Animal Models in Neuropsychiatry: Do the Benefits Outweigh the Moral Costs?

Animal models have long been used to investigate human mental disorders, including depression, anxiety, and schizophrenia. This practice is usually justified in terms of the benefits (to humans) outweighing the costs (to the animals). The author argues on utility maximization grounds that we should...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Figdor, Carrie (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Cambridge Univ. Press 2022
In: Cambridge quarterly of healthcare ethics
Year: 2022, Volume: 31, Issue: 4, Pages: 530-535
Further subjects:B neuropsychiatry
B animal models
B research ethics
B Neuroethics
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Summary:Animal models have long been used to investigate human mental disorders, including depression, anxiety, and schizophrenia. This practice is usually justified in terms of the benefits (to humans) outweighing the costs (to the animals). The author argues on utility maximization grounds that we should phase out animal models in neuropsychiatric research. The leading theories of how human minds and behavior evolved invoke sociocultural factors whose relation to nonhuman minds, societies, and behavior has not been homologized. Thus, it is not at all clear that we are gaining the epistemic or clinical benefits we want from this animal-based research.
ISSN:1469-2147
Contains:Enthalten in: Cambridge quarterly of healthcare ethics
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1017/S0963180122000147