Evaluating the Scientific Uses of Animals: A Virtue-Consequentialist Approach for Harm/Benefit Analyses

What is it about?

This paper enquires into moral justifications of the use of non-human animals in scientific research. First, we discuss the position of leading anti-speciesist approaches of animal ethics, arguing that a radical position is not tenable and justification of some animal use in research can be given based on the importance of science for human civilisation. Such use must be justified case by case. Therefore, the harm-benefit analysis will be introduced, as an example of a case-by-case scenario. This means to compare the benefits of that research with the sufferance imposed to the animals: a particular research is admissible if the benefits outweigh the cost imposed to the animals. We will describe the challenge encountered by the evaluators of project proposals, and possible ways of considering harms and benefits in different types of research, and possible future scenarios.

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