Despite the increased prevalence of bioethics research that seeks to use empirical data to answer normative research questions, there is no consensus as to what an appropriate methodology for this would be. This review aims to search the literature, present and critically discuss published Empirical Bioethics methodologies.

In this work of historical theology, Rachel Davies considers the relationship between aesthetics and anthropology in Bonaventure's thought, and shows how bodily diminishment can become a sign and source of the self's renewal. Drawing from texts like the Collations on the Six Days, and the Major Life of Francis, Davies reconfigures traditional accounts of the fallen body's rebellion against the soul and emphasizes instead the soul's original abandonment of the body. Her interpretation draws attention to the crucial but undervalued role (...) that Bonaventure assigns to the body in the self's coming-to-be, and shows how contemplation involves the soul's tender recovery of the body it once rejected. Though contemplation makes body-soul integrity possible again, Davies argues that the body never fully recovers from its primordial alienation. Instead, Bonaventure suggests that individuals can experience brokenness and healing at the same time, and that suffering bodies can become paschal spaces, graced and open to beatific wholeness. (shrink)

Researchers and non-commercial institutions negotiate complex legislation and guidance when planning and conducting research studies. The documents and processes required differ across nations and their regulatory bodies and it can be challenging to conduct an international study, especially for non-commercial organisations. In this study, colleagues from Japan and the UK worked closely together focusing on the legislation, organisations, trial processes, ethics review and quality assurance frameworks of clinical trials in two countries, the UK, demonstrated on the model of practices in (...) the University of Bristol and University Hospital Bristol NHS Foundation Trust, and Japan, based on the model in Kyoto University Hospital. Although the ICH tripartite guidelines were developed with participation from both the EU and Japan the set-up and approval processes for clinical trials are different between the two countries while the expectations for quality assurance are similar. We will argue that the f... (shrink)