The Bloomsbury Handbook of Phenomenological Bioethics
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Description
This is an essential guide to understanding the growing field of phenomenological bioethics. More than 30 chapters explore its elaboration in the phenomenological literature, its key themes, and several first-person case studies bringing the theory to life. Harnessing phenomenology's focus on subjective experience and the lived realities of individuals, this volume showcases how phenomenological bioethics is an increasingly important person-centred framework for addressing complex ethical issues in medical and health sciences.
Divided into three parts, Part I explores the overlooked bioethical discussions in the work of seminal phenomenologists, from Heidegger and Husserl to Levinas, Conrad-Martius, and Fanon. Part II then introduces the central themes in phenomenological bioethics, considering both the theoretical underpinnings and their practical application in medical contexts. With a sub-section on the impact of technology, this volume covers the very latest medical technologies such as online therapy, the use of technology in hospices, and AI in healthcare. Finally, Part III introduces six first-person case studies, which throw the importance of a phenomenological approach to bioethical issues into sharp relief; these range across mental and physical health, from challenges faced by women with Borderline Personality Disorder to end of life decisions.
From an international team of emerging and leading scholars, including Fredrik Svenaeus, Kay Toombs, and editor, Susi Ferrarello, The Bloomsbury Handbook of Phenomenological Bioethics is an indispensable research tool. It is the place to start for anyone seeking a broader understanding of how phenomenology and first-person experience can illuminate new ethical pathways for enhancing the well-being of both individuals and society more widely.
Table of Contents
Notes on Contributors
Introduction
Part I: Primary Literature in Phenomenological Bioethics
1. Phenomenology and Bioethics, Susi Ferrarello (California State University, USA)
2. The Crisis of Bioethics and the Need for a Phenomenological Turn
Fredrik Svenaeus (Södertön University, Sweden)
3. Towards a Husserlian Contribution to Bioethics: A Phenomenological Foundation of the Pain-Suffering Relationship
Giulia Cabra (University of Milan, Italy)
4. What is Moral Distress?
Sidney Kabinoff (Duquesne University, USA)
5. Phenomenological Bioethics and Education in Life-Care (Lebensssorge): Husserl, Stein and Conrad-Martius
Nicoletta Ghigi (University of Perugia, Italy)
6. Understanding Patient Experience through Heidegger's Way to Language
Jodie Russell (University of Birmingham, UK)
7. Max Scheler between Phenomenology and Bioethics. Resistance, technology, and pain
Alessio Musio (Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Italy)
8. The (Bio)Ethics of the Given: Dietrich von Hildebrand and His Relevance for Contemporary Bioethics and Data Ethics
Alexander Montes (Fordham University, USA)
9. Anxiety, World Breakdown, and the Advent of the Social
Joe Larios (Hollins University USA)
10. Frantz Fanon and the social roots of human suffering
Daria Baglieria, Andrea Patti (University of Catania and Santagostino Medical Center, Italy)
11. From Lack and Need to Value.Some Resources from Paci's Phenomenology
Rosario Croce (Scuola Normale Superiore, Italy)
12. Edmund Pellegrino's Healing Relationship and the Ethics of Medicine
Kay Toombs (Baylor University, USA)
Part II: Themes in Phenomenological Bioethics
13. On Validation: A Phenomenological Bioethical Reflection
Magnus Englander (Malmö University, Sweden)
14. Phenomenological Bioethics and Medical Gaslighting
Christine Wieseler (Santa Clara University, USA)
15. Autonomy in Chronic Conditions: A Dynamic Dimension
Matteo Zanetti (University of Verona, Italy)
16. Nana and Her Carebot
Michael C. Brannigan (Salve Regina University, USA and Albany Medical College, USA)
17. Embodiment, Interaction, and Synchrony: Phenomenological Distinctions Between Face-to-Face and Chatbot Therapy
Laura Matthews (University of Cambridge, UK)
18. The Ethics of Relating to Patients as Embodied Others
Lars-Gunnar Lundh and Lo Foster (Lund University, Sweden)
19. The Costs of Philosophy as CARE Work
Kevin Timpe (Calvin University, USA)
20. Is it Ethical to Provide Philosophical Care in Healthcare?
Luis de Miranda (University of Edinburgh, UK)
21. Trust as an Emotional Ability
Philipp Schmidt-Boddy (Heidelberg University, Germany)
22. The Use of AI in Health Care: A Phenomenological Perspective
Jose Luis Guerrero Quiñones and Geoffrey Dierckxsens (Universidad Panamericana, Mexico and University of Antwerp, Belgium)
23. Phenomenological Reflections on Being There for the Other who Gives Birth
Tanja Staehler, Carl von Uslar (University of Sussex, UK)
24. The Phenomenon of Ménière's Disease as an Experience of Angst and Existential Death
David Kaylie (Duke University, USA)
Part III: First Person experience
25. The Phenomenology of the Excruciating and Unidentifiable:What Can Bioethics Even Say?
Shay Welch (Spelman College, USA)
26. Caring for Psyborgs
Zsuzsanna Chappell (Independent researcher)
27. Five Days in the ICU
John Weidenbaum (Berkeley College, USA and St. John's University, USA)
28. Reflections on Receiving Emergency Room Care During a Heart Attack:
The importance of empathy in the doctor-patient encounter
Scott D. Churchill (University of Dallas, USA)
29. Sense in Madness. Responding to Richard Gipps' On Madness: Understanding the Psychotic Mind
Roxana Baiasu and Lorna Collins (University of Birmingham, UK and Independent Researcher, UK)
30. On the Ambiguity of Obstetric Ultrasound: Visual Bioethics and Phenomenology in Decision-Making Processes
Nicole Miglio (Independent Researcher)
Product details
| Published | 29 Oct 2026 |
|---|---|
| Format | Hardback |
| Edition | 1st |
| Extent | 496 |
| ISBN | 9781350551626 |
| Imprint | Bloomsbury Academic |
| Dimensions | 244 x 169 mm |
| Publisher | Bloomsbury Publishing |

























