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. 2014 Sep-Dec;32(3-4):268-83.
doi: 10.1007/s40592-015-0026-y.

Dual-use decision making: relational and positional issues

Nicholas G Evans  1
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Dual-use decision making: relational and positional issues

Nicholas G Evans. Monash Bioeth Rev. 2014 Sep-Dec.

Abstract

Debates about dual-use research often turn on the potential for scientific research to be used to benefit or harm humanity. This dual-use potential is conventionally understood as the product of the magnitude of the harms and benefits of dual-use research, multiplied by their likelihood. This account, however, neglects important social aspects of the use of science and technology. In this paper, I supplement existing conceptions of dual-use potential to account for the social context of dual-use research. This account incorporates relational and positional concerns that feature in the success or failure of dual-use. I then defend this account against foreseeable objections.

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