Feminism: Reproduction

It seems interesting to find out how the situation of the Polish ART practice is reflected in the medical students’ opinions. To answer this question we carried out a two-stage research adopting a data-driven methodology based upon the grounded theory, in which we collected a mixture of quantitative and qualitative data. Our study has revealed students’ high acceptance of IVF and most of the additional procedures, except for IVF in the case of women over 40 and postmenopausal ones. The students’ (...) main concerns were to be compatible with what is presented in medical literature and commonly accepted in medical practice, so the core categories they focused on in their argumentation were medical evidence and medical standards. Whereas the students were consistently trying to ground their reasoning on medical knowledge, their opinions reflected not only statements based on hard data, but also some gender stereotypes hidden in medical literature. (shrink)

In 2006, and again in 2007, I suffered the miscarriages of two wanted and painstakingly planned pregnancies. In the aftermath of each, I found myself unprepared, as do many women who miscarry, for the devastation I would feel. In my attempts to cope, I sought solace in the written testimony of other women who had miscarried, in the medical statistics that reassured me I still had a strong chance of carrying another pregnancy to term, in the experiences of friends and (...) colleagues who had dealt with miscarriage and other reproductive difficulties, and in the expertise of counselors who helped me process my thoughts and feelings. While each of these avenues was helpful in its own right, I still found myself struggling .. (shrink)

This paper focuses on how surrogacy is to be valued in the transnational context, and what it means for surrogacy to be considered a form of paid, social reproductive labor. By social reproduction, we refer to the social processes and activities, such as child rearing and caring for dependents, that are necessary to uphold a productive society. Since these are complex and nuanced questions, and ones that are likely to need different answers in different countries and social contexts, this paper (...) will not attempt to provide a neat answer. Rather, it analyzes these questions using a set of intellectual tools from philosophical bioethics, economics, and materialist feminism. We base our analysis on these literatures .. (shrink)

A feminist viewpoint on globalized commercial surrogacy questions what best serves women’s needs/ends and whether the practice is good for women . My interest in this paper is to consider how a feminist account might address the practice of surrogacy in Japan, both domestically and in the transnational context. Japanese culture emphasizes traditional values, family heritage, and communitarian concerns over individual rights. Women’s equality, while formally recognized by the Japanese Constitution, is undercut by actual practices and recent court decisions . (...) In the context of assisted reproduction, Japan’s approach to the legal and moral issues raised by .. (shrink)

… and the feminists understand perfectly that infertility carries a heavy burden for women. However, they have ambivalent feelings in relation to supporting them in their search for treatments that will resolve their infertility because they feel as if they would be contributing to reinforcing traditional gender roles. It is this tension that has strongly framed the relationship between those who are in favor of these assisted reproductive technologies … and feminists[.]In this essay, I want to explore a new way (...) to think about Assisted Reproductive Technologies (ARTs) in the Latin American context. I will consider a type of infertility that is both preventable and that affects the region’s poorest women. In Latin .. (shrink)

In this text book Rosalind Hursthouse examines the complex questions surrounding the morality of abortion. Beginning by discussing the moral status of the foetus, she outlines and criticizes the main philosophical liberal positions on abortion, discussing alsl their bearing on the related issues of ifanticide, foetal research, surrogacy, murder and our treatment of animals. In place of the currently prevailing positions, the author offers a novel approach to these issues based on the recently revived theory of neo–Aristotelianism which emphasizes moral (...) virtues and vices. A central element of Beginning Lives is its emphasis on the special nature of abortion: its unique relation to the facts of women?s pregnancies and hence to our attitudes to childbearing, motherhood, maturity and sexual relations. (shrink)

With an increasing number of ways to ‘assist’ reproduction, some bioethicists have started to wonder what it takes to become a genetic parent. It is widely agreed that sharing genes is not enough to substantiate the parent–offspring relation, but what is? Without a better understanding of the concept of reproduction, our thinking about parent–offspring relations and the ethical issues surrounding them risk being unprincipled. Here, I address that problem by offering a principled account of reproduction—the Overlap, Development and Persistence account—which (...) I believe best captures the meaning of ‘genetic parenthood’. (shrink)

In the Examining Committee‘s external report proposing the basic prohibition of surrogate conception, Issues in assisted reproductiveIn the Examining Committee‘s external report proposing the basic prohibition of surrogate conception, Issues in assisted reproductive technology with a focus on surrogate conception—Moving toward a social consensus , the Committee indicated the following problems with surrogate conception: Surrogate conception should be prohibited by law. The practice, solicitation, or mediation of surrogate conception for the purpose of profit, including that done in other countries, should (...) be a punishable act for the parties involved, with the exception of the surrogate mother. After the conditions and procedures for implementation have been legally determined, conducting surrogate conception trials may be considered. In cases when surrogate conception is conducted, the woman who gives birth shall be the mother. Formation of a parent-child relationship by adoption or a special adoptive relation may be recognized. (shrink)

Recent advances in biology hold out the real possibility of significant progress in the treatment of disease. At the same time however these technological discoveries have posed serious challenges to policy makers, the decision by the UK Court of Appeal in Zain Hashmi being a case in point. Judges and legislators have traditionally tried to apply principles of justice in the matters that lie before them. Future issues that involve genetic technology have the potential to involve more than this since (...) they imply an imperative to redefine ethical perimeters. However the new genetics goes beyond this and necessitates redefining human perimeters as well. This paper considers a position broadly known as consequentialism – in which outcomes are to be as good as possible - and argues instead on behalf of an approach to bioethical issues which demands consideration of the fairness of the procedures employed. (shrink)

Abstract It is common practice to regard participants in assisted and collaborative reproduction (gamete donors, embryologists, fertility doctors, etc.) as simply providing a desired biological product or medical service. These agents are not procreators in the ordinary sense, nor do they stand in any kind of meaningful parental relation to the resulting offspring. This paper challenges the common view by defending a principle of procreative responsibility and then demonstrating that this standard applies as much to those who provide reproductive assistance (...) in the form of medical services or gametes, as it does to coital reproducers or intending parents. Drawing on vocabulary from the common law tradition, I suggest that it may be helpful to refer to the various participants in assisted and collaborative reproduction (ACR) as accessories to procreation. Referring to the participants in ACR as accessories to procreation highlights the fact that these agents are not just providing medical services or products. They are participating in a supply chain designed to bring about new persons. I conclude by arguing that regulative standards in the fertility industry should be structured such that they permit, facilitate, and encourage agents to satisfy the requirements of procreative responsibility. Content Type Journal Article Pages 1-16 DOI 10.1007/s10677-011-9330-7 Authors Melissa Seymour Fahmy, Department of Philosophy, University of Georgia, 107 Peabody Hall, Athens, GA 30602, USA Journal Ethical Theory and Moral Practice Online ISSN 1572-8447 Print ISSN 1386-2820. (shrink)

This essay sets human reproductive technologies in the context of biological research exploiting the discovery of the structure of the DNA molecule in the early 1950s. By setting these technological developments in this research context and then setting the research in the framework of a philosophical analysis of the role of social values in scientific inquiry, it is possible to develop a perspective on these technologies and the aspirations they represent that is relevant to the concerns of their social critics.

Surrogate motherhood is one of the medical methods within the field of assisted reproduction, engaging the surrogate mother and the infertile couple in the reproductive process (in vitro fertilization). A child, delivered by a surrogate mother, may have different genetic kinships with all concerned persons based on the type of surrogacy – either genetic (partial) or gestative (full). In some European countries, surrogacy is regulated in altruistic form only, in others, it is completely prohibited. Most countries, including the Czech and (...) Slovak Republics, do not have a special legislative frame for surrogacy, and there is room for the individual decisions of infertile couples, the surrogate mother and specialists from the field of assisted reproduction. Arrangements regarding surrogate motherhood have touched upon common ethical issues in assisted reproduction and bioethics in general. In the Czech Republic, there social – policy concern doesn´t exist, which could direct us to the legalization of surrogate motherhood or its prohibition. It seems, that every official arrangement could be more advisable than the current unclear status which could, in special cases, injure the infertile couple, surrogate mother and born child as well. (shrink)

Reproductive medicine services have been provided at a fairly advanced stage in the Islamic Republic of Iran, and there are currently more than 75 infertility clinics which provide some of the latest technology in the field. From the ethical and religious point of view, Iran has provided a very flexible environment that is quite unique in the Middle East as well as the Muslim nations in general. This flexibility is mainly related to the role of ijtihad in Shi’a Islam where (...) new rulings can be extracted by Shi’a jurists to facilitate the use of technologies that may be banned by traditional Islamic rulings. The possibility of temporary marriage in Shi’a has also helped legitimize the third party donation of gametes for treatment of infertility. The Supreme Leader in Iran has issued a series of fatwas that played a big role in legitimization of assisted reproductive technologies and the use of third party donated gametes for infertile couples in Iran. The problem is that infertility clinics have gained a large control over the ethical aspects of these services while their major focus is on a higher success rate. Also by keeping the donor and recipient information “anonymous” or “confidential” in order to avoid troublesome frictions, the identity of children may not be well protected as in original Islamic teachings. The infertile couples on the other hand are mainly concerned with the continuity and “purity” of their lineage and do not receive proper consultation to make ethically sound decisions. There is also a large potential of misconduct and misuse of technology over financial pay-offs, and therefore the lack of an ethical and legal system to protect the rights of concerned parties is quite worrisome. With the recent trend of the government away from population control and towards higher fertility rates, there is little hope that ethical and legal limits may be devised to regulate the activity of infertility clinics in the near future. (shrink)

India is a very important hub for medical tourism. In India, as is the case in Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia, the state exerts all of its powers in order to attract medical tourists. In India, hospitals with the newest medical facilities offer state of the art medical technologies to their patients in a variety of medical disciplines. The high levels of Assisted Reproductive Technology and commercial surrogacy are powerful primers to foreign infertility patients. The yearly increasing amount of money in (...) foreign currencies flowing into India by orders for commercial surrogacy from foreign infertility patients in developed countries, as of 2009, has been estimated at 500 million dollars. India’s commercial surrogacy is the honor student of medical tourism second only to the top foreign currency earner, the IT industry.Backed by the Indian government’s official sanction that strongly promotes medical tourism as a national policy, gynecologist Dr. Nayna Patel is currently performing reproductive medical activities in Anand, the birthplace of surrogacy in India. In this paper, according to the research results of a three-layer structured analysis of India’s reproductive medical ethics, I will introduce the present state of surrogacy in India as experienced by the world renowned surrogacy expert Dr. Patel , and I will investigate her ethical assessment as well as Hinduism’s view of reproductive technology supporting Dr. Patel’s ethical assessment. (shrink)

Patterns of reproductive failure described in humans and other mammals suggest that reproductive failure may in many instances be the result of adaptations evolved to suppress reproduction under temporarily harsh conditions. By suppressing reproduction under such conditions, females are able to conserve their time and energy for reproductive opportunities in which reproduction is most likely to succeed. Such adaptations have been particularly important for female mammals, given (a) the amount of time and energy that reproduction requires, and (b) the degree (...) to which reproductive conditions can vary.The existence of conscious and unconscious mechanisms to suppress reproduction under poor conditions has several implications for obstetric/gynecologic practices. Two implications are discussed with reference to biotechnological advancements in our ability to facilitate conceptions and manage problem pregnancies: (a) potential dangers of sophisticated technologies overriding natural fertility controls; and (b) the need for greater appreciation of the association between psychosocial stress and reproductive failure in the treatment of reproductive problems. Implications for elective abortion practices are discussed as well. (shrink)

The increasing use of assisted reproductive technologies, such as in vitro fertilization, raises new and complex legal issues of parentage and inheritance. This Article examines the various reasons people use assisted reproductive technologies, issues that have arisen due to the use of these procedures, and the ways in which courts and legislatures address these issues. The article concludes by exploring unresolved issues facing children produced as a result of the use of assisted reproductive technologies.