Abstract
It has become evident that neuroimaging raises new normative questions that cannot be addressed adequately within the (in this regard unspecific) frameworks of existing research ethics. Questions that are especially troubling are, among others, provoked by incidental findings. Two questions are particularly intricate in view of incidental findings: (1) How can the research subject’s right not to know be guaranteed? And (2) should a diagnostic check of scans by a neuroradiologist become an obligatory part of neuroscientific research protocols? The present paper examines these question against the background of two recent recommendations. The differentiation between “difference position” and “similarity position” serves as an analytic tool to further investigate the issue and to develop a distinct proposal for answering the questions.
Notes
IMAGEN—a European research project on risk-taking behaviour in teenagers. URL http://www.imagen-europe.com/en/project-summary-imagen-europe.php [29.06.2010].
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The author acknowledges the stimulus and support of the IMAGEN consortium. IMAGEN receives research funding from the European Community’s Sixth Framework Programme (LSHM-CT-2007-037286). This paper reflects only the authors’ views and the community is not liable for any use that may be made of the information contained therein.
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Heinrichs, B. A New Challenge for Research Ethics: Incidental Findings in Neuroimaging. Bioethical Inquiry 8, 59–65 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11673-010-9268-9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11673-010-9268-9