Managing Controversies over Science: The Case of Fetal Research

In: Journal of public administration research and theory, Band 5, Heft 1, S. 5-18

Abstract

The US has always valued science as both a source of knowledge & a contributor to political freedom. In this view, science is inherently progressive & must not be contaminated by political ideology. However, science is increasingly caught in ideological & political disputes. The implications of science controversies for managing science policy are discussed, & the twenty-year fetal research dispute is examined. Fetal research was a promising area by the early 1970s, but became involved in the battle over abortion after Roe v. Wade, at which time the antiabortion movement pressured elected officials to ban fetal research. Congress initiated a temporary ban on federal research, but by the mid-1980s, twenty-five states had passed their own guidelines. In the late 1980s, the issue resurfaced, with new arguments in favor of research due to advances in medical technology that changed the issue to one of blocking medical treatment rather than blocking research. Controversies such as fetal research help science by forcing discussion of differing values & issues. 16 References. A. Cole