on mobilisation pamphlets written by groups seeking support for either animal vivisection or animal rights. To this end, the analysis considered both the original movement (i.e. the anti-vivisection movement) and the counter-movement (i.e. the pro-research movement). The analysis considers the linguistic and visual strategies used by movement organisers in placing a moral onus on the reader to support the movement. From this analysis it is argued that the success of the animal rights movement stems from its ability to present graphic visual imagery that supplies evidential support for the claims being made in text. In addition, the animal rights texts have been able to frame the issue of animal vivisection in terms of emotional appeals designed to elicit feelings of moral outrage in the reader. It is posited that the animal rights movement has been able to effectively combine images and emotion-based linguistic strategies in order to facilitate the consideration of the issue in terms of an ‘ethical identity’ that helps generate moral outrage in the reader and thereby encouraging participation in the movement. / http://proxy.library.adelaide.edu.au/login?url= http://library.adelaide.edu.au/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=1339773 / Thesis (Ph.D.) - University of Adelaide, School of Psychology and School of Humanities, 2008

This research falls within the field of normative business ethics. Its aim is to examine the moral nature of the employment relationship in western democracies by examining the liberal, democratic justifications that are normally advanced for its probity. Its concern is to challenge the notion that the employment relationship is in conformity with these liberal democratic values. Thus, the research is an exercise in the examination of the application of the liberal, democratic tradition to the social institution of employment. Thus research examines areas of dissonance between the political relationship of employee � employer and the dominant values of the liberal tradition found elsewhere in western democracies. The research firstly identifies the key moral characteristics of the employment relationship in private, capitalist organisations. This is derived from a consideration of the development historically, of the employment relationship, with acknowledgement of the combined influences of statute, common law, contract law and custom in forming the current employee relationship. Secondly, the research identifies the justificatory arguments from the liberal tradition that are normally advanced in support of the employment relationship�s moral probity. These include notions of rights deriving from private property, the separation of social life into public and private spheres and the application of contract law to employment. Thirdly, the research examines these arguments for their moral probity. Specifically, this involves an examination of the arguments regarding the private property status of employing organisations, the application of contract law to employment, the moral characteristics of the master and servant relationship as a basis for employment and the relevance of democratic values within employment. As an additional perspective, the literature on human needs is reviewed as a source, outside of the liberal tradition, for a basis upon which to outline the moral requirements of human relationships to work.

Thesis (MPhil)--Stellenbosch University, 2004. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: According to recent research done in the field of media ethics, it seems that there is a need to complement studies on systematic normative ethics with more flexible theories such as those proposed by the field of Philosophy and Sociology. This assignment would like to prove that a more holistic model of moral reasoning should be considered based on the point of departure that the media and media practitioners find themselves in a postmodern world. The aim of this assignment is to examine the possibility of a postmodern ethics as a more authentic attempt by which the concept media ethics can be understood and applied. This assignment is a contribution towards the re-examination of media ethics in terms of a postmodern understanding of reality, truth and meaning, as well as an exploration of their practical implications in the context of a postmodern society such as South Africa and its media. According to the postmodern understanding of the concepts truth and meaning in relation to the postmodern understanding of reality, the postulated principles will define responsible journalism (media ethics) as journalistic action that takes into account how people (news consumers and sources of news) form their understanding of reality in a postmodern context. What purports to be reality in the news is inevitably a reconstruction of reality that fits the needs and requirements of journalistic practice. In this light, responsible journalism can be understood as journalistic action that creates a more holistic, authentic understanding of "reality" and how people understand themselves and others in the world they live in. Most people are informed by the media about themes such as the cloning of human beings, the war in Iraq, the attack on the World Trade Centre and genocide in Rwanda and not because of having been there themselves (direct experience). The way in which the media reports about events does influence the way in which media users make sense of the world in which they live. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Na aanleiding van onlangse navorsing gedoen in die gebied van media-etiek, blyk daar 'n behoefte te wees om sistematiese normatiewe etiek met meer omvattende teorieë aan te vul, soos voorgestel in die studie rigtings van Filosofie en Sosiologie. Hierdie werkopdrag wil bewys dat, indien in ag geneem word dat die perswese homself in 'n postmoderne wêreld bevind, 'n meer holistiese modeloorweeg kan word vir diskoerse in media-etiek. Die doel van die werkopdrag is om die moontlikheid van 'n postmoderne etiek te ondersoek as 'n meer outentieke benadering waarvolgens die konsep media-etiek verstaan en aangewend kan word. Die werkopdrag lewer 'n bydrae ten op sigte van 'n herevaluasie van media-etiek in terme van 'n postmodernistiese lees van realiteit, waarheid en betekenis. Die praktiese implikasies van 'n postmoderne media-etiek in die konteks van 'n postmoderne samelewing, soos dié van Suid-Afrika en die Suid-Afrikaanse media, salondersoek word. Na aanleiding van 'n postmoderne interpretasie van die konsepte waarheid, betekenis en realiteit, stel die werkopdrag 'n raamwerk voor waarbinne verantwoordelike joernalistiek op etiese wyse beoefen word en rekening hou met die postmoderne interpretasie van die samelewing. Dit is onvermydelik dat dit wat as werklikheid in die nuus daargestel word, 'n rekonstruksie van die werklikheid is om aan die behoeftes van joernalistieke praktyke te voldoen. In die lig van bogenoemde, kan verantwoordelike joernalistiek gedefinieer word as joernalistieke optrede wat 'n meer holistiese, outentieke interpretasie van die werklikheid en begrip van die leefwêreld oordra.

D.Phil. / The spate of large-scale financial misconduct across the globe, sparked interest, and concern regarding moral conduct in organisations. The impact of the immoral actions proved to be devastating for many companies, especially for the financial sector. These entities spend a lot of time and effort managing threats from external sources, such as clients and terrorist. Less focus is placed in reducing fraud from within. Conforming to the regulations however, increases strain on companies to comply with the guidelines. This compliance consumes a lot of an organisation’s resources such as time and money. Little focus, if any is placed on the psychological component of governance, namely, the moral intelligence of employees and on understanding the human contribution to corporate governance and immoral actions. Human Resource practitioners are not doing enough to understand this dynamic, specifically the role of moral intelligence, underlined by the moral decision-making process. From a theoretical point of view, the study was aimed at understanding the moral domain from a more integrated, broad-based approach, including the moral dynamic as a form of intelligence. From a practical point of view, the need for more reliable and scientific information on moral conduct served as driver for the study. This investigation included the examination of the construct moral intelligence as part of the multiple intelligence theory, understanding the moral decision-making process as part of moral intelligence, identifying an underlying set of universal moral principles as foundation for moral decision-making in business, and analyzing patterns of covariability between moral reasoning and moral competence as part of the decision-making process. The study was conducted in a large South African financial institution with a sample size of 466. The Moral Judgment Test was preferred as measure for moral reasoning and moral competence, while the EQ Map and Psychomatrix Spirituality Inventory (PSI) measured emotional and spiritual intelligence respectively. Results revealed support for Kohlberg’s stages of moral development. There was evidence that the use of post-conventional stages of moral reasoning increased moral competence, which is the consistency between reasoning and action. There was further statistical support for differences in moral reasoning and moral competence when compared with selected demographical variables. The various statistical operations provided information for the calculation of risk-ratios, aimed at identifying individuals prone to immoral action. This data is useful when selecting and promoting individuals in the bank. As a result of the qualitative information and quantitative data, an amalgamation of the various approaches produced an integrated model on moral intelligence. It is envisaged that this will contribute to understanding true moral intelligence as a broad approach. Various theoretical and practical conclusions are reached, and recommendations and limitations are discussed.