Principlism language in contemporary Chinese bioethics: dissonance and discordance

Rui Deng; Ruiping Fan

doi:10.1007/s11017-025-09704-7

Principlism language in contemporary Chinese bioethics: dissonance and discordance

Rui Deng^*
, Ruiping Fan

^*Corresponding author for this work

Department of Public and International Affairs

Research output: Journal Publications and Reviews › RGC 21 - Publication in refereed journal › peer-review

2 Citations (Scopus)

12 Downloads (CityUHK Scholars)

Abstract

The language of principlism seems to have emerged as the predominant guiding framework in teaching, research and even legislation within contemporary Chinese bioethics. This essay reveals the dissonance between the individualistic orientation of this theoretical language and the familist features of Chinese clinical practice by considering the principle of respect for autonomy and its discordance with the Confucian tradition of virtue ethics and medical rituals. Several representative clinical cases in mainland China are presented to illustrate the incongruity between the current state of Confucian medical rituals and the language game of the principle of respect for autonomy. While there is a recognized need in contemporary Chinese medical practice to promote patient involvement in decision-making in the cases of terminal illness, we argue that this approach should be implemented in alignment with Confucian virtue ethics and medical rituals. Resolving the linguistic discordance between Chinese bioethics and principlism should not entail a shift towards principlism. © The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature B.V. 2025.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	89-102
Journal	Theoretical Medicine and Bioethics
Volume	46
Issue number	1
Online published	26 Feb 2025
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1007/s11017-025-09704-7
Publication status	Published - Feb 2025

Bibliographical note

Full text of this publication does not contain sufficient affiliation information. With consent from the author(s) concerned, the Research Unit(s) information for this record is based on the existing academic department affiliation of the author(s).

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

SDG 16 Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions

Research Keywords

Chinese bioethics
Confucian medical ritual
Principlism
Respect for autonomy

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abstract = "The language of principlism seems to have emerged as the predominant guiding framework in teaching, research and even legislation within contemporary Chinese bioethics. This essay reveals the dissonance between the individualistic orientation of this theoretical language and the familist features of Chinese clinical practice by considering the principle of respect for autonomy and its discordance with the Confucian tradition of virtue ethics and medical rituals. Several representative clinical cases in mainland China are presented to illustrate the incongruity between the current state of Confucian medical rituals and the language game of the principle of respect for autonomy. While there is a recognized need in contemporary Chinese medical practice to promote patient involvement in decision-making in the cases of terminal illness, we argue that this approach should be implemented in alignment with Confucian virtue ethics and medical rituals. Resolving the linguistic discordance between Chinese bioethics and principlism should not entail a shift towards principlism. {\textcopyright} The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature B.V. 2025.",

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AB - The language of principlism seems to have emerged as the predominant guiding framework in teaching, research and even legislation within contemporary Chinese bioethics. This essay reveals the dissonance between the individualistic orientation of this theoretical language and the familist features of Chinese clinical practice by considering the principle of respect for autonomy and its discordance with the Confucian tradition of virtue ethics and medical rituals. Several representative clinical cases in mainland China are presented to illustrate the incongruity between the current state of Confucian medical rituals and the language game of the principle of respect for autonomy. While there is a recognized need in contemporary Chinese medical practice to promote patient involvement in decision-making in the cases of terminal illness, we argue that this approach should be implemented in alignment with Confucian virtue ethics and medical rituals. Resolving the linguistic discordance between Chinese bioethics and principlism should not entail a shift towards principlism. © The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature B.V. 2025.

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Principlism language in contemporary Chinese bioethics: dissonance and discordance

Abstract

Bibliographical note

UN SDGs

Research Keywords

Publisher's Copyright Statement

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