The Introduction of Reversible Sterilization

Abstract

This editorial addresses historical judicial and ethical ambivalence regarding non-consensual sterilization. Some courts and commentators view this as an oppressive human rights violation, but others as a legitimate option to spare vulnerable intellectually compromised people, usually women, from suffering or causing harm. The editorial also considers how modern societies may approach conduct considered appropriate or protective when undertaken in the past, but seriously objectionable by modern perceptions, reviewing the concepts of intertemporal law and intertemporal ethics. Finally, it considers how responsible journals may address publication of valuable data derived from unethically or oppressively conducted studies.

Keywords: ethics, intertemporal, sterilization, treatment without consent, healthcare consent, reversible sterilization

JEL Classification: K10, J13, I18, I10