Principialismo: Uma Inscrição da Ética no Espaço Público

This research focuses on the issue of public ethics, as it is perceived by principlism, which presents itself as a valid model for ethical conflict resolution for pluralistic societies. This work aims, firstly, to analyze the principlist model, defined by Beauchamp and Childress in the book Principles of Biomedical Ethics (1979), in light of the current ethical debate and, specifically, in light of their reflective efforts to establish patterns for guiding public action, namely on issues arising in the context of biomedicine. Secondly, this research aims to identify the philosophical arguments that this model is based on, from its initial form to its most recent version. Thirdly, it focuses on testing the model’s application, critically assessing the authors’ proposals on how to respond to the issues raised by technical and scientific developments. It is only through the analysis of these different aspects that we can thoroughly assess the extent to which principlism can be understood as a model of moral deliberation which, as its proponents intended, is independent of the philosophical traditions of the agents who adopt it.