Experimental philosophical bioethics and normative inference

. 2021 Nov 17;42(3-4):91–111. doi: 10.1007/s11017-021-09546-z

Case study 5. Pluralism
“Minds, brains, and hearts: an empirical study on pluralism concerning death determination” [69]
Pluralism concerning death determination states that people should be allowed to choose—within reason—what criterion will be applied to determine their own deaths [70]. It assumes that death determinations take place under conditions of uncertainty in the presence of more than one medically reasonable option. Against this backdrop, Ivars Neiders and Vilius Dranseika presented study participants with a possible description of the process of dying that was divided into a number of stages, beginning with the onset of health deterioration and concluding with the onset of corpse decay [69]. They were asked at which of these stages they would prefer their own death to be declared. Three of these stages were designed to mimic the main conceptions of death discussed in the bioethics literature: higher-brain death, whole-brain death, and cardiopulmonary death. Given that the data reveals widely differing preferences concerning death determination criteria, Neiders and Dranseika argue that the pluralist solution fits best with the way lay people think about death determination. If one agrees that people should be allowed to choose their own conception of death, then, given that most participants chose one of the three criteria discussed in the bioethical literature, the study provides some preliminary empirical evidence for which conceptions of death should be used in generating a choice set.

Case study 5. Pluralism

“Minds, brains, and hearts: an empirical study on pluralism concerning death determination” [69]

Pluralism concerning death determination states that people should be allowed to choose—within reason—what criterion will be applied to determine their own deaths [70]. It assumes that death determinations take place under conditions of uncertainty in the presence of more than one medically reasonable option. Against this backdrop, Ivars Neiders and Vilius Dranseika presented study participants with a possible description of the process of dying that was divided into a number of stages, beginning with the onset of health deterioration and concluding with the onset of corpse decay [69]. They were asked at which of these stages they would prefer their own death to be declared. Three of these stages were designed to mimic the main conceptions of death discussed in the bioethics literature: higher-brain death, whole-brain death, and cardiopulmonary death. Given that the data reveals widely differing preferences concerning death determination criteria, Neiders and Dranseika argue that the pluralist solution fits best with the way lay people think about death determination. If one agrees that people should be allowed to choose their own conception of death, then, given that most participants chose one of the three criteria discussed in the bioethical literature, the study provides some preliminary empirical evidence for which conceptions of death should be used in generating a choice set.