Robert Steel
Biographic Data
| ID | 3753073 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Robert Steel |
| GIVEN NAMES | Robert |
| FAMILY NAME | Steel |
| SIGNATURE | STEEL R |
| AFFILIATIONS | Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey |
| ORCID | 0000-0003-4879-2070 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 10 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 2 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 10 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 1968 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 1 |
Why Engage Communities in Biomedical Research?
While community engagement in biomedical research is widely lauded, and many reasons to engage communities have been adduced, it is unclear whether all these reasons are equally important, and, if not, which are most important. Here, I argue that, outside of rare circumstances, community engagement should not be understood as seeking permission from communities. Rather, it should be understood as adding value to research. I also argue that while …
Commentary on “Ethics as if Your Life Depended on It”
Pearce proposes lessening restrictions on drug access while increasing transparency and democratizing governance, on the grounds that this would both respect autonomy and rebalance risk-related tradeoffs to a more socially optimal position. I raise some questions about whether, and in what respects, democratization is the answer to these problems
When Is Social Value Proportionate to Research Risks
Ethical human subjects research must have an acceptable risk‐benefit ratio, which requires that the net risks participants face be proportionate to the research's social value. Yet existing scholarship does not explain what makes risks proportionate to social value. Here, I distinguish internal and external senses of proportionality and argue that it is internal proportionality that is the proper object of IRB/REC review. I propose understanding …
Distinguishing appropriate from inappropriate conditions on research participation
Individuals do not have a right to participate in clinical trials. But, they do have a right against being denied participation for inappropriate reasons. Despite the widespread endorsement of these two claims, there has been little discussion regarding which conditions for participation in clinical trials are appropriate and which are inappropriate. The present manuscript attempts to address this gap in the literature. We first describe and then…
Risk Dilution
Bioethicists broadly agree that there is a limit to the level of net risk that biomedical research may permissibly impose on participants, even in cases where the potential of that research to improve the health of the population health would be great. Although some may permissibly volunteer to take on some degree of pro‐social risk, no one, not even a willing volunteer, may ever be outright sacrificed for others. One might think this perspective…
Payment is a benefit and why it matters for pediatric trials
Alan Wertheimer has argued persuasively that research ethics committees should be willing to count payment as a benefit when evaluating studies' risk–benefit ratios. In this paper, I begin by first recapitulating his argument and adding my own, complementary one. I then do two further things. First, I explain why the practical implications of these arguments for studies enrolling competent adults are less than fully clear. Second, I explain why t…
Compulsory Research in Learning Health Care
Existing calls to implement learning health care systems have tended to stipulate a minimal or near‐minimal risk limit for compulsory learning activities. I argue to the contrary that such a limit cannot be defended. So long as the way in which patients are compelled to participate in learning activities is solely through the withholding of nonresearch options for receiving care, compelling participation does not violate any individual's rights a…
Why continuing uncertainties are no reason to postpone challenge trials for coronavirus vaccines
To counter the pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), some have proposed accelerating SARS-CoV-2 vaccine development through controlled human infection (or ‘challenge’) trials. These trials would involve the deliberate exposure of relatively few young, healthy volunteers to SARS-CoV-2. We defend this proposal against the charge that there is still too much uncertainty surrounding the risks of COVID-19 to …
Against Right Reason
I argue against ‘right reason’ style accounts of how we should manage our beliefs in the face of higher‐order evidence. I start from the observation that such views seem to have bad practical consequences when we imagine someone acting on them. I then catalogs ways that Williamson, Weatherson, and Lasonen‐Aarnio have tried to block objections based on these consequences; I argue all fail. I then move on to offer my own theoretical picture of a ra…
Liverpool Essays in Geography
Liverpool Essays in Geography
Against Right Reason
I argue against ‘right reason’ style accounts of how we should manage our beliefs in the face of higher‐order evidence. I start from the observation that such views seem to have bad practical consequences when we imagine someone acting on them. I then catalogs ways that Williamson, Weatherson, and Lasonen‐Aarnio have tried to block objections based on these consequences; I argue all fail. I then move on to offer my own theoretical picture of a ra…
Why continuing uncertainties are no reason to postpone challenge trials for coronavirus vaccines
To counter the pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), some have proposed accelerating SARS-CoV-2 vaccine development through controlled human infection (or ‘challenge’) trials. These trials would involve the deliberate exposure of relatively few young, healthy volunteers to SARS-CoV-2. We defend this proposal against the charge that there is still too much uncertainty surrounding the risks of COVID-19 to …
Payment is a benefit and why it matters for pediatric trials
Alan Wertheimer has argued persuasively that research ethics committees should be willing to count payment as a benefit when evaluating studies' risk–benefit ratios. In this paper, I begin by first recapitulating his argument and adding my own, complementary one. I then do two further things. First, I explain why the practical implications of these arguments for studies enrolling competent adults are less than fully clear. Second, I explain why t…
Compulsory Research in Learning Health Care
Existing calls to implement learning health care systems have tended to stipulate a minimal or near‐minimal risk limit for compulsory learning activities. I argue to the contrary that such a limit cannot be defended. So long as the way in which patients are compelled to participate in learning activities is solely through the withholding of nonresearch options for receiving care, compelling participation does not violate any individual's rights a…
Distinguishing appropriate from inappropriate conditions on research participation
Individuals do not have a right to participate in clinical trials. But, they do have a right against being denied participation for inappropriate reasons. Despite the widespread endorsement of these two claims, there has been little discussion regarding which conditions for participation in clinical trials are appropriate and which are inappropriate. The present manuscript attempts to address this gap in the literature. We first describe and then…
Risk Dilution
Bioethicists broadly agree that there is a limit to the level of net risk that biomedical research may permissibly impose on participants, even in cases where the potential of that research to improve the health of the population health would be great. Although some may permissibly volunteer to take on some degree of pro‐social risk, no one, not even a willing volunteer, may ever be outright sacrificed for others. One might think this perspective…
Why Engage Communities in Biomedical Research?
While community engagement in biomedical research is widely lauded, and many reasons to engage communities have been adduced, it is unclear whether all these reasons are equally important, and, if not, which are most important. Here, I argue that, outside of rare circumstances, community engagement should not be understood as seeking permission from communities. Rather, it should be understood as adding value to research. I also argue that while …
Commentary on “Ethics as if Your Life Depended on It”
Pearce proposes lessening restrictions on drug access while increasing transparency and democratizing governance, on the grounds that this would both respect autonomy and rebalance risk-related tradeoffs to a more socially optimal position. I raise some questions about whether, and in what respects, democratization is the answer to these problems
When Is Social Value Proportionate to Research Risks
Ethical human subjects research must have an acceptable risk‐benefit ratio, which requires that the net risks participants face be proportionate to the research's social value. Yet existing scholarship does not explain what makes risks proportionate to social value. Here, I distinguish internal and external senses of proportionality and argue that it is internal proportionality that is the proper object of IRB/REC review. I propose understanding …
Ethics in Clinical Research (6 works) · Medicine (4 works) · Actuarial science (3 works) · Economics (3 works) · Ethics in medical practice (3 works) · Political science (3 works) · Psychology (3 works) · Business (2 works) · Computer Science (2 works) · Health Systems, Economic Evaluations, Quality of Life (2 works)