UM SOM: Global Ethics Education

Robert Wachbroit, PhD

Research Scholar at the School of Public Affair’s Institute for Philosophy and Public Policy at the University of Maryland.

Dr. Wachbroit received a B.S in Physics from Massachusetts Institute of Technology and then went on to do graduate work in philosophy at Oxford and at the University of California (Berkeley), where he received a Ph.D. in Philosophy. He joined the Institute in 1986 after teaching several years in the Philosophy Department at the University of Pennsylvania. From 1987 to 1991 he held a joint appointment with the Institute for Philosophy and Public Policy and the Maryland Biotechnology Institute's Center for Public Issues in Biotechnology. Currently he is also an Adjunct Associate Professor of OB/GYN and an Adjunct Associate Professor of Epidemiology and Preventative Medicine in the University’s School of Medicine.

Wachbroit has written numerous articles in the areas of science and technology policy, philosophy of science, and medical ethics, including articles on the principles of disease classification, the challenges of genetic testing and diagnosis, the controversy over cloning and stem cell research, the problems inherent in risk characterization and risk communication, the ethics of medical research, the changing relationships between experts and the public, and the impact of the Internet on civil society. In support of his research he has received grants from the National Science Foundation, the National Human Genome Research Institute of the National Institutes of Health, the Ford Foundation, the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, the German Academic Exchange Service, the Alpha-1 Foundation, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the National Institute of Mental Health.

Published Articles:

Wachbroit, R.S. "Research as a Profession," vol. 26, no. 1/2 (Winter/Spring, 2006), 18-20.

Wasserman, D., Hellman, D., and Wachbroit, R.S., "Physicians as Researchers: Difficulties with the 'Similarity Position'" American Journal of Bioethics 6, No. 4, July/August 2006.

Wachbroit, R.S. and Wasserman, D., "Research Participation: Are We Subject to a Duty," American Journal of Bioethics 5 (2005): 48-9.

Wachbroit, R.S. and Wasserman, D., "Ethical Issues in Reproductive Technology," in Oxford Handbook of Practical Ethics, ed. Hugh LaFollette (Oxford University Press, 2003).

Wachbroit, R.S. "Disowning Knowledge: Issues in Genetic Testing," in Intervention and Reflection: Basic Issues in Medical Ethics, 6th Edition, ed. R. Munson (Wadsworth Publishing Co, 1999). (Reprint of 1996 QQ article.)